Kansas
After many years of consideration, the legislature appears to have finally approved a
change to the mechanics' liens statutes. House Substitute for House Bill No. 2064 would do
the following:
- Would allow a Notice of Extension to be filed within four months on the form prescribed in the statute;
- If a Notice of Extension is properly filed, then a lien may be filed within five months of the date materials
or labor were last provided.
This measure represents a compromise from earlier positions where a
six-month period of opportunity within which to file mechanics' liens had been requested.
The bill still excludes improvements to residential real estate. It has been approved by
both the House and the Senate and has been forwarded to the governor. She has signed the
legislation. The Electric League worked hard on this piece of legislation.
Thank you to the members who wrote letters supporting this
legislation, to the committee and to Ken Keller with Western Extralite who kept the
Legislative Committee updated on this bill.
Missouri
The House has established a bi-partisan small business caucus. For the first time
in Missouri history both the House and Senate have established committees dedicated to
small business.
Did You Know?
According to Stateside Associates, an Arlington, Va. legislative tracking
company, about 210,000 bills Ä many related to business Ä are introduced in state
legislatures in a typical two-year cycle. You need to become aware of what is happening on
the local, state and federal fronts to protect your business. The Electric League
Legislative Committee will keep you informed on news that could effect you!
Federal
Legislative News
- Looks like there will be no postal
rate hike until 2006. Congress passed the Postal Civil Service Retirement Funding Reform
Act to correct a retirement benefit formula that would have caused the U.S. Postal Service
(USPS) to overpay funds to the Civil Service Retirement System and allow USPS to transfer
existing overpayments to an operating account. The new law requires USPS to use the
savings to avoid rate increases until 2006 and specifically forbids it from using the
money for other purposes.
- Senate opposition to the House-passed
bankruptcy reform bill is emerging. Sen. Charles Shumer (D-NY) says he will try to add
language to prevent abortion protesters from using bankruptcy to avoid paying court fines
and other debts - the same language that sank the bill last year. In addition, Sens.
Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) want a review of provisions that would
eliminate current standards on who is considered a disinterested party in corporate
bankruptcy cases. The bill would allow securities firms to work on bankruptcy
restructuring even if they had functioned as advisers to the same companies before the
bankruptcy filing.
- Comp time for private sector employees
took another step when the House Education & the Workforce Committee approved a bill
(HR 1119) to allow employers to give employees a choice between overtime pay and
equivalent time off. Comp time would be calculated the same as overtime pay Ä one and a
half hours of comp time for every hour worked over 40 a week. For example, eight hours of
overtime would translate into 12 hours of time off at straight pay. Employees could
collect as much as 160 hours of comp time annually and employers would have to pay cash
for unused time at the end of the year.
Source: National Retail Hardware
Association
September
Electric League Barn Party
You're invited to something a little different from the normal
Electric League luncheon - a barn party! The party will be held Friday, Sept. 19 at the
Privitera Ranch near Topeka, Kan. Members and invited guests will gather at 11:30 a.m. for
networking and socializing. Special thanks to our chef, Kevin O'Neill. In addition to the
$10 charge, members are asked to bring a non-perishable food item as a donation to the
Topeka Rescue Mission. Prospective members will be charged $5 plus the non-perishable food
item. The League is asking for your help. We need names of people you'd like to invite to
the party, especially those people you think would like to learn what the Electric League
can do for its members. Please send the names and addresses, by June 1, to Laura Simmons
at the EL office at lsimmons@westernassn.com or call Laura at 816-561-5323.
Mark your calendar for Friday, September 19 to attend
the Electric League Barn Party at the Privitera Ranch. Watch your upcoming newsletters for
more details about the fun event!
Identity
Theft: Don't Be a Victim
In the course of a busy day, you may write a check at the grocery
store, charge tickets to a ball game, rent a car, mail your tax returns, call home on your
cell phone, order new checks, or apply for a credit card. Chances are you don't give these
everyday transactions a second thought. But someone else may.
The 1990s spawned a new variety of crooks called identity thieves.
