Medlin Software, Dennis

Cannot directly answer, but, since I used to not always note my travels well, but never forget my cell phone, I allowed Google to track me. Maybe the client has allowed (or not disables) the "timeline" function in Google Maps...

The box has been required to be on official forms since TY 2016. I am not aware of the actual specifics, but it is likely something agreed on by the big players, generated by the software, and somehow shared with the SSA so what is on the form can be verified. It is likely a voluntary item the stakeholders came up with.

At least 10 years. The experts say it will take about 10 years to rebuild the lost homes (10% per year is the rate for this large of a disaster). Those who do not have an inside track to a builder may be without their home for a long long time, and their insurance may only cover the first 12 to 24 months of additional living expenses. Something to ponder.

All at Medlin, and our families, were unharmed during the recent fires. How prepared are you to bug out? How prepared are you to start over with nothing but what you carried on your person? --- One of our friends had literally no time to escape, beyond getting self and pets in a vehicle and driving through smoke and embers. Find out how to sign up for your local emergency notification system. Do not depend on getting a phone call, or an wide cast alert on your cell or landline. Be proactive and sign up for something which your authorities will be able to use. Be prepared for no notice at all... If you have a locked gate (such as in a rural area, at the end of your driveway) make sure the authorities know the access code (do not use a key lock!). Just as authorities cannot make you leave, it appears they do not have authority to cut locks to warn you to leave. Check your insurance. Your agent will be (should be) glad to go over scenarios with you. Don't forget to consider your temporary housing needs, and such housing may be some distance from your usual residence. In the case of our fires, so much housing was lost, and so little empty housing exists, many will be forced hours away from their residence area, and likely their place/area of work. --- Personally, we left the area under advisory evacuation, and due to the air quality. A few tweaks are still needed to our personal process, but we were close to being fully functional while leaving in minutes. Our main risk is earthquake, which is not so much a bug out, as a how can we get by for a few days on our own for all needs. Evacuating is not something we planned for. We had supplies ready, and were able to pack easily, but a few things were not as easy to get as they should and could be. If we simply had to escape, we would have been fine, though not because of planning. Lesson noticed and learned...

If taxation made sense, we would be out of work. Not that I prefer complication...

This forum is public, and can be mined. The private forum is not (at least as easily) public. Not that I post anything I would not mind my customers reading.

I choose to use the electronic payment methods. I have a separate bank account, only used for these items, and automatically transfer just enough balance to cover the bills (with a small cushion). I may or may not just returned from salmon fishing with my son and FIL, and may or may not have paid bills and worked from the boat, RV, rest stop, etc. I would not have options such as a fishing trip, without electronic banking and remote access. I can't remember when I started epay for bills, so it has to be the early '90's. I only have one which cannot be electronically paid, likely because a powerful public employee union protects the 3 or 4 local clerk jobs (for those who pay in person) when they gave in and allowed a centralized processor for mail in checks. To be more exact, I believe the item can be paid electronically, but there is a fee, and must be automatic (I happen to prefer to manually trigger the payments).

Just like "security" software which keeps pushing out "false positives" as a not so subtle reminder they are "protecting" you, so you will renew. Theft out of my pocket, as we hear often from someone who gets a false positive, stating they were going to order, but cannot trust us, when the actual problem is the user not keeping their "security" software current, or the "security" software simply being wrong (for a profit). Thank goodness there are now many free "security" programs (they really are not, they really just serve as a backup should you do something you should not), which are far more accurate than the paid offerings. VirusTotal is also a good way to quickly check something against the day's current security signatures en masse. As awful as identity theft is, if one is prepared, it is not really a life changer. Not easy to deal with, but it can be dealt with (not defending the error, just making a point). One of our kids has a VERY common name, and has many incorrect items shown on a credit report. He deals with it as needed, without constant worry. In face to face needs of credit (renting an apartment for example), the other party can fairly easily see and understand the problem. The "instant" online machine generated approvals, not so much, but that can be a good thing, since those items are usually high interest types of credit. To go even further, without getting into all the details, I know of a few folks who have been issued a new SSN (for reasons not including identity theft), which is WAY more trouble than incorrect credit reporting.

