Leasing News - independent, inbiased, and fair news about the leasing industry<meta name="Meta1" content="leasing, news, reports, newsletter, lease, industry, inside, bulletin, list, broker, insider, link, archives, enews, online, about, current, today, association, lessor, Menkin, Kit, problem, complaint, consumer, lessee">

"Sr.Sales Exec. 5+yrs exp. 10-150K market. Current deal flow and superior closing skills a must. No geo. restrict./satellite office ok. Use our internal line/prefund ability, provides support you need to reach W2 goal. Our 16 years TIB stands alone."
Contact: jobs@balboacapital.com

About the Company: Balboa Capital. 2010 Main Street 11th Floor Irvine, CA. 92614 www.balboacapital.com

Alert--Synergy Systems in Tarzana, CA.

" Please stay from this vendor. They are providing inflated equipment costs. All three deals have been inflated, and xxxx has discovered that the customers are asking them: 'Synergy and the broker promised me cash back. Where's my money?' "

This was sent by a reliable source, but not confirmed or denied, and sent

as an “alert” for others. Leasing News does not make any representations without

confirmation or denial and prints it only because it has come from a reliable source.

[Headlines]

Are you a broker or a rep for a major lessor? Want to just market and leave the backroom an packaging functions to us? Call us.

Backoffice: Atlanta , GA. GlobalTech Portfolio Services provides world class lease, loan administration and asset management for equipment and vehicles. Current portfolios $1 billion. Contact Alan Zeppenfeld 678-816-2216 E-mail:azeppenfeld@globaltechfinancial.com

Back Office: Atlanta, GA. Let Tax Partners handle your sales and use tax compliance duties w/less risk and cost than in-house. Largest tax compliance firm in US E- mail:sales@taxpartners.com

Bookkeeper: Birmingham, AL. 5+ year experience in Architectural Firm in Accounting. Provided the following services: Accounts Payable; Receivables; Payroll; Invoicing and Collections. Strong Computer and Verbal Skills. E-mail:j_pails@bellsouth.net

Property Tax and sales and use tad administration services performance is guaranteed and we will save you time and money or our service is free.

JDR Solutions, LLC specializes in delivering customized back-office lease portfolio admin./ ASP services for lessors, banks, manufacturer captives: other financial institutions. Paul Henkel (317) 251-5352 ex. 7201

CIT's Portfolio Service Group: providing cost- effective lease/portfolio services: Accounting, Tax Reporting, Collection svc, End of Lease Solutions, Front End Documentation, Invoicing, and on-line reportingE-mail: vincente.dingianni@cit.com

Back Office: Laughlin, NV. 20 years experience on funder/broker sides. Looking for a relationship where I act as credit shop for smaller brokers when financial statements are involved. E-mail:batarista@laughlin.net

Our staff of CPA's and lease professionals can handle any or all portfolio responsibilities incl. portfolio mgmt, invoicing, sales/property/ income tax, accounting, etc. E- mail:ngeary@edwinsigel.com

We can run your back office from origination to final payoff. 30 years experience in commercial equipment lease and loan portfolio management.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Many leasing companies have found a way into HP and GE Capital ( TOSHIBA) vendor finance programs. They either partner up with a computer reseller and they submit deals under the premise that the reseller is truly selling the equipment. Often times all the reseller does is re-invoice the deal. They will either mark up the invoice or simply add points to the lease payment.

“Leasing companies have even gone so far as to create computer resellers whose sole purpose was to RE-INVOICE deals often times changing furniture, machinery, backhoes, etc., into Laptops/Servers and the like...NO SITE VISITS on VENDOR BUSINESS!!!

“D&B Manipulation! As you know many lenders base approvals on D&B scoring...so if a guarantor has poor personal credit and has time in business of 2+ years or even better 5+years, a simple call to D&B can cure all his problems. It is done this way:

“The leasing company will log into D&B on the presidents behalf (i.e. IMPERSONATE THE PRESIDENT). They will then proceed to “update” the D&B records. This will consist of bumping the number of employees and annual sales reported etc...They can also manipulate the PAYDEX by reporting trades to D&B...I have seen a paydex move from the LOW 30's to 70 within 3-4 weeks...after the D&B is updated the company will simple SLIDE through GE CAPITAL credit window for CORP ONLY business....

