The California Franchise Tax Board has announced state tax benefits for businesses and employees who aid Hurricane Katrina relief efforts by donating the cash value of employee leave time. The program–which mirrors a similar federal IRS program announced last week–allows workers to donate unused sick, vacation, or other personal leave time in exchange for the employer’s cash payment to a hurricane relief organization. Businesses can deduct the amount of their cash payments on their state tax filings, and employees do not have to declare the value of any leave time they donate as taxable income. As with the IRS program, donations must be made by January 1, 2007, to qualify for this favorable tax treatment.
Join us this fall in San Francisco for the California Employment Law Update conference, a 3-day event that will teach you everything you need to know about new laws and regulations, and your compliance obligations, for the year ahead—it’s one-stop shopping at its best.
Additional Resources:
California Franchise Tax Board
Internal Revenue Service