Wisconsin employers must pay a special assessment to the Wisconsin Department of Labor. Wisconsin’s Unemployment Trust Fund became insolvent in the fall of 2009. As a result, Wisconsin began borrowing funds from the federal government. Interest on these loans was waived through 2010. In 2011, the agency will be levying a special assessment on Wisconsin employers.

The assessment will be a flat percentage of taxable wages reported in tax year 2010. The agency has not yet announced the amount of the percentage; it will depend on the amount of interest that must be repaid to the federal government.

Employers will be billed directly for this assessment on or about August 1, 2011. The assessment must be paid by August 31, 2011. This assessment is paid outside the normal state unemployment insurance (SUI) return process.

Contact Pat Wirth, Partner, Chortek & Gottschalk with questions.

Financial Protection for Their Tomorrows.  Nothing can make more sense and little is more important. 

The majority of adults in our society either have no life insurance or far too little.  For the majority of those it's either too late due to health reason or too expensive due to age.  The best time to buy life insurance is at the youngest possible age while in the best possible health.  It will never be less expensive than at that time.

Regardless of age, everyone needs life insurance protection.  For children this need is not measured by current financial obligation, but by what the future will hold.  Starting a child with a permanent life insurance program at a very early age while also providing a tax deferred annuity savings element for whatever future needs she or he may have is a sound financial decision.

Not only will a life insurance policy financially protect the parents of the child, it could be given as a gift to the child when he or she reaches adulthood for his or her use of cash values, or as a policy to protect the financial well being of his or her own family.

Few things in life offer parents and grandparents such an affordable way to leave such an incredible legacy for the ones they love. 

Call Jim Herro to learn more about a great protection program offered by one of the most financially sound insurers in the industry.  It costs nothing to learn more.  262-719-8384.

It’s a common question and a good one.  When you rent a car and damage it, the rental company will hold you liable for the cost of the physical damage as well as Loss of Use and Diminished Value charges, depending on what is in the rental agreement.  It can be very expensive. 

Loss of Use is the rental company’s lost income while a damaged car is being repaired. Courts have ruled that rental companies can only charge for loss of use if they have no other vehicles available to rent. 

The rental company may also come after you for diminished value. The car you have damaged is no longer worth what it was prior to the accident (even after it’s repaired) and the rental company wants to recover the difference. 

Physical damage, Loss of Use and Diminished value. If you have full coverage on your auto policy the physical damage portion of the rental companies claim against you will be covered. Protection from Loss of Use and Diminished Value might not be offered by your insurer. They might be offered as optional coverage that need to be added to your policy.

Although it can be expensive, the easiest path may be to take the rental companies insurance. Just be sure it protects you from what’s been covered here. 

TIP: If you are signing the rental contract be sure to list anyone on the trip with you as a “permitted driver” just in case they drive. 

Jim Herro is an independent insurance agent offering access to 40 top insurers.  To learn more go to his member page on this website.

There is a popular misconception that anytime you buy a car (new or used) you are automatically covered and have up to 30 days to ask your agent to add it to your policy.

There are a few twists.

If your insurance policy renews within the 30 days you need to add the new vehicle prior to the renewal date. 

Example: You buy a new car on May 1st and your policy renews on May 8th.  You forget to tell your agent about the new vehicle; are you covered?

Yes you are covered but only until May 7th. 

Another twist…

You buy a brand new 2011 model to replace that 12 year old beast that finally gave out.  Again, you don’t report it to your agent right away and before you do you’re in an accident with your new car.

You are still within the 30 days, you call your agent to report the claim and get some very bad news.  The car you replaced had liability only coverage.  The rule is that although you have 30 days you only have the coverage you had on the vehicle you replaced.

You have liability coverage, but on your own on the cost of repairing your car. 

The morale of the story is kind of obvious but I’ll state it anyway.  When you buy a different vehicle, call your agent right away to have it added to your policy with the appropriate coverage.

Go to the Members list to learn about Jim Herro and the service he provides.

According to PAYCHEX...

Employment law – The United States Department of Labor and many states have enacted or are considering measures to provide greater transparency to workers on the wages they are owed, especially in key areas such as minimum wage and overtime requirements, and to increase penalties on those who fail to pay their workers the compensation they are entitled.

IRS enforcement – To help collect more tax revenue in this era of budget deficits, the IRS is ramping up its enforcement efforts in several areas. In 2010, the IRS kicked off an employment-tax audit program that will carry into 2011. These audits are focusing on employee misclassification, executive compensation, fringe benefits, and adherence to general employment tax filing requirements. Further, the IRS is accelerating efforts to increase tax compliance among employees who collect tips.

At Unique Solutions we offer cost-effective, software solutions that will integrate with most payroll programs to collect and manage workforce data and help insure regulatory compliance. According to a recent survey over 80% of businesses are at risk of in an enforcement audit. Talk to us about your situation before the auditors come calling. Don't become a non-compliance statistic. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 262-782-1901

Dean Pearson - Unique Solutions

It seems that almost all gadgets these days can charge from a USB port, but we need adapters to connect them to our wall outlets. This innovative company, FastMac, has come up with a solution -- add two USB ports to a wall socket. As I plan the building of our new home, I have added these to my parts list for sockets near each likely chair for my iPhone, HTC EVO, headsets... Who knows how many devices might connect to these over the life of the home. What about LED Christmas light strings? They're $19.95 as I write this and made in America.

Rob Hudson | Vivosity Consulting, LLC |  Your online effectiveness personal trainer.