NOAH & THE ARK TODAY

If you ever wondered if Noah could build the Ark today, wonder no longer. Check out the web site below. Unfortunately there is more truth than comedy in this: Noah & The Ark Today.

NEBRASKA ECONOMY NOT FEELING AS MUCH PAIN

'State economy not doing all that bad, Fed economist says'

(Norfolk Daily News) -- Compared to the national economy, Nebraska's economy is doing well. Jason Henderson, Federal Reserve Bank vice president in Omaha, said Monday evening that the Nebraska economy is doing well in many areas, but the farm areas are "putting us over the top." Housing, construction and job growth are some of the areas in which Nebraska's economy has been outperforming the national economy, Henderson said. Part of it has been because Nebraska has been fiscally conservative, he said. Henderson said Nebraska is enjoying a surge in manufacturing exports, specifically food and machinery.

'Nebraska Chamber Shares Economic Status of State'

(KTPH TV, Sioux City, IA) -- While the U.S. economy is in turmoil, the state of Nebraska's economy is holding steady. The Nebraska Chamber of Commerce & Industry presented its annual Legislative Forum to the South Sioux City Chamber on Tuesday. Barry Kennedy, president of the State Chamber, discussed topics like taxes, quality of life and labor laws, and identifying issues facing the Nebraska business community. "Our challenge is to get other people to come here and see what we have, see our work ethic," Kennedy says.

QUESTIONS ON FDIC COVERAGE

Now with the supposed economic crisis, we've been receiving questions on FDIC coverage. One of our accountants, Megan Munsell, researched this subject and came up with answers to some of the questions you may be having.

Find out if you are FDIC Insured with these common questions:

Q: What types of bank accounts are insured?

A: Checking, Savings, Trust, Certificates of Deposit (CDs), IRA Retirement Accounts, and Money Market Deposit Accounts.

Q: What is not FDIC Insured?

A: Investments in mutual funds, annuities, stocks, bonds, Treasury securities and safe deposit boxes. See additional questions and answers below for more on these accounts.

Q: How much is insured?

A: The basic insurance amount is $100,000 per depositor per insured bank. Certain retirement accounts, such as Individual Retirement Accounts, are insured up to $250,000 per depositor per insured bank. If you and your family have $100,000 or less in all of your deposit accounts at the same insured bank, you do not need to worry about your insurance coverage -- your deposits are fully insured.

Q: What if we have more than $100,000 deposited in the same bank?

A: The FDIC provides separate insurance coverage for deposit accounts held in different categories of ownership. You can qualify for more than $100,000 in coverage at one insured bank if you split up your deposit accounts into different ownership categories.

The most common ownership categories are:

Single Accounts: these are deposit accounts owned by one person and titled in the person’s name only. All of your single accounts at the same bank are added together and the total is insured up to $100,000.

Note: Retirement and qualifying trust accounts are not included in this ownership category.

Certain Retirement Accounts: these are deposit accounts owned by one person and titled in the name of that person’s retirement plan.

Only the following types of retirement plans are insured in this ownership category:

Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) including traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) IRAs, and Savings Incentive Match Plans for Employees (SIMPLE) IRAs

Section 457 deferred compensation plan accounts (whether self-directed or not)

Self-directed defined contribution plan accounts

Self-directed Keogh plan (or H.R. 10 plan) accounts

All deposits that an individual has in any of the types of retirement plans listed above at the same insured bank are added together and the total is insured up to $250,000. For example, if an individual has an IRA and a self-directed Keogh account at the same bank, the deposits in both accounts would be added together and insured up to $250,000.

Note: Naming beneficiaries on a retirement account does not increase deposit insurance coverage.

Joint Accounts: these are deposit accounts owned by two or more people. If both owners have equal rights to withdraw money from a joint account, each person’s shares of all joint accounts at the same insured bank are added together and the total is insured up to $100,000. For example, if a husband and wife share accounts at one bank, the total of their accounts is insured up to $200,000.

Revocable Trust Accounts: these are deposits held in either payable-on-death (POD) accounts or living trust accounts. Deposit insurance coverage for revocable trust accounts is based on each owner's trust relationship with each qualifying beneficiary. While the trust owner is the insured party, coverage is provided for the interests of each beneficiary in the account.