“I have even seen presidents being replaced on D&B's as they will move a guy with good credit in and one with poor credit out...

“On smaller deals, most department of corporations can be accessed by the internet, where you simply change who is the president.”

“Regarding the Broker to Vendor Funding Source—Three Separate Incidents #2 story in your 2/12 edition, I work with a vendor that reported to me a month or so back, that another leasing company was in the process of funding one of their transactions and asked the vendor to include their fee in the invoice to the funding source.

The vendor has not complied and as yet, the deal has not funded. The leasing company (broker) is located in Southern California. There was no "splitting" mentioned so maybe this is unrelated. My vendor wants no part in anything unethical. I am anxious to hear more details as your story develops.”

---- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I am a long time reader first time responder to your great
newsletter. My company Commercial Collection Consultants provide services
to asset based lenders , leasing companies, Commercial Banks and lenders ,
including collections,AR2, receivable consulting, training etc. We have 5
offices coast to coast staffed by credit and collection veterans.

“We are actively seeking the purchase of bad debt portfolios ranging from
$4,000,000.00 to $40,000,000.00. I was wondering how we could go about
getting that information to other subscribers of your newsletter.

“Do you have a website where we could post a notice or do you have a protocol for
these type of "B2B" connections. I have a couple of ideas I would like to
discuss with you and appreciate any thoughts , feedback you might have..
Thanks”

(Thank you for your compliment. We are also always looking for stories for our readers. We like “human interest,” about people, their work, their background, or something that would be educational, where readers might learn something. If it is outright “advertising,” you'll have to then pay for it with a banner ad or advertising ad.

We are actively seeking experienced Account Executives as part of a significant growth initiative for 2004. Candidates must be self-motivated, hard working, and enjoy making some of the highest commission splits in the industry.
E-Mail: recruiter@gen-cap.com

About the Company: Genesis Commercial Capital, LLC; 17910 Skypark Circle, Suite 105; Irvine, CA. 92614 www.gen-cap.com

The volume of new credit-card securitizations is expected to rise to about $76 billion this year, the majority of which will refinance maturing issues.

Moody's is forecasting that $45 billion of outstanding credit-card bonds will come due this year - and the issuers will need to sell new asset-backed securities to pay off the remaining balances and keep the underlying receivables off their books. The resulting transactions should help the card sector emerge from a two-year issuance slump.

Credit-card lenders completed $67.4 billion of securitizations in 2003, down $5.6 billion from a year earlier, according to Asset-Backed Alert's ABS database. The projected 2004 volume, which is based on Moody's expectation that the market for new card paper will expand by 13%, would be slightly less than the 2002 issuance total.

Apart from refinancings, the improving economy and falling unemployment rate should encourage consumer spending, and in turn boost the potential for credit-card securitizations. "The degree of [issuance growth] will likely follow the strength of the current economic recovery," agency analysts wrote in a January report.

A few major players' securitization programs will exert a major influence on issuance volume. GE Capital, which is about to start securitizing its private-label credit-card accounts, could contribute as much as $5 billion of deals this year. Citibank could also cause overall volume to rise if it decides to sell bonds backed by accounts that it bought from Sears last year. Market players are similarly eager to see whether Bank of America, which hasn't completed a credit-card deal since 2001, will securitize accounts that it will acquire as part of its pending takeover of FleetBoston Financial.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you have not down loaded the special “worm removal” patch from Microsoft for your Windows operating system, please go here:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Arlington, VA—February 12, 2004—The Equipment Leasing Association (ELA), a non-profit association representing the $218 billion equipment leasing and finance industry, today responded to new assertions by the Treasury Department regarding the scope of “SILO” transactions. In seeking to defend the Treasury's leasing tax-increase proposals, Treasury Assistant Secretary Pam Olson testified yesterday before the House Ways and Means Committee that as much as $750 billion of “SILO” transactions have been done in the past four years.

Aggregate leasing industry data clearly indicates that the value of assets involved in the types of transactions described by the Treasury Department is estimated to be $60-80 billion over a four year period. The Equipment Leasing and Finance Foundation's 2003 State of the Industry Report estimates the size of the entire leasing industry to be $218 billion in 2004.

