CCH Outlines Federal Resources Available To Small Businesses Affected By Terrorist Attacks

IRS Tax Relief, SBA Loan Process, FEMA Aid

(RIVERWOODS, ILL., September 19, 2001) – In light of last week’s terrorist attacks, several federal agencies have taken steps to assist affected small business owners in the recovery and resumption of their businesses. Below CCH INCORPORATED’s (CCH) Small Office/Home Office Group, publishers of Business Owner’s Toolkit (www.toolkit.cch.com), outlines the assistance these agencies are offering.

There are three primary sources of federal disaster relief for small businesses – the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

"Knowing about these federal resources and the aid or relief they can offer will be essential for small business owners – who quite often are not just the president, but the chief financial officer, the human resources director and the facilities manager for their enterprises as they try to resume their businesses," said Paul Gada, small business analyst for CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit (www.toolkit.cch.com).

IRS Filing Deadline Postponed

Responding to the impact of the disasters, the IRS and Treasury Department have announced that all federal tax obligations that were due between September 10 and September 24, 2001, have been postponed until September 24, 2001. This change is in effect for all taxpayers, not just those affected by the September 11 terrorist attacks.

The IRS and Treasury are also providing additional relief to two specific categories of taxpayers: those directly affected by the terrorist attacks – regardless of where they reside – including relief workers, surviving victims and taxpayers whose place of employment is in a disaster area or their records were maintained in a disaster area; and all taxpayers in New York City and Arlington County, Va., which were both declared disaster areas.

The specific IRS tax relief and filing changes for these affected taxpayers include:

Affected taxpayers who have an original filing deadline between September 11, 2001 and November 30, 2001, have an additional six months, plus 120 days, to file that return and make any payment due with that return.

Affected taxpayers who are currently on an extension that expires between September 11 and November 30, 2001, will have an additional 120 days to file that return.

Affected individual taxpayers who face an estimated tax payment date on September 17, 2001, may postpone that payment by including the amount with their final estimated payments for Tax Year 2001, which are due on January 15, 2002.

Affected corporate taxpayers who face an estimated tax payment after September 10, 2001 and before January 15, 2002, may postpone that payment until January 15, 2002.

Taxpayers who are entitled to relief under the IRS rules should add the following designation in red ink at the top of returns they file: "September 11, 2001 – Terrorist Attack."

Additional detail on IRS tax relief is available on the IRS site at www.irs.gov.

SBA Low-interest Loans

To assist small businesses affected by the disaster, the SBA has issued a fact sheet on the disaster relief loans it is making available in the New York/New Jersey areas. These low-interest loans include: business physical disaster loans to repair or replace damaged business property, including real estate, machinery, equipment, inventory and supplies. It also offers low-interest economic injury disaster loans for working capital to assist small businesses through the disaster period. The SBA also provides home disaster loans available to homeowners or renters to repair or replace disaster damages to real estate or personal property.

To apply for these loans, small businesses must first register via FEMA’s toll-free number at 800-462-9029.

The filing date for loan applications for physical damage to homes, personal property and businesses is November 10, 2001, and the filing date for applications for economic injury is June 11, 2002. More detail on the SBA programs, eligibility and restrictions is available on SBA’s web site at www.sba.gov.

FEMA Assistance

In addition to coordinating with the SBA to make low-interest loans available to those affected by the disaster, FEMA also provides crisis counseling to victims and their families. The agency also offers disaster unemployment assistance for those out of work as a result of a disaster, including the self-employed.

As with the SBA loans, to register for assistance you must call FEMA’s toll-free number, 800-462-9029. More information on aid is available on FEMA’s web site at www.fema.gov.

Additional Aid

In addition to the aid announced by these three federal agencies to date, it’s likely, according to CCH, that additional programs will be announced by the IRS and through congressional action in the coming weeks and months.

"This is really just the beginning – just those steps that can be put into effect soon after a disaster," said Gada. "However, as federal agencies and Congress further assess the magnitude this particular disaster is likely to have on small businesses, additional measures could be taken."

CCH also advises small businesses affected by the disaster to check with their state and local government agencies to determine what programs are being made available locally to further assist in the recovery effort. CCH will be monitoring additional federal and state relief activities available to small businesses and providing detail on these resources on its Business Owner’s Toolkit site (www.toolkit.cch.com).

About CCH INCORPORATED

CCH INCORPORATED, founded in 1913, has served four generations of business professionals and their clients. The company produces approximately 700 print and electronic products for securities, tax, legal, banking, human resources, health care and small business markets. CCH is a wholly owned subsidiary of Wolters Kluwer North America. The CCH web site can be accessed at www.cch.com. CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit is located at www.toolkit.cch.com.

-- ### --

nb-01-106