Their stock in trade is your everyday transactions. Each transaction requires you to share
personal information: your bank and credit account numbers; your income; your Social
Security number (SSN); or your name, address, and phone numbers. An identity thief takes
some piece of your personal information and appropriates it without your knowledge to
commit fraud or theft.
Identity theft is a serious crime. People whose identities have been
stolen can spend months or years - and thousands of dollars - cleaning up the mess the
thieves have made of their good name and credit record. In the meantime, victims may lose
job opportunities, be refused loans for education, housing, or cars, or even be arrested
for crimes they didn't commit.
As the problem continues to increase, it's important to learn how to
protect yourself. You can minimize your risk by managing your personal information wisely
and cautiously. This article, the first of two parts, will help you to protect your name
and credit.
How Identity Theft Occurs
Despite your best efforts to manage the flow of your personal information or to
keep it to yourself, skilled identity thieves may use a variety of methods to gain access
to your data, including, among other techniques:
- Stealing wallets and purses containing your identification and credit and bank cards.
- Stealing your mail, including your bank and credit card statements, preapproved credit
offers, telephone calling cards and tax information.
- Completing a "change of address form" to divert your mail to another location.
- Rummaging through your trash, or the trash of your business, for personal data in a
practice known as "dumpster diving."
- Using personal information you share on the Internet.
How Identity Thieves Use Your Personal Information
Identity thieves may call your credit card issuer and, pretending to be you, ask to change
the mailing address on your credit card account. The impostor then runs up charges on your
account.
They may open a new credit card account, using your name, date of
birth and SSN. When they use the credit card and don't pay the bills, the delinquent
account is reported on your credit report. Other schemes include establishing phone or
wireless service in your name, opening a bank account in your name and writing bad checks
on that account, and counterfeiting checks or debit cards and then draining your bank
account. They may even buy cars by taking out auto loans in your name.
What Can You Do
Order a copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit reporting
agencies every year. Make sure it is accurate and includes only those activities you've
authorized. The law allows credit bureaus to charge you up to $9.00 for a copy of your
credit report.
Credit Bureaus
- Equifax - www.equifax.comTo order your report, call: (800) 685-1111 or write:P.O. Box
740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
- Experian - www.experian.comTo order your report, call: (888) EXPERIAN (397-3742) or
write: P.O. Box 2104, Allen TX 75013
- TransUnion - www.transunion.comTo order your report, call: (800) 916-8800 or write:P.O.
Box 1000, Chester, PA 19022
By checking your report on a regular basis you can catch mistakes and
fraud before they wreak havoc on your personal finances. Don't underestimate the
importance of this step. One of the most common ways that consumers find out that they're
victims of identity theft is when they try to make a major purchase, like a house or a
car.
Place passwords on your credit card, bank, and phone accounts. Avoid
using easily available information like your mother's maiden name, your birth date, the
last four digits of your SSN or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers.
When opening new accounts, you may find that many businesses still have a line on their
applications for your mother's maiden name. Use a password instead.
Secure personal information in your home, especially if you have
roommates, employ outside help, or are having service work done in your home.
Ask about information security procedures in your workplace. Find out
who has access to your personal information and verify that records are kept in a secure
location. Ask about the disposal procedures for those records as well.
More Steps to Take
Although you probably cannot prevent identity theft entirely, you can minimize
your risk. By managing your personal information wisely, cautiously and with an awareness
of the issue, you can help guard against identity theft. In next month's issue, look for
more tips on protecting your identity.
Source: The CPA Client Bulletin - American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants, Inc.
The People Column
Happy May Birthday to Scott Bailey at C&O
Electric Sales.
Happy Mother's Day to all who are celebrating this month.
Graduations are upon us ... congratulations to any and all of you out
there with graduates in your family from your co-members at the Electric League.
New Faces ... New Places - Bob Lagerstrom is now
with Rains Electrical Sales.
Keep your e-mails coming in - this is your column and we're here to
print your news. Send your news to: peoplecolumn@electricleague.org