“Treasury is clearly overstating the size of these types of transactions, which account for only about 10% of all leasing transactions. We question how Treasury came up with their number, which more closely represents the size of our entire industry,” ELA President Michael Fleming. The association also expressed its willingness to work with Congress as it considers legislation in the tax-exempt leasing area.

About The Equipment Leasing Association
Organized in 1961, the Equipment Leasing Association (ELA) is the premier non-profit association representing companies involved in the dynamic equipment leasing and finance industry to the business community, government and media. As the voice of the leasing industry, ELA promotes the estimated $208 billion industry as a major source of funds for capital investment in the United States and abroad.

ELA provides its members with comprehensive services, assists in the resolution of industry issues, educates financial decision-makers on the benefits of leasing and promotes high standards of business practices within the industry. ELA maintains an informational portal for financial decision-makers to learn more about leasing and find a leasing company at http://www.LeaseAssistant.org. Headquartered in Arlington, Va., ELA has more than 800 member companies and a staff of 25 professionals. For more information on ELA, please visit ELA Online at http://www.ELAOnline.com.

CONTACT:
Amy Holmes, CAE
Equipment Leasing Association
Phone Number: (703) 516-8367
E-mail: aholmes@elamail.com

Perhaps the best article to date on “Tax-Exempt Entities” is in this edition,

acknowledged as written with the help of George Schutzer, Patton-Boggs partner who specializes in tax matters,:

1. New Treasury Proposal Would Crush Leasing to Tax-Exempt Entities

In its continuing efforts to shut down what it considers to be abusive tax shelters and put the brakes on the ballooning budget deficit, the Treasury Department has included proposals in the administration's fiscal year 2005 budget that could crush certain types of long-accepted leasing to tax-exempt entities. See Treasury's proposal at page 124.

The proposal would apply new rules to leases with "tax-indifferent parties." Tax-indifferent parties would include federal, state, local and foreign governmental units, charities and foreign entities or persons. The proposal does not specifically reference tax-exempt nonprofit organizations other than charities, but it is likely that Treasury intends to include virtually all tax-exempt entities. As a result, trade associations and other large organizations like NRA, AARP and labor unions would likely be adversely affected by the proposal.

Under present law, the recovery period for property leased to a tax-indifferent party is the longer of the property's assigned class life under the Internal Revenue Code or 125% of the lease term. Although computer software and qualified technological equipment (QTE) have long been exempted from this slower depreciation scheme, the Treasury proposal would eliminate the exemption from this rule. The proposal would also require that service contracts and other similar arrangements occurring after the end of a lease of property to a tax-indifferent party be taken into account in determining the lease term. See: Cost Recovery Deductions for Tax-Exempt Use Property: The Historical Context by the ELA.

In a much more dramatic change, the Treasury proposal would limit a taxpayer's deductions or losses related to certain types of leases to tax-indifferent parties to the taxpayer's income from the lease (income limit). In effect, the passive loss rules would be applied on a lease-by-lease basis to all kinds of lessors.

*Technical Point: A lessor's disallowed deductions would be carried forward and treated as deductions in the next year subject to the same limitations. Like the passive loss rules, the proposed rules would allow a lessor to claim any unused deductions when it disposes of the leased property.

The income limit would apply to a lease to a tax-indifferent party if it has any of the following characteristics:

*Example: A university may finance student housing with tax-exempt bonds. Several years later, it could sell and lease back the property. In most cases, if the lessee used tax-exempt debt to acquire the property and then sold it, the debt would cease to be tax-exempt, but that is not always the case. The provision also would apply if a lessor financed a facility with tax-exempt debt and then leased it to a tax-exempt entity.

*Technical Point: Treasury would be permitted to issue regulations to allow monetizing up to 50% if the credit worthiness of the lessee would not otherwise satisfy the lessor's customary underwriting standards.

According to the budget proposal and earlier Treasury press releases ("Treasury Announces New Budget Proposals" "New Proposals Close Loopholes, Stop Abusive Tax Avoidance"), the proposal was intended to put a stop to so-called sale-in, lease-out or SILO leases with tax-indifferent entities. The typical SILO is described as a transaction in which: (1) no interruption or change in control occurs, (2) the lessee has an option to "repurchase" the property, and (3) a substantial portion of the lessee's rental obligations are defeased. (That is, the parties create a fund from proceeds of a sale of leased property to assure payments to the lessor).