The FDIC insures the interests of each beneficiary up to $100,000 for each owner if all of the following requirements are met:

The beneficiary is the owner's spouse, child, grandchild, parent, or sibling. Adopted and stepchildren, grandchildren, parents, and siblings also qualify. In-laws, grandparents, great-grandchildren, cousins, nieces and nephews, friends, organizations (including charities), and trusts do not qualify.

The account title must indicate the existence of the trust relationship by including a term such as payable on death, in trust for, trust, living trust, family trust, or an acronym such as POD or ITF.

For POD accounts, each beneficiary must be identified by name in the bank's account records.

If any of these requirements are not met, the entire amount in the account, or any portion of the account that does not qualify, would be added to the owner's other single accounts, if any, at the same bank and insured up to $100,000. If the revocable trust account has more than one owner, the FDIC would insure each owner's share as his or her single account.

Note: In applying the $100,000 per-beneficiary insurance limit, the FDIC combines an owner’s POD accounts with the living trust accounts that name the same beneficiaries at the same bank.

Additional Questions and Answers:

Q: What about Mutual Funds?

A: The key point to remember when you contemplate purchasing mutual funds, stocks, bonds or other investment products, whether at a bank or elsewhere, is: Funds so invested are NOT deposits, and therefore are NOT insured by the FDIC – or any other agency of the federal government.

Q: Securities?

A: Securities you own, including mutual funds, that are held for your account by a broker, or a bank's brokerage subsidiary are not insured against loss in value. The value of your investments can go up or down depending on the demand for them in the market. The Securities Investors Protection Corporation (SIPC), a non government entity, replaces missing stocks and other securities in customer accounts held by its members up to $500,000, including up to $100,000 in cash, if a member brokerage or bank brokerage subsidiary fails.

Q: Treasury Securities?

A: Treasury securities include Treasury bills (T-bills), notes and bonds. T-bills are commonly purchased through a financial institution. Even though Treasury securities are not covered by federal deposit insurance, payments of interest and principal (including redemption proceeds) on those securities that are deposited to an investor's deposit account at an insured depository institution ARE covered by FDIC insurance up to the $100,000 limit.

Customers who hold Treasury securities purchased through a bank that later fails can request a document from the acquiring bank (or from the FDIC if there is no acquirer) showing proof of ownership and redeem the security at the nearest Federal Reserve Bank.

Q: Safe Deposit Boxes?

A: The contents of a safe deposit box are not insured by the FDIC. If you are concerned about the safety, or replacement, of items you have put in a safe deposit box, you may consider purchasing fire and theft insurance. Consult your insurance agent for more information.

Information provided by FDIC.gov

DID YOU KNOW???

This beats getting out of the car and looking for the gas cap door. Why doesn't anyone tell us these simple things? Why didn’t the manufacturer make more of a point of this? Seems as if it is reasonably important.

I have been driving for many years... I would think I should have noticed the little secret on my dashboard that was staring me in the face the whole time...I didn't...and I bet you didn't either...Have you ever rented or borrowed a car and when arriving at the gas station wondered...mmmm, which side is the gasfiller cap?

My normal solution was to stick my head out the window, strain my neck and look, try to see in the side mirrors or even get out of the car! Well ladies and gentlemen, I'm going to share with you my little secret so you will no longer look like Ace Ventura on your way to the gas station or put your neck at risk of discomfort or injury.If you look at your gas gauge, you will see a small icon of a gas pump?The handle of the gas pump will extend out on either the left or right side of the gas pump? If your tank is on the left, the handle will be on the left? If your tank is on the right, the handle will be on the right (see photo). It is that simple!

Don't feel dumb, just go out and share the world's best kept auto secret with your friends.

NEW TAX LAW

Correction: The dates of 4/9/08 and 6/30/08 were incorrect when this post was published on 9/15/08. These dates have been corrected and appear in red below.

As I mentioned in my post on August 4th, the New Homebuyers' Tax Credit gives a $7,500 credit to some people buying homes between 4/9/08 and 6/30/09. But beware, this is an interest free loan, not a true credit, and must be paid back over a period of 15 years.