The breach started at least as early as mid MAY. The discovery date is said to be July 29. A few days later, a few employees sold at least part of their stock (terrible timing at best). Public found out in early September. Some delay is normal, to give folks a change to investigate, but waiting an entire month seems excessive. It will be interesting to see how this washes out. With the information they have custody of, and the common sense (not that it exists often) knowledge of their being a prime target, one would think there would be constant checking, so there would be zero cases of more than 2 months of an open door to data. The real lesson is still to remember nothing is perfect, so anticipate, plan for, and insure for failure.

The data was compromised months ago. Any damage was already done, and not yet widely connected to the specific breach. I choose to take what appears to be a minority view. I accept my data is public (since it likely already is), and take appropriate steps to monitor and have backup plans in place for the few days it takes to repair damage. This is a result of having several cards compromised over the years. Have not had a credit report issue - with the now exception of one son asking me a few days ago to help clear some incorrect items off his reports (probably a common name issue, not fraud).

The value of peace of mind (yours) is something no customer would be willing to pay. It is an easy thing to come to realize, sometimes a bit tougher to enforce. I do not see this as getting crankier (at any age), just wiser than most. Of course, wisdom usually comes with age and experience... or in some cases, by accepting the advice of those with more of either. I always internally cringe when someone says "the customer is always right". In reality, a particular customer's opinion/goal is not always mine. The most recent is a customer who insists they want to process a client payroll which I can show (via IRS rulings) is not proper. My customer keeps saying they have differing rulings (which have yet to be shared with me). I have to look at my customers as a whole, and not make it any easier to do something I know is not proper, but remain ready and willing to review the opposing IRS rulings, should there actually be any shared.

With employees (assuming a separate entity is setup), make sure if there are any who work at both locations (will likely come up sometime, so prepare in advance), that they need to be "hired" by the other location, and they need to be treated completely separately. Do not get caught using one paycheck for both places, not having separate paperwork (I9, new hire report, etc) at each location, etc. Since they will want to have the two entities completely separate, they really need to be, including payroll processes. Things to watch for/talk over: Garnishments (make sure to only apply it to the business which received it), OT (two businesses, employee could work 8 hours a day at each, with no OT), WC rates (if low at the existing shop, it will likely be more at the new shop), how the owner gets compensated from each, and so on. -- I was going to spout on certain upcoming CA ammunition laws, but it gets me too riled up, so I try not to think about it...

Me? Hold the checks until the day the DD posts. Pay before the 8th day after the period end. Some payroll vets say the solution is to mail the checks the day the DD is sent to the bank, which makes the arrive about the same time. Looking at what could be the HI current regs (I do not trust the reference, since HI is not always keen on keeping current online), the pay lag may be moot. One part says within 7 days, one says within 15 days. Having the conflicting statements could negate both. http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/vol07_ch0346-0398/hrs0388/HRS_0388-0002.htm --- And I am also on the side of employers doing only what is required, nothing more, nothing less. Perfect case of "no good deed goes unpunished". Employee says please DD to for me - employer agrees. Later, employee claims they did not get their pay, since soon to be ex spouse was faster to clean out the account. Employer may win the case, but defense is not free. Many employers think DD is cheaper and easier, when the opposite is true. Not only the actual hard costs of processing, but the time to setup, admin, and audit another pay method... The one case where it makes sense (to me) is if the employer self prepares payroll, and is in a local where they can require all to DD. This gives the employer the ability to prepare and pay off site, removing the need for a system to create and distribute on site. Huge value to the employer to be able to handle business from the beach! --- A loan stipulation based on having DD sounds like a payday loan shark who sets up an auto withdrawal. Agreed, none of the employer's concern. Falls in line with the employees who ask for proof of wages and future employment (beyond a tax return signed under penalty of perjury) as a means for the lender to hook the employer in the liability chain. Lenders will often offer a lower rate for auto payment - I personally have not seen one based on how I get money in my accounts.

Thank you to the OP for posting. While I cannot add to what the others have responded, I appreciate the reminder we are not alone with these types of things - that sometimes saying no and suggesting seeking someone who specializes in the issue (without giving a specific referral) is the best course.

