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September 2003 — Vol. 81, No. 7
Your Questions Answered
Have a personnel-related or business tax question? Members can get
free information from CBIA’s experts. The phone number is 860–244–1900.
Q: An employee who has been with my company
for several years showed me his “green card” for I-9 documentation
at the time he was hired. The card has an expiration date of Sept. 30,
2003. Do I need to ask for updated documentation? If so, and he doesn’t
give it to me, must I fire him?
A: No, you don’t need to
ask for updated documentation. Employers are neither required nor permitted
to re-verify the employment authorization of aliens who have presented
one of these cards to satisfy I-9 requirements. Green cards (officially
known as Permanent Resident Cards, Form I-551) are issued to aliens who
have been granted permanent residence in the U.S. Their residency status
doesn’t change even though the green cards themselves may expire.
An expired card may not be used to satisfy Form I-9 requirements for new
employment, but an expiration date has no effect on current employment.
Your employee, however, does have to renew his card. He can find out how
to do that by visiting the Web site of the Bureau
of Citizenship and Immigration Services (formerly the Immigration
and Naturalization Service, or INS).
Q: We have a smoke-free workplace, and
our owner wants to start asking job applicants whether they smoke. Is
that permissible?
A: No, it’s not. Connecticut
law allows employers to prohibit smoking on company premises (and starting
Oct. 1, companies with five or more employees will be required to be smoke-free).
But the law also protects people who use tobacco products off the job
from discrimination in hiring, compensation and other conditions of employment.
Rather than posing the direct question, an alternative is to let job applicants
know that the workplace is smoke-free and make it clear that they will
have to comply with your no-smoking rules. In a recent survey of CBIA
members, nearly 60% of respondents said they already prohibit smoking
inside the company facility, and another 10% prohibit it on company property,
including company grounds.
Q: I am still a little unclear on the business
entity tax that the legislature passed last year. Are single-member limited
liability companies (SMLLCs) liable for the tax? If they are and they
don’t pay the tax, are they subject to interest and penalties?
A: An SMLLC that elected to be
taxed as a corporation for federal income tax purposes is not liable for
the state’s business entity tax, according to the Department of
Revenue Services Informational Publica-tion 2003(15). Otherwise, SMLLCs
are required to pay the tax; if they fail to do so in a timely manner,
they will be subject to a penalty and interest. Note that even businesses
that are unprofitable, inactive or no longer doing business but never
filed dissolution paperwork with the secretary of the state’s office
are still liable for the business entity tax.
Q: I am a manufacturer and recently purchased
some sophisticated machinery that requires a cool environment to ensure
that the machines’ microprocessors and computers function properly.
If my business buys new air conditioners for the plant floor, are there
any state tax credits we can take advantage of?
A: There are no state tax credits
for the purchase of air conditioners. However, if the air conditioners
are used directly in the manufacturing process, they might qualify for
a manufacturing equipment sales and use tax exemption. The Department
of Revenue Services (DRS) has said in some rulings that machinery purchased
to create controlled-temperature situations to properly manufacture products
may qualify for the exemption under certain circumstances. To find if
your situation meets their criteria, call the DRS and ask to speak with
a taxpayer representative. From the Hartford area, call 297-5962; from
elsewhere in the state, call 1-800-382-9463.
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