As written, the income-limit proposal goes well beyond capturing SILO transactions of the type described by Treasury. In fact, the income-limit proposal could apply to certain lease transactions that meet guideline criteria as true leases. See: Leasing 101: What are the "Tax Guidelines" and "Revenue Procedure 2001-28" Business Leasing News (June 2003).

*Warning: The proposal is not limited to sale-leaseback or lease-leasebacks or to transactions in which there is a purchase option. The administration proposes a retroactive effective date to January 1, 2004. Lessors and lessees would therefore become subject to the proposals for leases entered into after December 31, 2003. However, the Treasury Department has indicated that it is willing to work with tax writers to address the retroactive effective date that would limit SILOs. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman William Thomas (R-CA) and Representative Jim McCrery (R-LA) have expressed concerns that the retroactive effective date of the SILO proposal could thwart legitimate leasing transactions.

In one of several statements issued by the Equipment Leasing Association (ELA), the ELA states that the proposal would potentially deprive tax-indifferent parties of the financial benefits of tax leasing, including obtaining needed cash through certain common sale-leaseback arrangements. See: Leasing Provides an Important Source of Financing for Cities.

The administration's proposal to limit tax deductions from property used by tax-exempt entities is not new. Section 476 of the proposed JOBS bill (S.B. 1637) (the Jumpstart Our Business Strength Act) as reported in the Senate last year also includes provisions that would limit deductions from such property to the amount of income generated from such property. Further, Section 472 of the JOBS bill would treat service contracts as leases for purposes of similarly limiting depreciation benefits. See: Tax-Exempt Entity Leasing Takes a Sudden Hit from Tax Shelter Legislation Business Leasing News (December 2003).

Describing the "extremism" of a "poorly-thought-out provision," ELA immediately and vigorously opposed the Treasury proposal and argued that it should be dropped. Lessors have routinely made billions in capital available to tax-exempt entities. States have already been hit hard by the slow economy and face $80 billion of deficits for 2004. See: Stingers: The 2004 State Tax Survey, CFO Magazine online (January 2004). ELA argues that the proposals would limit tax benefits available to their lessors and, in all likelihood, increase pressure on cities and other tax-exempt entities to further reduce the capital and infrastructure spending at a time when they desperately need to start to recover after the economic downturn.

*Comment: Although budget deficits understandably require Treasury's attention, why is it that a tax-paying lessor should not be able to enter into a routine and long-accepted tax lease with a tax-exempt entity? See: Cost Recovery Deductions for Tax-Exempt Use Property: The Historical Context by the ELA. While the lessee may be tax-indifferent, the taxpayer-lessor is not. Lessors take the tax benefits and, based on market forces, share their tax savings with lessees, thus driving down the cost of capital for valuable capital expenditures by the lessees. The analysis is exactly the same for lessors for taxable lessee entities, such as private hospitals. Lessors pay taxes on their taxable income regardless of the lessee's tax bill. Moreover, lessors provide a source of funds to many cash-strapped tax-exempt entities that have few, if any, other source of capital for infrastructure and capital asset programs. If the Department of Treasury is concerned about defeasance structures, it should limit the scope of its income limit proposal to defeasance structures without regard to the status of the lessee. As proposed, the Treasury proposal seems to raises tax revenue on the back of tax-exempt entities rather than target truly abusive aspects, if any, of leasing to tax-indifferent parties.

At least one group of lessors in certain tax-exempt leasing transactions seems to be unaffected. According to the Association for Government Leasing & Finance lessors who enter into typical Section 501(c)(3) and municipal lease-purchase transactions do not take the tax benefits and therefore would be unaffected by the Treasury proposal.

Lessors and lessees alike who participate in this market should consider taking immediate action on the JOBS legislation and the Treasury budget proposal if they want to avoid overbroad and transaction-limiting legislation. For more information and to support the ELA's effort to fight the legislation and budget proposal, contact Federal Government Relations at ELA at 703-527-8655. David H. Fenig is the newly appointed Vice President of this part of ELA.