We almost exclusively deal with charge cards. We have shopped around many times over the years. Currently, we use the service available through Costco. Fees are reasonable, service is excellent. The main issue for volume card acceptance is not what the processor advertises as their rate, but the fact that many affinity cards cost much more (the high rewards from some cards are not free, the merchant has to pay, which actually affects those not using a high reward card). For a volunteer group I am a part of, we use a smart phone reader. Since it is not high volume, not all the time, the fees are reasonable enough to tolerate. Ignoring the per transaction fee, since they are fairly fixed: Since some cards can be processed at less than 2%, and some are more than 3%, services like PayPal can be profitable charging just under 3%. For lower volume, this is the way to go, so your cost is predictable. For high volume, using a service which accounts for and charges based on the card is the cheapest, but takes some getting used to, to avoid thinking they are overcharging you on some items. The difference in charge card fees is why brick and mortar stores always default to debit (if you have a combined card).

I can divert too :), thanks for listening. What I could write about adoption would come off as a complainer. Instead, I will say that with perseverance, the child's rights can be considered, if someone is willing to fight. If I, as a naive 20 something could go through what we had to go through, and succeed with the help of some good advice and good representation, then anyone can. The laws are slowly changing to first consider the child, but there are still cases where the child languishes while their birth person or persons game the system, with no intent of ever taking their child into their own custody. We are experiencing another miracle, the benefits of genetic testing as a diagnostic tool. If it was available 20 years ago, our lives would have been different, less alone dealing with certain issues. But today, with the testing available, we can share experiences with others who will be facing what we have been for two decades. The real key is being able to show agencies that there is a "thing", which does not fit their magic book, which requires help...The knowledge is coming so fast, it is tough to keep up, but the knowledge for our daughter will change the rest of her life! Sadly, most of the research is being done in the UK, and on the east coast, and with children, not adults, but we participate remotely as much as we can.

Just curious. How many keep data beyond the legal required time? Some might call doing so "providing evidence for the prosecution". What I mean is if you are required to keep data for X amount of time, what reason would you have for keeping it X+1 minute? No good can come from having "extra" data which can be used against you. Does not mean there is not some "other" source of the material, away from subpoena, for times when you have concern. A never delete policy, to me, is unacceptable.

I only have to worry about the withholding... Yes, it is optional to withhold for the remainder of 2017, and required starting with 2018. For providing the actual benefit, I would research that separately. There may be options such as some sort of policy, or even self insured. I did not read much in that area, but I gathered employers can start collecting now, to help cover the cost, but do not have to buy or offer coverage until 2018. BS alert went off for me, that if the PTB are allowing collection for 6 months prior, the rate is too low to cover what the actuaries believe is needed. Either the employER has to fund the difference, or the rate will go up quickly. There will also be cases where an employer collects, then never buys a policy or goes away. Strange to have collection power but no trust fund to pay into. (Funded in full by employees is untrue. Employers have to spend time/money to manage the process, which is not reimbursed by the employees.) https://www.ny.gov/new-york-state-paid-family-leave/helping-new-yorkers-need Businesses play an important role in implementing Paid Family Leave. What are an employer’s obligations under Paid Family Leave? Employers will be required to purchase a Paid Family Leave insurance policy or self-insure. The premium of the policy will be paid for by your employees. An employer may not discriminate against employees for taking Paid Family Leave. Employees are guaranteed job protection upon return from Paid Family Leave. For purposes of the Paid Family Leave program, job protection is defined as returning your employee to the same or a comparable job. Employees are also guaranteed continuation of health insurance while out on Paid Family Leave. When does a new employer have to provide Paid Family Leave insurance coverage? A new employer that has had 1 or more employees on each of at least 30 days in any calendar year is required to provide Paid Family Leave insurance coverage upon the expiration of four weeks after that 30th day of such employment. Employers may collect employee contributions prior to obtaining the insurance policy or self-insured approval. When will new employees be eligible for Paid Family Leave? A new employee becomes eligible for Paid Family Leave benefits 26 weeks from the date they were hired. If the new employee is part-time, they become eligible after working 175 days. Where do I obtain a Paid Family Leave policy? Employers should contact their current New York Disability Benefits carrier to learn more about adding Paid Family Leave coverage. If you renew or start New York State Disability Benefits in 2017, benefits won't start any earlier than January 1, 2018. How much will Paid Family Leave cost a business? The Paid Family Leave insurance premium will be funded in full by your employees. Will employers have to pay an employee’s salary while the worker is on leave? No. The employee will receive the Paid Family Leave benefit through the insurance policy. What information do I need to communicate to my insurer when an employee requests Paid Family Leave? As an employer, you are responsible to complete the employer portion of the claim form and provide detailed information to the insurance carrier regarding the exact dates an employee has used Paid Family Leave.

