Where to launch

FSB scoured the country for towns that combine a great business environment with alluring leisure offerings. The result: our list of the 100 Best Places to Live and Launch.

Stick it to the IRS

Taxes are painful. To help you reduce the bite, FSB spoke with top experts and compiled this list of tips for businesses looking to beat the taxman.

Unlimited partnership

Why are more and more couples risking romance to launch a business together - and how do the successful ones make it work? Read on for their stories.

The next little thing

Sir Richard will help fund U.S. entrepreneurs, jetpacks will finally fly, and GPS devices will show the cheapest gas nearby - plus much more!

Inside the mind of a crazy (rich) entrepreneur

Scott Jones thinks up more ideas in a month than most folks do in a lifetime. Find out how he makes them pay.

Time to Goof Off

One of the new themes in time management workshops is to goof off  So, in honor of the Christmas Eve holiday, when those who are working are doing their best to try not to, here are the recommendations:

Read a book at work – the general idea here is that it’s not supposed to be the latest best selling novel – but if reading works better than staring at a computer when you are trying to learn something at work, then by all means do it.  I don’t actually consider this goofing, but I suppose you have to start somewhere.

Take frequent breaks — or longer ones - The suggestion here is to follow your instincts and take a break when you need one.  But, hey, aren’t we always getting annoyed at the smokers who we allege are taking “too many” breaks?  Noting that humans can only concentrate for about 45 minutes at a time, the smokers may be on to something.

Blow off low-priority tasks – My personal favorite.  "See if anyone notices or complains" How many times have you forgotten to send out that important memo and no one has noticed?

Ignore e-mails and voice mail – This is for all of your clients and co-workers who think email is IM – They email you and expect that you are sitting at your desk and expect that you will call them within the hour.   And, what about the ones that reply with  “Thanks” or “OK.”  Sorry, but those just clutter up my box.  And, my biggest pet peeve: those folks that automatically have their email set to request to “confirm receipt.”  For each of those I have to add a few more clicks to make all of those "thank you’s" and "OK’s" go away!

Set aside time to clear away the cobwebs - I guess you are supposed to cancel all meetings, diss your boss and clients, and ignore your employees.  Tell them you are observing “Cobweb Day” and see how they respond!

Goof off - According to the article, “Setting aside time to goof off at work can relieve stress, improve morale and even help with team building efforts. Most importantly, it can recharge workers who are in the midst of a long, stressful workday.”  But when you are cruising the web, playing games and hanging out on YouTube, make sure your IT and HR staff don’t catch you!

For the text of the full article:  Experts: Goof off at work, read a book, ignore e-mail

IRS Mileage Rate for 2009 Goes DOWN to 55 Cents

The IRS recently announced the mileage reimbursement rate for 2009.  It is going from 58.5 cents/mile this year down to 55 cents/mile next year.  Here are the details from the IRS announcement:

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2009, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

55 cents per mile for business miles driven

24 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes

14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations

The new rates for business, medical and moving purposes are slightly lower than rates for the second half of 2008 that were raised by a special adjustment mid-year in response to a spike in gasoline prices. The rate for charitable purposes is set by law and is unchanged from 2008.

The business mileage rate was 50.5 cents in the first half of 2008 and 58.5 cents in the second half. The medical and moving rate was 19 cents in the first half and 27 cents in the second half.

LINK:  IRS Announces 2009 Standard Mileage Rates

Final Rule on the Family & Medical Leave Act

The US Department of Labor recently issued its long-awaited Final Rule under the Family & Medical Leave Act.  The 200+ page document provides commentary and discussion regarding the proposed rules and the Departments rationale for the final rules provided.  There are significant changes to what already is a very technically complex and difficult statute.  To begin with, here is a very basic overview of some of areas of the law affected by the new rules.  There are a variety of training programs, seminars and overviews of these rules available as these changes are far too numerous and complex to include in a simple blog post.  We are working with our clients to help them understand these changes and modify their policies and practices accordingly.

For Military Personnel:

• Military Caregiver Leave (also known as Covered Servicemember Leave)
• Qualifying Exigency Leave
• Two new DOL certification forms that may be used by employees and employers to facilitate the certification requirements for the use of military family leave.

Changes to the Overall Regulations:

• Modification to penalty provisions
• Changes to the how Light Duty is treated in connection with FMLA
• Waivers of FMLA rights
• Six individual definitions of “Serious Health Condition”
• Substitution of paid leave for FMLA leave
• Attendance awards
• Employer and Employee Notice requirements
• The Medical Certification process
• Fitness for Duty Certifications

For more information on the Final Rule, follow these links:

An Overview:  DOL’s Final Rule on Family and Medical Leave

The DOL’s Final Rule Website

From the Federal Register:  The Family & Medical Leave Act of 1993; Final Rule

Americans With Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008

The new Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (ADA A) was signed into law in September and becomes effective on January 1, 2009. There are some interesting changes to judicial interpretations of the original law which many allege had watered down the protection available under the law. Therefore, the new amendments are generally tailored to reverse some of those holdings and some of the regulatory interpretation. Here is a basic overview of the changes:

• The EEOC must now revise its regulation which define the term "substantially limits";

• The Act expands the definition of "major life activities" by including two non-exhaustive lists, one relating to many currently recognized by the EEOC and one that relates to major bodily functions.

• Reverses judicial interpretation of the original law and now requires mitigating measures other than "ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses" cannot be considered in assessing whether an individual has a disability;

• Adds and clarifies that an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active;

• Clarifies and provides that individuals covered only under the "regarded as" prong are not entitled to reasonable accommodation; and

• Asserts that the definition of "disability" should be interpreted broadly.

For text of the law from the Congressional Record follow this link to The ADA Amendments Act of 2008

New York State WARN Act Now Law

New York State recently passed its very own "New York State Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act."   Many other states have enacted their own versions of this type of legislation and this one, like some of the others, is far more expansive than the Federal WARN.

Expected to take effect in February 2009, the law adds a new Article 25-A to the State Labor Law. Here are some of the general provisions:

• it requires employers with 50 or more full-time employees to provide at least 90 days notice to affected employees and representatives of affected employees, the New York State Department of Labor, and local workforce partners before ordering a mass layoff, relocation, or employment loss;
• it provides exceptions to the notice requirement, including that:
  1. the need for notice was not reasonably foreseeable at the time the notice would have been required;
  2. the employer was actively seeking capital or business at the time the notice was required and met certain other conditions; and
  3. the closing or layoff was due to a natural disaster;
• it makes an employer in violation of the article liable for back pay and other employee benefits for 60 days of the violation;
• it provides for a civil penalty of $500 per day of violation.

This law is in contrast to Federal WARN which:

• requires only 60 days notice;
• applies only to employers with 100 employees or more and requires a larger number of affected employees before the notice provisions are triggered; and
• it does not provide for administrative enforcement.