I would like to thank one of my tax partners, George Schutzer, for his extensive assistance in drafting this article. If you would like to consider taking action regarding this proposal, please feel free to call or e-mail me or George to discuss the resources at Patton Boggs LLP available to address your concerns and assist you.

[Headlines]

In response to growing demand from equipment vendors and leasing brokers, Meridian Finance Group is pleased to introduce a pilot program for financing smaller-ticket equipment exports. When your vendors request financing for their creditworthy customers in Latin America; Pacific Rim, and other emerging foreign markets, now you can team up with Meridian to get more of these deals done.

For exports of equipment manufactured in the USA, Meridian has reduced its minimum deal size from $500,000 to $100,000 for selected transactions. Financing is generally in the form of loans rather than leases. Vendors are paid-without recourse-upon shipment and presentation of export documents, while the foreign buyers get three to five years repayment terms at very competitive interest rates.

Upon accepting Meridian's financing quotation, the foreign buyer pays a commitment fee to cover expenses. The commitment fee is refunded to the foreign buyer if financing is not approved as quoted. An arrangement fee is withheld from the disbursement to the vendor when the transaction is funded (otherwise the foreign buyer would also have to pay this fee in advance). Leasing brokers are generally in the best position to negotiate the amount of the arrangement fee with their vendors. As soon as the deal is funded, one-half of the arrangement fee is paid to the leasing broker as commission.

Whether or not the vendor increases its equipment price to absorb the arrangement fee, Meridian requires a signed disbursement agreement up-front from the vendor. Many vendors don't even disclose arrangement fees to the foreign buyers, who are thrilled to get financing on any invoice amount.

The most effective way to present a deal to Meridian is with a copy of the foreign buyer's financial statements and a summary of the transaction (contract amount, equipment description, vendor information, foreign buyer information, anticipated shipment date). If the deal looks doable, Meridian will respond with a financing quotation and a checklist of any additional information required.

Once the financing quotation has been accepted by the foreign buyer and the commitment fee is paid, approval may take up to four weeks. Underwriting, documentation, and funding are handled entirely by Meridian. We work directly with the vendor and the foreign buyer, but please be assured of Meridian's commitment to support leasing brokers' vendor relationships.

Keep in mind that Meridian also offers programs for vendors who regularly export IN, any size of equipment, parts, materials, etc., on shorter (30 to 180 days) credit terms.

Tel 310.442.3600 Fax 310.2072810 info@meridianfinance.com vvww.meridianfinance.com

WASHINGTON,-- Security guards and patrol services provided by employer firms showed a revenue increase of 13 percent to $12 billion in 2002, helping push the service industries under which they fall, investigation and security, up 10 percent to $30 billion. That is $3 billion more than in 2001, the U.S. Census Bureau reported.

The overall administrative and support, and waste management and remediation services (except landscaping) showed an increase in revenues of 3 percent, to $421 billion in 2002 from $410 billion in 2001. The category also includes employment services, collection agencies and hazardous waste treatment.

Other revenue increases in the administrative and support, and waste management and remediation services included hazardous waste treatment and disposal, up 11 percent to $3 billion, and collection agencies, up 9 percent to $8 billion. Revenues for travel agencies decreased 8 percent to $9 billion.

In addition to administrative and support, and waste management and remediation services, the report included revenues for three other major service industries: arts, entertainment and recreation; rental and leasing services; and other services (except public administration).

Revenues of employer and nonemployer firms in the arts, Entertainment and recreation industries increased to $157 billion in 2002, from $147 billion. Rental and leasing revenues reached $106 billion in 2002, an increase of 1 percent from 2001. Other services (except public administration), which range from auto repair and maintenance shops to personal and laundry services, stood at $382 billion, virtually unchanged from the previous year.

-- Fitness and recreational sports centers recorded an 11 percent increase to $15 billion.

-- Museums, historical sites and similar institutions, on the other hand, showed a 5 percent decrease in 2002 revenues to $8 billion.

-- Office machinery, and equipment rental and leasing decreased 27 percent to $6 billion.

-- Revenues for automotive oil change and lubrication shops increased 8 percent to $4 billion.

-- Religious, grant-making, civic, professional and similar organizations' revenues decreased 3 percent to $121 billion.

