Business filing fee holiday extended through February

$1 business filing fees conclude Feb. 28

Denver, Colo. – Today, Secretary of State Scott Gessler announced the fee holiday for all online business filings and notaries public applications will continue through the end of February. Beginning March 1, these filings will revert to their previous rate or lower, while the non-profit fee holiday remains in place.

“This three-month fee holiday sends a message to local Coloradans and out-of-state businesses that we value their investment and aim to be responsible stewards of their filing fees,” Gessler said. “As we continue to develop our Business Efficiency Suite and soon our Business Information Center, filers will see streamlined access to their records and improved data for business development information.”

The Secretary of State's office takes no state taxpayer dollars. Its operations are funded primarily by filing fees from businesses and non-profits. While the business and notary fee holiday expires at the end of the month, the fee reductions for non-profit filings will continue. These fees will continue to be among the lowest in the country.

Name of Fee	Fees beginning Mar. 1, 2013
Notary Public Application Fee	$10
Periodic Report	$10
Articles of Organization or Incorporation	$50
Amend Articles of Organization or Incorporation	$25
Amend and Restate Articles of Organization or Incorporation	$25
Conversion of Entity Statements	$50
Dissolve or Withdraw an Entity	$25
Reinstatement's	$100
Statement of Change (online)	$10
Statement of Correction (online)	$10
Reservation of Name	$25
Reserved Name Transfer	$25
Reserved Name Renewal	$25
Trade Name Statement	$20
Trade Name Renewal	$5
Trade Name Withdrawal	$10
Trademark Registration	$30
Trademark Transfer	$10
Trademark Renewal	$10
Trademark Withdrawal	$10
Foreign Entity Authority Statement	$100
Foreign Entity Authority Withdrawal	$125
Statement of Registration of True Name	$25
Renewal of Registration of True Name	$25
UCC Statement	$8
UCC Amendments	$8

A New Option For Calculating the Home Office Deduction

If you work from home for business, the IRS has potentially provided you with some relief in the form of less paperwork required to claim the home office deduction. You may soon be able to claim the home office deduction based on a simple calculation.

The home office deduction
The rules for claiming a home office deduction will be staying the same. You still must regularly and exclusively use a portion of your home for your business to qualify (reference: IRS Publication 587). However, instead of claiming the deduction by completing the 43 line Form 8829, taxpayers may soon be able to complete a significantly simpler form. Specifically, the home office deduction is calculated at $5 per square foot. There’s a catch though. Taxpayers will only be able to use this simple option if their home expenses do not exceed $1,500 or 300 square feet. In addition, the new option won’t be available until the 2013 tax year, which you’ll be filing in the beginning of 2014.

What about depreciation, mortgage interest, real estate taxes and other expenses?
You still will be able to claim these expenses as an itemized deduction on Schedule A of your form 1040. In addition, these deductions do not need to be allocated between personal and business use, as is the case with the regular method.  However, you won’t be able to claim any depreciation expense as an itemized deduction, which is allowed under the regular method.

What should I do for my 2013 tax return?
If you run a home-based business, then you need to assess whether the $5 per square foot calculation will be more or less than the $1,500 limit. If it’s below the limit and you don’t have significant depreciation expenses, then it may make a lot of sense to use the new simple form. If the amount is well over $1,500 and/or you have large depreciation expenses, then going through the old Form 8829 will probably be your best option.

What's the best method for our business?
You should work on a mixture of the above, but start with online advertising as that's easiest method to generate leads quickly. You'll need to be mindful of your daily spend, but leads should come through that channel.

CDOT Workshop

The San Luis Valley SBDC and CDOT invite you to attend a FREE training opportunity that will teach you the basics of subcontracting on CDOT highway construction projects and becoming certified as an Emerging Small Business (ESB). These two workshops are designed for small business construction contractors and design/engineering firms that are interested in working with CDOT.  

Responsible Subcontracting Workshop

Learn how to successfully perform as a CDOT subcontractor. Topics include; working with prime contractors, negotiating subcontracts, understanding project specifications, subcontractor requirements, contractor compliance, and more. CDOT Resident Engineers will be on hand to provide advice and answer questions.

Date:             Thursday, February 21, 2013

Time:             10:00am – 12:00pm

Location:       Alamosa County Administrative Building

           8900-A Independence Way

           Alamosa, CO 81101

Presenters:   Ed Archuleta, CDOT

ESB Program Orientation

This session provides and overview of the CDOT Emerging Small Business (ESB) Program including certification requirements, benefits and incentives. It will be conducted as an interactive group webinar. Attendance is a mandatory requirement for ESB Certification.

Date:             Thursday, February 21, 2013

Time:             1:30pm – 3:00pm

Location:       Alamosa County Administrative Building

           8900-A Independence Way

           Alamosa, CO 81101

Presenters:   Cathy Kramer, Connect2DOT Program Manager

                       Katherine Williams, CDOT 

**NOTE- You may also attend the ESB webinar from your Internet-connected computer by registering online at:   esb211.eventbrite.com

RSVP with Donna Wehe at 719-589-3682 or donna@slv-sbdc.com

New Coffee Shop Opens in Alamosa

Need a place to hang out late at night?  A place to meet up with friends that serves coffee and ice cream?  Grove Street Coffee and Ice Cream is the newest café in town, also serving delicious baked goods.  They are located in the Valley Plaza, near the split of the one-way pairs off of Highway 160 across from ASU’s theater.  Owners Maxwell and Erica, along with their friend Nick, have put their heart and soul into a place named after Detroit’s Old Blues Clubs’ District.  “I have fond memories of frequenting the clubs listening to the bands and always wanted to name my business Grove Street.  I’m so excited,” said Max, “I am selling ice cream in Alamosa when it’s only two degrees outside!” 

When asked what his number one request has been, he said, “Open Mic,” especially from the supportive theater and music students on campus.  Max’s mom is the Administrator at Juniper Village and every time he came to visit over the past several years, he thought, “There is a lot of opportunity here for new business ideas.”  He and Erica not only signed up as Small Business Development Center (589-3682) clients, but enrolled and graduated from the Leading Edge program.  They developed their business plan and marketing ideas while working with local contractor, Ken Wagner, while remodeling the location.  “Ken has been the best construction guy I’ve ever worked with.  I also need to thank Electrician Gary Malmberg and Plumber Paul Steffens, and all three are my best customers.” 

They have plans to put up local art to decorate the walls and are developing relationships with their repeat customers.  “Most of my advertising has been my sign and on Facebook.  We hit our break-even numbers the first week we were open.” 

                They are considering extending their hours of operation, but for now, it is M-Th: 7a.m.-11 p.m, Friday: 7 am – 1 a.m, Sat: 10 am – 1 am, Sun: 10 am-10 pm.  As someone said at the Chamber Business Networking event, “With a name like Maxwell, you should be running a coffee business.”  Max or Erica can be reached at (719) 209-3198 or at www.facebook.com/GroveStreetCoffee.