(Photo above courtesy of socialmonsters.org)
Running your own business is a tough job. Yes, you’re the boss which also means you have to answer to the IRS, not to mention its equivalent in Salem.
You may be missing out on some nice tax breaks, though. Oregon is trying to stay competitive with the rest of the region (not to mention globally) and therefore offering some tax incentives that can benefit your business and perhaps even help you become more competitive.
Be Employee-Friendly
These two incentives that can directly help you attract and keep the best employees.
• Help employees with child care expenses. If you find highly qualified candidates prefer competitors they say are more family-friendly, consider this: you can get a 50 percent tax credit if you help with their child care expenses. Only 20 states offer this incentive, which can be used up to $2,500 per employee per year, according to the state Office of Child Care.
• Support research interests. How about giving your employees the opportunity to delve into research that fulfills their professional interests and expands your company’s knowledge base? Oregon supports certain kinds of research the federal government supports in these areas: advanced computing, advanced materials, biotechnology, electronic device technology, environmental technology and straw utilization. See page two of the tax form for more details.
Entertainment Tax Breaks
When was the last time you had some time to enjoy when you weren’t thinking about work or what you “should” be doing?
The IRS allows businesses, and even self-employed people, to deduct business-related entertainment expenses. Just make sure there is proper documentation such as the date and place of the event and the business relationship of the people involved.
Let’s say you’re traveling to Seattle to meet with potential customers or investors, or to attend a trade show. Pick up a few Seahawks tickets and take the VIPs with you. Buy from a reliable source like Ticketmaster, which runs an NFL Exchange for businesses. Purchasing here will ensure your purchase is documented.
If you’re staying closer to home and are into the other kind of football, Major League Soccer’s Timbers get good Yelp reviews. And how ’bout those Ducks and Blazers?
As long as these activities come right before or after a legitimate business meeting or conversation, they are allowable. There’s an understanding that a business pitch is more likely to happen when it’s connected to entertainment. So keep receipts related to the actual conversations and venues where they took place as well.
Do the Right Thing
Oregon also encourages business to take steps that boost the community, like hiring people from disadvantaged groups and making environmentally-supportive investments.
• The Work Opportunity Tax Credit rewards business who hire veterans, from families receiving TANF or SNAP funds, referred from a Vocational Rehabilitation Agency, and from a few other groups classified as disadvantaged.
• There are several incentives for business property owners to use renewable energy sources. For example, up to 35 percent of the cost of an investment in renewable energy can be written off under the state’s Energy Conservation Tax Credit.
