By Kate McQueston - A recent study from the Lancet says that malaria caused 1.24 million deaths in 2010 (compared to previous estimates of 655,000), suggesting that the number of deaths from malaria globally may be twice as large as previously believed. Needless to say, this new finding is making headlines and bringing renewed attention to malaria as a [...]
By Todd Moss - This is a joint post with Stephanie Majerowicz. A colleague recently returned from Senegal and commented that she was struck by the vast gap between that country’s youthful population and its aged leader. President Abdoulaye Wade is 85 years old while the median Senegalese citizen is just 18.7 years old. Perhaps that 66-year gap is [...]
: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Friday , February 3, 2012 DEADLINE COMING UP FOR FLEX PLANS A deadline for many flex plan participants is coming up . nbsp The 2011 set-asides must be used by March 15 if the plan uses IRS’ 2½-month grace period . nbsp Any funds left over are forfeited . The deadline for other FSAs was Dec . 31, 2011. Remember that after this year , the ceiling on FSA set-asides will drop to 2,500. Posted by Legal : Disclaimer at 1:58 PM Older Post Home Visit us on Facebook : at facebook.com kopsa.otte: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Friday , February 3, 2012 FARMERS WATCH OUT FOR UNEMPLOYMENT TAX Because of the excellent numbers many of the owners of farm corporations paid high wages in the fourth quarter of 2011. In many cases the wages reported in this quarter can easily exceed 20,000. This becomes a . problem When wages reported for any quarter exceed 20,000, the corporation is now subject to paying Federal Unemployment taxes FUTA and in most cases state Unemployment taxes SUTA If you paid over 20,000 wages in
By Justin Sandefur - A few days ago Bill Gates released his annual letter to the world, opening with a discussion of how Gates-funded agricultural research can help Tanzanian farmers. Coincidentally, before coming to CGD I did some agricultural research in Tanzania myself — funded in part by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation — so I was eager [...]
Financing team offers training as part of healthy food initiative By Patty Cantrell Nic Welty employs himself full time year-round raising lettuce, spinach, and other leafy greens in three low-cost passive solar greenhouses, which together cover less than one acre of land. His Nine Bean Rows farm near Traverse City, MI, is one of many Read the Rest...
By Kimberly Ann Elliott - Having analyzed the debate over globalization and labor standards for some years now, I was not in the least surprised by the recent revelations about dangerous and unfair labor practices at Apple’s supplier factories in China. Like many other brand-name companies, Apple has a code of conduct for its suppliers and it responded to the [...]
By Vijaya Ramachandran - This is a joint post with Julie Walz. In a recent blog post, we discussed the phenomenon of Haiti as a “Republic of NGOs” where the government and the private sector were crowded out by large international organizations that provided most services. Just as international donors have sidestepped the Haitian government, reconstruction contracts have also [...]
By Todd Moss - I’ve been closely watching the impressive changes at the African Development Bank. (Our 2006 working group report recommendations are here and my 2010 progress scorecard is here.) In particular, I’ve been encouraged by the Bank’s articulation of its comparative advantage in infrastructure and private sector and the shift in its portfolio to reflect this focus. [...]
A movement-building haiku from NSAC’s grassroots planning session Earlier this week, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) held its semi-annual member meeting near Reisterstown, Maryland. Every winter, NSAC members discuss, debate, and vote on the coalition’s priorities for the year. In the coming year, NSAC will work with Congress and the Administration to: Create jobs Read the Rest...By Kate McQueston - Total fertility has been decreasing in many African countries—from 5.9 in 2001 to 4.6 in 2009 in Ethiopia and 5.5 in 2001 to 4.9 in 2009 in Senegal, though still high in comparison to many parts of the world (for more data on total fertility trends see here). This decline has come with both health benefits and [...]
By Denizhan Duran - As we posted recently, India had its first polio-free year, despite significantly lagging behind in other vaccinations. The economic losses of vaccine-preventable diseases (VPD) to developing countries are tremendous: investing in vaccines in low- and middle-income countries would save 6.4 million children until 2020 – an investment valued at $231 billion. The same is true [...]