Estimates in this report are based on data from the 2002 Service Annual Survey. They contain sampling and nonsampling errors. To keep the Identity of an individual firm confidential, some estimates may be suppressed. Users making their own estimates, based on survey estimates, should cite the U.S. Census Bureau as the source of the original estimates only.

TALLINN, Estonia, / -- Indrek Neivelt, Chairman of the Board, "2003 was a successful year for Hansabank Group. We reached several important milestones: our Group has two million cards, one million Internet bank customers and half a million pension customers. We managed to improve on last year's results despite a rapid decrease in interest margins. Our pre-tax profit increased by 15% to EUR 147.1 million and our market capitalisation grew by 35% to EUR 1.7 billion. We also took a big step forward in efficiency, reducing our cost to asset ratio from 3.8% to 3.1% over the year."

Despite intensifying competition, the Group managed to fulfill all financial targets and the consolidated net profit increased by 9% during the year to EUR 130.9 million. The development of the Latvian and Lithuanian operations was particularly positive during 2003. The return on equity of our Latvian operations reached the targeted 20% level, while the operating profit of the Lithuanian operations increased by 5.4 times during the year to EUR 17.2 million.

The full release and accompanying tables can be read on Hansabank's home page www.hansagroup.com

The Council On State Taxation (COST) will host a private sector meeting dealing with Streamlined Sales Tax (SST) issues on Monday, March 22 & Tuesday, March 23 at the JW Marriott (formerly Le Meridien Hotel) located at 614 Canal Street in New Orleans. The agenda is focused on reviewing the level of compliance by states. Representatives of state government are encouraged to attend, especially the 20 states that have enacted the Agreement. This will provide an opportunity for private sector volunteers to meet as a group and to review the compliance checklists with the government representatives who did the initial preparation. The Streamlined Sales Tax Project (SSTP) will be on hiatus until the next meeting likely to occur in May.

Conference & Hotel Registration

Registration will be handled by your prompt RSVP to Steve Kranz of COST at skranz@statetax.org Include your name, job title, company/trade association/state Department of revenue, street address, telephone and fax numbers and email address for each person that will be registering. A registration fee of $100 per person will be invoiced to you for payment by credit card or check. Call the JW Marriott directly at (504) 525-6500 to make reservations at a group rate of $165 - $185 depending on the room configuration. The room block is listed under the ABA/IPT conference (which is taking place at the same hotel March 23^rd to 26^th).

General Summary

Although the agenda is not final, the meeting will start Monday morning at 9:00 a.m. and conclude by Tuesday afternoon at 4:00 p.m. Registrants are encouraged to send suggested agenda topics to Steve Kranz at skranz@statetax.org

The overall goal is to determine for each of the twenty states that have passed conforming legislation whether that state is in compliance with the Agreement. Discussions are meant to enable states to correct the problems before the Governing Board is convened. If feasible, the state DOR representative and the private sector volunteer may be asked to sign a statement that the checklist is correct to the best of their knowledge and that it identifies all known compliance deficiencies. This would be part of the effort to make certain, to the extent possible, that there are no surprises regarding compliance with the Agreement.

Monday Schedule

The draft agenda below is subject to change but at present calls for a business-only session Monday morning, March 22 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon to discuss the big-picture compliance problems and how industry as a whole should approach the compliance certification of individual states. This will include the checklist process, bundling rule, federal legislation, and any other topics suggested by the private sector. This discussion among representatives of business is not part of an official Streamlined Sales Tax Project agenda or a public meeting and is restricted to COST members and/or invited private sector attendees. Non-COST members from the business community have grown accustomed to attending the business only sessions, which demonstrate the significance of COST as the private sector voice in Streamlined Sales Tax.

Registrants are on their own for lunch on Monday followed by afternoon sessions open to all registrants. After lunch COST will convene a joint business/government session from 1:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. to go through the compliance checklist process, discuss specific issues and findings, and hopefully develop a firm understanding of the status of state compliance with the Agreement. Business representatives will have an opportunity to discuss the appropriate approach to these and other questions with the state Department of Revenue (DOR) representatives that have been working on the compliance checklists.

