Key Takeaways from Downtown Denver Partnership’s 3rd COVID-19 Member Briefing Webinar

April 7, 2020

On April 7, the Downtown Denver Partnership gathered our members, community leaders, and business owners in the third weekly COVID-19 Membership Briefing webinar. Key takeaways include:

  • KPMG Tax Leaders John Carpenter and Tucker Gordon covered how The CARES Act will impact taxes for businesses. Detailed information can be found in this presentation. Key takeaways included:
  • 2019 Income tax payments are now due July 15, 2020. This postponement is automatic. Extensions beyond this date will require taxpayers to file an additional Form 7004. 
  • Refunds of income taxes paid are being made in the form of expanded deductions and AMT credits, some of which can be retroactively applied.
  • Refunds are being activated in a few ways, including:
    •  A “quickie refund” of overpaid estimated taxes if the overpayment is at least 10% of expected tax liability. Businesses must file Form 4466 by April 15, 2020 to receive this.
    • Amended returns for 2018 and 2019
    • NOL (net operating loss) carrybacks
    • Expanded to allow 100% NOL off-set
  • The CARES Act has created expanded deductions including interest expense disallowance, an excess business loss limitation extension, and qualified improvement property.
  • Net Operating Losses (NOLs) for individuals and corporations can be temporarily suspended with 80% of taxable income limitation, and there is a five year carryback period for 2018, 2019, and 2020 NOLs.
  • Businesses are able to claim loss related to COVID-19 from March and April of 2020 in last year’s 2019 tax return. Advice for businesses:
    • Use tax accounting methods plannings to shift the year in which income or deductions are recognized.
    • Model out taxable income and expected loss for different years to figure out if it is most beneficial to shift losses to 2019 or 2020.
  •  These benefits are available to all corporate taxpayers and can be used in conjunction with SBA loans and other Acts.
  • More resources can be found on KPMG’s webpage here. 

 

  • We then heard from the team at Polsinelli. Philip Feigan, Shareholder and Attorney, Managing Partner DC Office, and Shareholder Amy Hansen addressed what businesses need to know about The CARES Act to best leverage Stimulus Packages. Detailed information can be found in this presentation.
    • Key takeaways included:
      • Extensions on property tax payments are being offered county by county.
      • Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Disaster loans can be applied for in conjunction, but businesses cannot get the PPP and payroll tax credit at the same time.
      • This PPP program will allow businesses to borrow 2.5x their monthly payroll costs with no collateral or personal guarantee for two years at 1% interest.
      • The applications opened on April 3 and require a two-page form to fill out for your bank. Applications are due April 10, 2020. 
      • The PPP application is also available through the SBA website.
      • Check with your bank immediately to see if they are providing these loans, and be prepared to show payroll documentation.
      • To see if you qualify for the PPP, you can use the NAICS code from the front of your tax return and plug in at naics.com. This test provided depends on your industry;  if you don’t meet eligibility with this test, you still can qualify if you have less than 500 employees.
      • It is recommended that businesses follow the SBA guidelines for these loans, as there are many sources of information.
      • There are stipulations for loan forgiveness, based on the use of funds received included in the presentation above.
      • There are two questions regarding affiliation on the application, and affiliation-specific eligibility is a question of control usually indicated by stock ownership.
      • For your estimates, here is a PPP calculator. 
      • There has been a recent push in Congress to add another $250B to this program, with close to $6B in applications last Friday.
      • Disaster loans are a program separate from the PPP, facilitated directly through the SBA. Disaster loans that can be used for working capital and can fund up to $2M.
      • Get more information on these programs at the Polsinelli webpage here. 

The Partnership will continue to host weekly COVID-19 Membership briefings. Click here to join us for next week’s webinar on April 14th at 3:00 PM.