Zortec Business Tax– 2015
Local Government Corporation
Local Government Responsibility & Tips
Business Tax
Presentation created by
Shanna Boyette – City of Shelbyville
Changes in Business Tax
● Rate change in 2002
● Public Chapter 530 (2009)
● Public Chapter 313 (2013)
Uniformity and Small Business Relief Act of 2013
Change is Inevitable
Progress is Optional –Tony Robbins
What is the Local Government’s Responsibility in
regards to Business Tax?
● To collect registration fee of $15.00 on Regular
License and issue Regular License
● To issue Minimal Activity License, collect $15.00
Activity fee
● To invoice for Minimal Activity License yearly
● To issue Transient Vendor License
● To import and export computer files to and from the
State
● To maintain accurate records-Clerk Responsibility
Why is the process important?
Potential Loss of
Revenue at the Local
and State levels
How do Local Government(s) maintain accurate
business tax records?
What process can Clerks & Recorders use?
Requires us to
Think Different - Steve Jobs
Tips for Daily Business Tax Transactions
● Process Clearance Files sent from the State Daily
● Use the Reports to update computer records
Email, Addresses, Phone Numbers, Owner info
● Use Note fields to document information specific
to an account.
● Help Business Owners Register with the State
TIPS (continued)
● Create change files and send back to the
State-Daily
● Send State New Files Daily when applicable
What do we do when information is
missing from State files?
Frustration although
quite painful at times is
a very positive essential
part of success.
- Bo Bennett
What do we do when information is
missing from State files?
● View the Report and Identify the Error
Message
● If account number of tax period is blankCreate a Spreadsheet
SCENARIOS
What would you do?
Business Owner contacts the office
demanding a business license for a tax
period that hasn’t been to sent to the local
office by the State. What do you do?
A. Issue a business license as requested
B. Issue a business license as the owner has
proof of payment
C. Tell the owner to call the State
D. Contact the State and Request a Certificate of
Clearance
A Business Owner contacts the office
because the business classification is
incorrect.
What do we do?
A. Ignore It
B. Change It
C. Notify the State
When importing/receiving files from the
State, What do we do when the files
contain missing information?
A. Import and Ignore the missing information
B. Call the State to inquire on missing information
C. Create a spreadsheet using software to see
missing information on new, change, and clearance
files.
What do we do when we receive notice
from the State that a Business is closed and
it is in fact still Active?
A. Import, Change, and Send Back
B. Call the Business Owner and Notify
C. Nothing
City Responsibility
Minimal Activity License
Minimal Activity License
● Invoice beginning Jan. 2015
● Notice Option Added to Print License Notices
● 15.00 Activity Fee
Minimal Activity License
Can Business status change from Minimal to
Regular? Yes
Can State and Local office collect a Minimal Fee?
Local yes, State no-In Progress
*New and Change files are essential to eliminate
duplicate payment
Printing Minimal Activity Notices
Minimal Activity
O for Only Minimal
I for Include Minimal
E for Exclude Minimal
(Only Regular)
A little more about Minimal Activity Licenses
1. Can be collected by city or state
2. The $15 annual fee is kept by city (not on State
Annual Report.)
3. For renewals, confirm that the business still grossed
less than $10,000.
4. Renewal letters will not be sent by the state.
A few more things
1. Verifying Periods and Dates
2. State FTP Storage
3. Duplicate Businesses
4. Screen 13 Reminder
5. State Website Access
Verifying Periods and Dates
The majority of your renewals and new business
licenses should be for 2016 period.
Period End = Paying on collections thru
State FTP Storage
We’ve been told that the state would be clearing out
files on the FTP site which are older than 60 days.
Duplicate Businesses
When a business registers with you, the state
will send the file back to you with the state
account number. This often creates a duplicate
business.
You will always want to keep your record
because it has the $15 Initial License and
correct/complete information.
Missing Type – is a sure sign these
were imported from the state file.
Businesses numbered with
the next available number
Businesses numbered above
990000000
1. Update your local record with
the State Business Number and
Fiscal Year End.
2. Check Screen 3 for any renewals
3. Delete the Business imported
from the state file
.
Contact leftover imported businesses
to come in and registered.
After deleting the duplicate businesses, the remaining
businesses have registered at the state but have not
registered with the city.
Screen 13 Reminder
ID Type specifies whether the
federal employer ID number or
the social security number is in
the next field. 1-FEIN , 2-SSN
Owner Type is the type of ownership
for the owner.
1-Member
2-Officer
3-Partner
4-Owner/Individual
5-Owner/Company
6-Contractor
Do you need access to the state
website for clearance website?
The contact is Jane Lacy (615) 532-6164. You will need
to fill out and sign disclosure forms and then Jane will
forward their information to their IT department to
generate login credentials.
This concludes our presentation for today
Questions?
Bye
Bye!