The goal of joint afternoon discussions is to reach agreement with the state DOR representatives on the issues raised earlier in the business-only session and to go state-by-state through each checklist to determine whether the state is in compliance based on the criteria agreed to and the information captured (in the checklist) by the state and private sector participants. Those business and state government representatives with checklist assignments need to complete these tasks prior to the meeting. Please send a copy of the final product in advance to skranz@statetax.org

Tuesday Schedule

The Streamlined Sales Tax meeting will convene at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 23 to allow some registrants to speak at the ABA/IPT morning session. The 10:30 a.m. to noon discussions are open to all registrants, as businesses and trade associations will again be meeting with government representatives to go over any remaining compliance issues. From 12 noon until 1:30 PM everyone will be free to enjoy lunch at the abundant locations available in New Orleans.

There will be a wrap-up business only session from 1:30 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. As is the case on Monday morning, this discussion among representatives of business is not part of an official SSTP agenda or a public meeting and is restricted to COST members and/or invited private sector attendees

Draft Agenda

Joint meeting of private sector and government representatives to discuss compliance checklist issues

** Please send your suggested agenda topics to Steve Kranz at skranz@statetax.org

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the turn of the 19th century, most Americans had plenty to eat, but few enjoyed a balanced diet. Farmers grew their own food and shot wild game. In the cities that lack of refrigeration and even of canning until about 1820 meant that much sale pork and other preserved items were staples. Fresh fruits and vegetables were not available for much of the year. Foreign visitors were impressed by the amount of greasy food consumed by Americans and the speed at which it was eaten. A visiting French count reported that he was nearly made ill by breakfast that included fist, steak, ham, sausage, salt beef and hot breads. " The whole day passes in heaping indigestion on one another."

The English had a similar view, " They eat with the greatest possible rapidity and in total silence...(breakfast consisted of ) cornbread, buns, buckwheat cakes, broiled chickens, bacon, steak, rich hominy, fish, fresh and pickled, and beef-steak." Charles Dickens was repelled by those dyspeptic ladies and gentlemen who eat unheard-of quantities of hot corn bread..."

1741-Andrew Bradford published “The American Magazine, “ just three days ahead of Benjamin Franklin's “General Magazine.” He had been in Franklin's employ long enough to learn the trade and beat his old boss to the street with his publication.

1784 -Ice flows blocked the Mississippi River at New Orleans, then passed into the Gulf of Mexico.

1826 -The American Temperance Society (later renamed the American Temperance Union) was organized in Boston. It quickly grew into a national crusade, and within a decade over 8,000 similar groups had been formed, boasting a total of 1.5 million members.

1831-Birthday of Union General John Rawlins, born in Galena, Illinois. Rawlins was a close personal aide to General Ulysses S. Grant and was reported to have kept Grant from drinking heavily during the war. Rawlins' family was originally from Virginia but had settled in Illinois shortly before Rawlins' birth. When Rawlins was a teenager, his father abandoned the family and headed for the gold fields of California. The younger Rawlins received little formal education, but he studied law and was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1854. He became the city attorney in 1857 and became involved in state politics. He was an avid supporter of Senator Stephen Douglas and served as an elector for Douglas in 1860. When the war began, Rawlins became the aide de camp to Grant. He was Grant's principle staff officer throughout the war, and Grant said that Rawlins was nearly indispensable. Grant was known to be a heavy drinker when he served on the frontier in the 1850s, and there were rumors that he continued to drink during the early stages of the war. Rawlins appears to have been instrumental in keeping Grant “ in line.” Many reports of Grant's drinking were over-exaggerated, it is said. After the war, Rawlins served in the west. He helped General Greenville Dodge survey the route for the Union Pacific Railroad, which later became part of the first transcontinental line. For his efforts, the town of Rawlins, Wyoming, was named after him. When Grant became president in 1869, Rawlins became secretary of war. His health declined after taking office, and he died just six months later. Rawlins is buried in Arlington Cemetery.

1861- Colonel Bernard Irwin distinguished himself while leading troops in a battle with Chiricahua Apache Indians at Apache Pass, AZ (at the time part of the territory of New Mexico). For two days,

this army assistant surgeon “ voluntarily took command of troops and attacked and defeated the hostile Indians he met on the way.” For those actions, Irwin later became the first person awarded the new US Medal of Honor, although he didn't actually received it until three years later(January 24, 1864).