I would also take the DOL contact as "information" for your client. It actually infers "rights" as mentioned, OT, min wage, SS deposits, WC, etc. Do keep in mind if the employer continues to exist and cleans up their mess, the "wages" will likely go up, as a gross up is probably the cleanest for the employer to use, which will increase earnings for your client. In the end, the increased wages is probably all you will need to worry about, since if your client had issues with what they earned, needed coverage for an injury, etc,. your client would have forced the issue earlier. Si if needed/desired, do a sample return with the now wages as net, figuring the taxable as grossed up. The employer "covering" the employee SS and Medicare (and any other state required items) increases taxable for your client.

Anyone with a cell phone and a free app can see any network broadcasting, whether or not they have the SSID or password. If someone is in range, given the right tools and time, they can get in. MAC spoofing is simple. Getting the SSID is simple. Passwords can be tougher, if complicated and long enough. For most of us, with a reasonable password, the expense and time to crack it far exceeds the return on whatever we have to get stolen. My biggest concern is making sure I can get reception in our hot tub . Personally, I buy my own modem, and a separate router. I do not like the rental or provided ones, since they often do not allow you to access all of the settings (to try to keep you from asking for help).

No expert on forum software since it has been years since I managed one, but you can try changing your visible ID to something a bit less obvious, but so the members will still know, say something like GA_VA and see if it alters the old posts. If so, it will take days, if ever, for the search engines to update their cached pages. I can find posts I made, in the early 90's (different forum). Thankfully nothing I am worried about anyone seeing...

This forum is completely and easily accessible to the public... I have mentioned this before. There is one forum here which is not, but it is rarely used. Google your user name followed by a space, followed by ATX. If you use any text which uses your real name or business name, of it one of your messages has commonly searched for text, it will be easily found.

I believe the issue applies to all who employ themselves. it takes a different kind to employ themselves, and that "kind" is the type who cannot usually start and stop along with business hours. I did not need my umpire gigs to make a living, and accepted while I loved the gig, it was a headache, and gave it up. (Sometimes a literal headache, and I have had more than what I feel is an acceptable amount of concussions in my life, which I could no longer ignore or convince myself was not a further risk.) I have to make a living, so I have to accept the consequences of employing myself (or being my own boss). Sometimes, but not often, that means worrying or late nights, but the balance is it means I can sometimes be free during the day as well. Any customer who causes a headache is probably not a good match, and I am honest with them that it is not a good match.

A daily question I receive, from employers wanting to know how to pay a "1099 employee" using our payroll software. My stock answer is there is no such thing as a 1099 employee (I do not mention the rare exceptions, since I would rarely even recommend them). I send a link to 20 questions type sheet, and a short inclusion of things such as setting hours, does the person have other clients, a business license, can they send someone else - dressed in shorts and flip flops arriving and leaving at will, etc. Some press the issue, wanting to argue it is them who sets the status. Some get mad for trying to share helpful, and possibly money saving knowledge. Some complain that "other" payroll software allows tracking people and entities who are not having taxes withheld. On the other hand, in my youth I worked for cash, even at a job where I got hurt, and accepted the responsibility for my actions. As I wised up, I realize how foolish it was. Hopefully the 17 year old learns before I did.

One of the first things I was taught is there is no such thing as an accounting emergency. I like to revisit that item often. If needed, I take a vacation anytime. Could be 10 minutes, a day, whatever. If I am in a state where I need time off, I am not my best for clients.