27 February

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Beneficial Ownership Registration Currently Due March 21, 2025

After ups and downs in the court system, beneficial ownership registration with the federal government is again required. After being paused again by the courts, the new reporting deadline is March 21, 2025. Most businesses are required to file their beneficial ownership with the federal government. This requirement is for businesses that were formed prior to 2025 (regardless of the year in which they were established) and those that were already formed in 2025. If you form a business in the future, you are subject to this reporting requirement. Beneficial owners are those individuals who ultimately own or control the...

06 February

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Domestic Violence Survivors Rights as Employees

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Domestic violence does not discriminate. It impacts every race, religion, socioeconomic class, age, disability, occupation, gender, sexual orientation, family type, rural communities, urban communities, and education level. Its economic impact just in the United States is more than $8 billion dollars per year. Employees who are victims-survivors of domestic violence have rights under Minnesota and federal law. This article focuses on the rights under Minnesota law. Minnesota’s paid sick and safe time (ESST) covers employees who are victims-survivors of domestic violence. One of the six categories that employees can use ESST for is absences due to domestic abuse, sexual assault or...

20 December

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Minnesota Secure Choice Retirement Program

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Starting January 1, 2025, private employers, including non-profits, with five or more employees that has been engaged in business in Minnesota for at least a year and who do not currently offer a retirement plan will be required to allow employees (18 years of age and older) to participate in Minnesota’s Secure Choice Retirement Program (“Retirement Program”). The option for employees is to participate in either a pre-tax IRA or after-tax Roth IRA. However, employees can opt out of participation. With an opt-out provision, it is important that the employer has documentation in writing from the employee that the employee...

27 November

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Estate Planning Pitfalls

Posted by Evon Spangler

in Uncategorized

An estate plan generally consists of a will and/or trust, a health care directive and a power of attorney. In estate planning, you want to make certain that you are planning for how your assets are managed and your bills are paid during your lifetime, and also planning for the possibility of incapacity or incompetency. As part of putting together an estate plan, it is important that your estate planning goals are not contradicted by other documents that you have completed. Hypothetical #1: Your goal is to have all of your assets being transferred to your children upon your death. Your...

13 November

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Employment Laws

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Are you aware that certain employers in Minnesota starting on January 1, 2025, will be required to state, amongst other requirements, salary ranges or fixed hourly rates in job postings? Are you aware that certain employers in Minnesota starting on January 1, 2025, will be required to state a general description of all benefits and other compensation and salary ranges or fixed hourly rates in job postings? Are you aware that the legislature in 2024 made changes to Minnesota’s Earned Sick and Safe Leave? Are you aware that the legislature in 2024 made changes to Minnesota’s Earned Sick and Safe Leave including allowing...

24 October

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Federal and State Business Registration

Posted by Evon Spangler

in Uncategorized

Time is running out on registering your business beneficial ownership information with the federal government. Beneficial owners are those individuals who ultimately own or control the business entity. Currently, you must register this information on or before January 1, 2025 for businesses that were in existence prior to January 1, 2024. For businesses formed in 2024, the business entity has 90 days from the date of registration with the Secretary of State (SOS) office (or a similar office under the law of the State or tribal nation) to report beneficial ownership information. The website to report this information is www.fincen.gov/boi. In...

26 September

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The Mistake of a Business Owner Regarding Failing to Plan

Posted by Evon Spangler

in Uncategorized

Life can change in a split second. An unexpected heart attack. A serious car accident. A fire. A natural disaster. Cognitive impairment. Those are all examples that happen every day. We like to believe it isn’t a reality for any of us. Until it is. With the every day issues that come up in a business owner’s life, where sometimes we feel overwhelmed, it is difficult to make planning for natural disasters, “acts of God,” incapacity or incompetency, or death a priority. It is important to make it a priority. Doing so, will give you, your family and your employees...

11 September

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Piercing the Corporate Veil – Business Owner Tips

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Are you aware that under certain circumstances, a court can pierce your corporate veil, which means that your personal assets are subject to being used to pay your business debt? Are you aware that there are several factors that a court looks at in determining whether or not your corporate veil will be pierced? Are you aware that failure to observe corporate formalities, nonfunctioning officers and directors and absence of corporate records are some of the factors the court looks at in determining whether or not your corporate veil will be pierced? Are you aware that insufficient capitalization, nonpayment of dividends, and siphoning...

22 August

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The Mistake of a Business Owner Regarding Co-Mingling

Posted by Evon Spangler

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It is essential that you keep each business entity’s operations separate from the other. If you start co-mingling assets, most likely you will have waived your corporate veil. If your business entity does not have a corporate veil, the business assets of Company A can be subject to be seized to pay the judgment of Company B and your personal assets can be seized to pay the entity’s judgments. It is prudent that you operate each business entity separately and that you do not co-mingle the operations of different business entities to avoid piercing of the corporate veil. Hypothetical: Rosa’s Red Roses,...

07 August

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Earned Sick and Safe Time

Posted by Evon Spangler

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Commencing January 1, 2024, Minnesota businesses had to provide earned sick and safe leave (ESST) to its employees. Prior to January 1, 2024, employers had to provide notice to its employees as to its ESST policy. In the 2024 legislative session, the Minnesota legislature made several changes (this article is not comprehensive) to the ESST law. Therefore, if you have not modified your policy since the 2024 legislative session, you are most likely not in compliance with the law. Covered Employees: ESST must be provided to employees who are anticipated to work for an employer in Minnesota for at least 80...