1866- the famous James Gang, which operated in Missouri after the Civil War, which included the James brothers, Frank and Jesse, and the Younger brothers, Cole, James and Robert, held up their first bank at the Clay County Savings and Loan Association in Liberty, MO. The cashiers, brothers Greenup and William Bird, were locked in the bank's vault, while the robbers joked that “all birds should be cared.” The made off with $60,000 in currency and securities. It was the first of more than 26 raids by the James Gang that yield more than $500,000 in loot.

1892- Grant Wood ,American artist, especially noted for his powerful realism and satirical paintings of the American scene, was born near Anamosa, IA. He was a printer, sculptor, woodworker and high school and college teacher. Among his best-remembered works are American Gothic, Fall Plowing and Stone City. Died at Iowa City, IA, Feb 12, 1942.

1899 -on the edge of the greatest arctic outbreak of all-time, a vicious blizzard pounded the mid-Atlantic and New England states. 20 inches of snow fell at Washington, DC and 34 inches fell at Cape May, New Jersey. The central pressure of the storm was estimated to be 966 millibars (28.53 inches) just southeast of Nantucket, Massachusetts. It was the coldest morning ever along the Gulf Coast, with temperatures of 6.8 degrees at New Orleans, Louisiana, 7 degrees at Pensacola, Florida and 1 degree below zero at Mobile, Alabama. The record low temperature for the state of Florida was set at Tallahassee when the mercury tumbled to 2 degrees below zero. The record low temperature for the state of Louisiana was set at Minden, when the thermometer fell to 16 degrees below zero. A trace of snow fell at Fort Myers, Florida. This was the farthest south snow has ever been observed in the US until 1977. On the edge of the greatest arctic outbreak of all time, a vicious blizzard pounded the mid-Atlantic and New England states. 20 inches of snow fell at Washington, DC and 34 inches fell at Cape May, New Jersey. The central pressure of the storm was estimated to be 966 millibars (28.53 inches) just southeast of Nantucket, Massachusetts.

    1899 -1ºF (-18ºC) New Orleans LA
    1899 -2ºF (-19ºC) Tallahassee FL (state record)
    1899 -16ºF (-27ºC), Minden LA (state record)

1899-the coldest temperature ever recorded at Dayton, Ohio occurred when it dropped to 28 degrees below zero.

http://www.redhotjazz.com/wingy.html weekday)
    1905 -29ºF (-34ºC) Pond AR (state record)
    1905 -40ºF (-40ºC) Lebanon KS (state record)
    1905 -40ºF (-40ºC) Warsaw MO (state record)

1914- the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers was formed in New York City. The object of th4e society was to protect the copyrighter musical compositions of its members against illegal public performance for profit or other forms of infringement, and to collect license fees for authorized performances in public amusement establishments for distribution among its members. George Maxwell was the first president. It became affiliated with similar societies functioning in foreign countries.

1919-Birthday of country and religious singer Tennessee Ernie Ford, whose full name was Ernest Jennings Ford, born in Bristol, Tennessee. He was nicknamed "the Ol' Peapicker," and is best known for his 1955 hit "Sixteen Tons," which sold four-million copies. But Ford had his first hit, "Mule Train," in 1949. The success of "Sixteen Tons" gained Ford an NBC television series, which ran from 1955 to 1961 and was very popular. During his career, Tennessee Ernie Ford has also recorded many religious albums. One of them was awarded a platinum disc in 1963 for one-million copies sold. Ford died in Reston, Virginia on October 17th, 1991.
1920-After his plan to bring Negro teams to the Majors was rejected by commissioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis, Chicago Negro baseball tycoon Andrew "Rube" Foster organized the Negro National League. Eight teams joined in its inaugural season: the Chicago American Giants, Chicago Giants, Cuban Stars, Dayton Marcos, Detroit Stars, Indianapolis ABCs, Kansas City Monarchs, and St. Louis Giants.

1920-After his plan to bring Negro teams to the Majors was rejected by commissioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis, Chicago Negro baseball tycoon Andrew "Rube" Foster organized the Negro National League. Eight teams joined in its inaugural season: the Chicago American Giants, Chicago Giants, Cuban Stars, Dayton Marcos, Detroit Stars, Indianapolis ABCs, Kansas City Monarchs, and St. Louis Giants.