Below are a couple of questions I have received about the new credit, including my responses.

Q - If I’m qualified for the tax credit and buy a home in 2009, can I apply the tax credit against my 2008 tax return?

A - Yes, but you must meet certain qualifications in both years. The law allows taxpayers to choose to treat qualified home purchases in 2009 as if the purchase occurred on December 31, 2008. There are some detailed rules on this which you should discuss in person with your tax preparer to make sure that you qualify.

Q - If I purchase a home in 2009, can I choose whether to report the purchase as occurring in 2008 or 2009, depending on in which year my credit amount is the largest?

A - Yes. If the applicable income phaseout would reduce your home buyer tax credit amount in 2009 and a larger credit would be available using the 2008 amounts, then you can choose the year that yields the largest credit amount. There’s also a new special website devoted just to this new credit.

NON CPA TAX PREPARERS CRITICISED

According to the Treasury Department, many returns done by unlicensed paid preparers are riddled with errors. Agents made undercover visits to 28 such preparers and found that 61% of the returns contained mistakes, and in a third of those cases, the preparers acted recklessly.

In one example the preparer added in deductions the taxpayer wasn’t entitled to, or claimed dependents erroneously. One of the problem preparers the Treasury visited prepared over 700 actual returns for taxpayers during the most recent filing season. This information gives legs to a bill forcing unlicensed preparers to register with the IRS.

Preparers who aren’t CPAs, lawyers or enrolled agents will have to pass a test to do tax returns. As Senator Grassley once said, “it does not seem right that you have to have a license to cut hair, but do not need to have a license to do a tax return.”

We at Kopsa Otte know that this is true. We get to see a lot of returns when we do second opinions. Just this week we are amending a return prepared by an unlicensed preparer and the happy new client is getting refunds of over $3,000. If you are not a client of Kopsa Otte, and are interested in having us do a Second Opinion on your tax return, contact Amanda Hansen at ahansen@kopsaotte.com for details.

WILL FALLING PRICES HURT LAND VALUES?

(Des Moines Register) -- Iowa farmland owners and investors should be mindful of Wall Street's current trouble, but they should also watch corn and soybean prices more closely, a farmland broker said this week. Troy Louwagie of Mount Vernon, a land consultant with Hertz Real Estate Services, said the Iowa Farm and Land Realtors survey showed that farmland values rose by 6.6% since the last survey in March and by 17.6% since the same survey a year ago. Land prices have risen because of record commodity prices, Louwagie said, and a continuation of those prices will determine how long the increase continues. The survey released Tuesday showed a slight cooling from an annual average farmland value increase of 20% or more during the last five years because less land is being bought this year for suburban commercial and housing development and recreation. As a result, Iowa is returning to its traditional pattern where farmers dominated land purchases.

HEINEMAN PROMOTES BEGINNING FARMERS PROGRAM

(Grand Island Independent) -- The future of agriculture was on the mind of Gov. Dave Heineman at Husker Harvest Days on Wednesday in Grand Island. One of the many activities on Heineman's agenda at Husker Harvest Days was promoting new opportunities for Nebraska's Beginning Farmers Program. Heineman said the Agriculture Census in 1978 found the average age of state farmers was 49 years old. In 2002, the age rose to 54. Heineman signed a law in April that removes several eligibility restrictions within the Beginning Farmer Tax Credit Program. The new ag property tax exemption allows qualified beginning farmers to claim an exemption on up to $100,000 of personal property used in production agriculture. The exemption can be claimed for three years. To apply for the Beginning Farmer program or get more information, contact the Nebraska Department of Agriculture by calling (800) 753-9396 or by visiting http://www.agr.ne.gov/.

New in 2008
Personal Property Tax Exemption
And Other Changes

Beginning Farmer may receive Personal Property Tax Exemption:

· Up to $100,000 of valuation for agricultural machinery.

· Each year for three years.

· Apply for eligibility certificate from the Beginning Farmer Program.

· Make initial application to county assessor by December 31st of the year preceding the year for which exemptions are sought.

