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Is Your Business Safe From Cybercrime?

How secure are your small business assets from fraud, identity theft and cybercrime?

According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE),companies with less than 100 employees lose approximately $155,000 as a result of fraud each year. Small businesses also have a higher fraud rate than larger companies and non-business owners. One of the most frequent sources of fraud is credit card abuse – largely due to the fact that few business owners actually take the time to go through every line item on their bill or choose to mingle business and personal accounts.

Other sources of fraud stem from an overall lack of security across the business – such as inadequate network and computer security and a lack of background checks when hiring employees.

Click here to learn more.

Posted by Matthew Pavelek at 05/16/2013 06:10 AM

Attention women vetrepreneurs! New program will increase contracting opportunities for women-owned businesses.

American Express OPEN, the small business division of the financial services company, announced a new partnership with the U.S Small Business Administration (SBA) and Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) to help boost government contracting opportunities for women-owned small businesses. The new initiative, called ChallengeHER, will deliver free events and workshops, online curriculum, mentoring and access to government buyers to provide women entrepreneurs with the knowledge and connections they need to successfully compete in the government marketplace.

"At SBA, one of our top priorities is making sure that more qualified women-owned, veteran-owned and minority-owned small businesses have access to government and commercial supply chain opportunities," said SBA Administrator Karen Mills. "Women-owned businesses are one of the fastest-growing segments of new businesses in our economy, and the ChallengeHER initiative will help connect these entrepreneurs with the tools and contracting opportunities they need to grow, drive innovation and create jobs."

Click here to learn more.

Posted by Matthew Pavelek at 04/24/2013 02:32 PM

Attention Indiana Vetrepreneurs

Indiana Governor Michael Pence issued Executive Order 13-04 establishing the Veteran Business Enterprise Preference presumption. The Executive Order states the DOA shall undertake efforts to increase contracting opportunities for Indiana veteran-owned businesses by setting a goal to procure 3 percent of state contracts with such companies.

The proclamation also states that the Commissioner of DOA shall develop procurement policies and procedures to give effect to the “Veteran Business Enterprise Preference” presumption. Such policies and procedures, which shall e subject to the Governor's approval, shall set forth the guidelines to be followed by state agencies in conducting their procurement efforts on the vasis of the "Veteran Business Enterprise Preference" presumption.

The DOA shall also proulgate rules and, if necessary, recommend such legislative reform as may be necessary to implement more fully the presumption.

The Executive ORder is not to be deemed to authorize any state agency to conduct its purchasing functions in a manner contrary to applicable law, nor create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by any person against the State, its agencies or instrumentalities, its officers or employees, or any other person.

Posted by Len Vermillion at 04/19/2013 09:48 AM

Don’t forget about the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit

The Affordable Care Act helps bring down costs for small employers through the tax credit available to eligible small businesses that provide health care insurance to their employees.

Here’s what you need to know about eligibility and how to claim the credit.

What is the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit?

Currently the maximum tax credit is 35 percent for small business employers and 25 percent for small tax-exempt employers (e.g., charities and non-profits). This percentage applies to tax years 2010 through 2013. Even better – in 2014 the credit will increase to 50 percent for eligible small business employers and to 35 percent for tax-exempt employers through the new Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) Marketplaces (also known as Exchanges).

The credit can also be carried back or forward to other tax years. Also, since the amount of the health insurance premium payments are more than the total credit, eligible small businesses can still claim a business expense deduction for the premiums in excess of the credit. That’s both a credit and a deduction for employee premium payments.

Click here to learn more.

Posted by Matthew Pavelek at 04/15/2013 01:23 PM

Vetrepreneur Friendly in Pennsylvania

"We want veteran-owned small businesses to know that they have a friend in Pennsylvania," so says DeShawn Lewis, director of the Bureau of Small Business Opportunities, with the Department of General Services (DGS). "Our Program is relatively new and we are making an all-out effort to spread the word on the opportunity that we are offering for our veteran and service-disabled veteran small businesses."

Last year, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett signed into law, Act 185 of 2012, which establishes an initiative for assisting veteran-owned businesses in pursuit of state bidding opportunities and sets a statewide annual goal of 3 percent participation in state contracts. Act 185 follows on the heels of an Executive Order issued by the Governor in2011, which directed state agencies to increase opportunities for veteran and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.

In order to participate, veteran-owned small businesses must first self-certify as a small business by going online and filing out a streamlined application. The whole process can be completed in 20 minutes," Lewis says. The small business certification immediately enables veteran-owned businesses to start competing on reserved small business bidding opportunities as prime contractors.

To gain full advantage of what the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has to offer, veteran-owned small businesses are strongly encouraged to proceed to the next step, which is to become"verified" as a veteran-owned or service-disabled veteran-owned small business by presenting certification of their veteran status through the Department's verification process. At present, the Department accepts VetBiz certifications issued by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs. All a veteran-owned small business needs to do is present a copy of their determination letter verifying their veteran-owned status and they can be listed on DGS's database within days. "This makes the veteran-owned business eligible to participate in a wide range of sub contracting opportunties from construction to information technology," Lewis says.

Interested veteran-owned and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses are strongly encouraged to learn more by visiting the DGS small business website at www.smallbusiness.pa.gov, or by contacting the Bureau of Small Business Opportunities at 717-783-3119; e-mail adress: RA-smallbusiness@pa.gov.

Posted by Len Vermillion at 04/12/2013 02:52 PM

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