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CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit™ Tax Guide 2003 Helps Small Businesses Make the Most of Tax-Savings Strategies

Bundled with Free Online Tax Prep and Filing via CCH CompleteTax

(RIVERWOODS, ILL., January 29, 2003) – CCH INCORPORATED (CCH), a leading provider of tax law information and software, today announced the immediate availability of CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit™ Tax Guide 2003, created specifically to help small businesses save time and money in managing their taxes and preparing their 2002 tax returns. The fifth edition of the popular reference includes free income tax preparation and electronic filing with CompleteTax™ (www.completetax.com), CCH’s online tax return service for individuals and small business owners.

Tax Guide 2003, available online and in bookstores nationwide, is part of the acclaimed CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit series of books and online (www.toolkit.cch.com) resources designed to help entrepreneurs start, run and grow their enterprises.

Tax Guide 2003 combines CCH’s small business acumen with its 90 years of authoritative tax law and tax preparation expertise, providing a valuable resource during tax time and for year-round tax planning. Readers also can access the CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit online site for any last-minute tax code changes affecting 2002 tax returns that may be enacted as part of the federal stimulus packages currently under discussion.

"Effectively organizing tax information is crucial not only in saving time preparing taxes, but also for ensuring you have the necessary information to take advantage of all the credits, deductions and exemptions for which you may be eligible," said Drew Snider, publisher of CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit Tax Guide 2003. "Whether you choose to complete your return on your own or use a tax preparer, Tax Guide 2003 has earned a reputation as a valuable reference for helping small business owners take advantage of all the existing laws and regulations available to help them plan effectively and minimize their tax obligations."

CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit Tax Guide 2003 is filled with tips, examples, tools and step-by-step explanations of key tax issues, to help small business manage their 2002 tax returns, including detailed discussions of recent, often confusing, tax-code changes, such as:

• Depreciation bonus, which, thanks to the Job Creation Act, allows qualifying businesses to take an additional first-year depreciation deduction equal to 30 percent of the value of certain types of property;
• Extended net operating loss carryback, extending the carryback period to five years for net operating losses arising in tax years 2001 or 2002;
• Hundreds of changes affecting rates for equipment expensing, personal exemptions, standard deductions, child care credit, medical savings accounts, student loan interest and more.

"Tax Guide 2003 goes well beyond providing a discussion of the law changes, to clearly describe how small business owners can best leverage these changes," said Snider. "For example, Tax Guide 2003 explains how to use the net operating loss deduction to reduce, and possibly eliminate, income subject to the alternative minimum tax."

Other important small business topics covered include:

• Making certain you claim all available business deductions while not stepping over the line between personal and business expenses;
• Maximize deductions for a home office;
• Making the most of often overlooked deductions for auto, entertainment, healthcare and depreciation expenses;
• Handling contributions to employee benefit plans and retirement plans for the self-employed, including new catch-up rules;
• Identifying available tax credits for different small businesses and how to claim these credits;
• Understanding what the IRS looks for in an audit of business activities and the best approach in dealing with them should they inquire about your business; and
• Determining the best form of business organization – from partnerships and limited liability companies to corporations or S corporations – and the tax implications for each.

Tax Guide 2003 also provides a complete analysis of individual and family income tax issues to help entrepreneurs address their personal finance issues as well as their business requirements.

Of particular value to small business owners is the extensive glossary included in Tax Guide 2003, providing plain-language definitions of tax terms and straightforward descriptions often needed to decipher IRS instructions.

Those buying CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit Tax Guide 2003 will be able to prepare both a federal and a resident state income tax return at no charge via CompleteTax. Free electronic filing of the federal and state return, where allowed by the state, also is available.

"Using Tax Guide 2003 and CompleteTax together provides small business owners with a powerful solution for effectively organizing, completing and filing their tax returns, " said Snider. "The book provides the detail entrepreneurs need to solidly understand and manage their tax situations, and CompleteTax is smart enough to only ask for the information that applies to your particular situation, saving you time and effort."

CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit Tax Guide 2003 also offers hundreds of tips, examples, charts and tables to help small business owners make tax-wise decisions throughout the year. Ready-to-use tax forms and a tax calendar are provided as well so that a small business owner has fingertip access to everything needed to complete basic tax returns and the timelines for remembering important tax-related events throughout the year.

"Developing a tax strategy early, instead of waiting until taxes are due, can make a significant difference in the amount of taxes owed," said Snider. "Tax Guide 2003 provides the information and tools small business owners need to be tax-savvy in planning both the future of their business as well as their personal future, including topics related to estates, retirement and education."

Pricing and Availability

CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit Tax Guide 2003 (ISBN 0-8080-0832-3) is available in major retail and online bookstores (Barnes and Noble, Borders, amazon.com) nationwide; via the CCH Business Owner’s Toolkit bookstore (www.toolkit.cch.com) or by calling 1-800-248-3248. The 432-page, soft-cover book sells for $17.95, plus applicable shipping, handling and tax.

CCH INCORPORATED, headquartered in Riverwoods, Ill., was founded in 1913 and has served four generations of business professionals and their clients. The company produces more than 700 electronic and print products for the tax, legal, securities, insurance, human resources, health care and small business markets. CCH is a wholly owned subsidiary of Wolters Kluwer North America. The CCH small business web site can be accessed at www.toolkit.cch.com

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EDITORS NOTE: For a complimentary editorial review copy of Business Owner’s Toolkit Tax Guide 2003, members of the press can contact Leslie Bonacum at 847-267-7153/mediahelp@cch.com.