· The County Assessor shall approve or deny the application for exemption and notify the applicant on or before February 1.

Expanded Owner’s Eligibility for the Beginning Farmer Tax Credit Act:

· To include individual or business entity which has an ownership interest in an agricultural asset located in the State of Nebraska.

· To include asset owners and beginning farmers who are related and have developed an approved succession plan.

SOMETHING TO PONDER

What was the reason given for developing the Department of Energy during the Carter administration? We have spent multi billions of dollars in support of this agency and I am willing to bet not one person who reads this will remember the reason given. It was very simple.

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY WAS INSTITUTED TO LESSEN OUR DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN OIL.

NOTE: IN 2008 THE BUDGET FOR THIS DEPARTMENT IS NOW AT $24.2 BILLION A YEAR. THEY HAVE 16,000 FEDERAL EMPLOYEES AND APPROXIMATELY 100,000 CONTRACT EMPLOYEES.

RECOVERY REBATE CREDIT WORKSHEET

As we have discussed quite a bit, there is a lot of confusion over how the rebates will be handled on the 2008 tax returns, both for people who receive checks and for those who don't.

The IRS has just released this draft of the instructions for the 2008 1040. On pages 18 and 19 are the rebate credit worksheets for computing the amounts to enter on Line 70 of the 1040. Add this in… think this is confusing. Check out the two page, 29 line form that you have to fill out to determine if your rebate is correct.

AT A GLANCE: AMERICA'S FALLING OIL PRODUCTION

According to a report from the Energy Information Administration – a division of the U.S. Energy Dept. – the United States imported about 60% of the oil it consumed during 2006. Our five largest foreign suppliers of crude oil and petroleum products were: Canada (17.2%); Mexico (12.4%); Saudi Arabia (10.7%); Venezuela (10.4%) and Nigeria (8.1%).

The U.S. produces 10% of the world’s oil and consumes 24% -- about 20.7 million barrels of oil each day. Of that amount, 70% is consumed for transportation purposes.

U.S. oil consumption is expected to increase 2.1 MMbd by 2030.

U.S. domestic oil production has fallen significantly in the past three decades – due in large part to Congress’ moratorium on oil and gas leasing in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). In 1970, domestic production of crude oil averaged 9.7 MMbbl/d. In 2006, total U.S. domestic crude oil production, including Federal offshore, averaged 5.1 MMbbl/d, a decrease of about 47% from 1970.

The top crude oil-producing States in 2006 (and their percent share of domestic production) were Texas (21%), Alaska (15%), California (12%), Louisiana (4%), Oklahoma (3%), and New Mexico (3%). Production on Federal offshore-leases in the Gulf of Mexico in 2006 was 1.3 MMbbl/d, about 25% of total U.S. production.

(Sources: EIA and Congressional Research Service)

UNL PROFESSOR NOT SEEING REPEAT OF 1980 FARM CRISIS

'(AP) -- A University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor of agricultural economics says the factors aren't stacking up to make for a repeat of the 1980s farm crisis. The big increase in ag land prices may have some worried, but Bruce Johnson says farm real estate conditions are much different today than in the early 1980s. Back then, only 20% of land sales were cash and down payments were also around 20%. Land owners also faced higher interest rates. He says now about 50% of all ag land purchases are in cash and down payments are larger.

EXPLAINING THE TAX SYSTEM

My partner, Candy Otte, just passed this on to me. It is a perfect example of the tax system and the politicians' attempts to "buy votes" by claiming that the Republicans are favoring the rich by giving the people paying the most in taxes the most benefit. My question has always been, "how can you cut taxes for someone that is not paying taxes?"

Bar Stool Economics

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

§ The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.

§ The fifth would pay $1.

§ The sixth would pay $3.

§ The seventh would pay

$7.§ The eighth would pay $12.

§ The ninth would pay $18.

§ The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that's what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20." Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his 'fair share?' They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.

And so:

§ The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).

§ The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).

§ The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).

§ The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).

§ The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).

§ The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

"I only got a dollar out of the $20,"declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man," but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got ten times more than I!" "That's true!!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!" "Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.

Professor of Economics

University of Georgia

For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.