By Jenny Ottenhoff - Expectations for a global development focus in President Obama’s State of the Union address were low. Still, more than 130 policy wonks gathered at the Commissary watering hole and eatery in Logan Circle to play CGD State of the Union bingo and many were pleasantly surprised that they could mark off a number of development-related [...]: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Thursday , January 26, 2012 FARM LENDING COMPETITION IS FEROCIOUS Bloomberg News JournalStar.com Bloomberg reports , Farmers are taking advantage of a resurgence in government-chartered credit providers and Federal Reserve efforts to stoke the economy by holding the Fed funds rate near zero . According to Jason Henderson , vice president and Omaha branch executive at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City , We're seeing very aggressive activity by the Farm Credit System and commercial: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Thursday , January 26, 2012 NEW FARM BILL New Farm Bill Not Likely Until Spring Of 2013, Insiders Say' Nebraska Radio Network NebraskaRadioNetwork.com reports that Barry Flinchbaugh , a noted ageconomist at Kansas State University , says Nebraska farmers and ranchers who are hoping to see a new farm bill come out of Congress this year will likely be disappointed . Flinchbaugh doesn't expect a lot of work to be done on the farm bill until next year , after the election . He also predicts
By Amanda Glassman - This is a joint post with Victoria Fan. Vaccine uptake in several countries is stagnating or even declining (see here and here for example). What explains this poor uptake and coverage? Public health researchers have recently begun to apply the concept of ‘vaccine hesitancy’ and ‘vaccine refusal’, largely focusing on individual knowledge, attitudes, and practices [...]: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Wednesday , January 25, 2012 HERE’S SOME GOOD NEWS Law School Applications Fall 15 The total number of applications and applicants for the Class of 2015 at ABA-approved law schools as of January 13, 2012 : were Applicants : 31,815, down 16.7 from last year Applications : 233,361, down 15.3 from last year Posted by Legal : Disclaimer at 9:01 AM Newer Post Older Post Home Visit us on Facebook : at facebook.com kopsa.otte Wondering about the IRS's important due dates Gain access by clicking
By Alan Gelb - This is a joint post with Rita Perakis. After many stages of drafting, debates, and consultations, the World Bank´s proposed results-based financing instrument, Program-for-Results is going for approval to the Bank´s Board on January 24. The latest draft of the policy can be found here; we´re pleased to see that Bank staff listened to comments [...]
In recent years, local governments across the nation have stepped up to the plate, making solid progress in tackling environmental issues ranging from green education and transportation to energy efficiency and sustainability.
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: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Monday , January 16, 2012 SPENDING Please take a moment to watch this video about spending : WATCH ME Posted by Legal : Disclaimer at 2:22 PM Newer Post Older Post Home Visit us on Facebook : at facebook.com kopsa.otte Wondering about the IRS's important due dates Gain access by clicking the link . below Small Business Tax Calendar Blog Archive 2012 13 January 13 QUESTION FROM A MISCLASSIFIED WORKER JUST FOR FUN MY HIGH SCOOL ENGLISH TEACHER WOULD . SPENDING MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY 2012Be inspired!Martin Luther King - I HAVE A DREAM
By Victoria Fan - This is a joint post with Rachel Silverman Yesterday the global health community celebrated a much anticipated anniversary: one year has passed since India’s last reported case of polio. While still tenuous, this achievement is an important milestone for the international effort to attain polio eradication. If India can maintain this progress, then only three [...]: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Friday , January 13, 2012 2012 NEBRASKA AG CLASSIC I was honored to speak at the Nebraska Ag Classic this past week in Kearney . The wealth of knowledge by all the speakers and the great information from the sponsors is a true credit to the Committee and sponsors . It is always wonderful to see old friends and meet new . ones If you would like a copy of the PowerPoint from the conference please email us and we will send it to you . OR if you would like me to speak at a conference that
By Victoria Fan - This is a joint post with Robert Marten at the Rockefeller Foundation How do we get to universal health coverage? This was the focus of a panel with William Hsiao, David de Ferranti and Yanzhong Huang at the Council for Foreign Relations in Washington yesterday. Of the many salient points discussed, including defining “universal health coverage”, [...]: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Tuesday , January 10, 2012 MORE ON CHILD LABOR LAWS Farmers would feel impact of proposed child labor law changes' Kansas City Star KansasCity.com reports that child labor proposals from the U.S . Department of Labor have stirred alarm and confusion among family farms , where children have been pitching in since mankind's earliest harvests . According to the story , under the DOL rules , parents could still employ their sons and daughters under age 16 if the work is done outside school: skip to main skip to sidebar Kopsa Otte Agriculture Blog Kopsa Otte CPAs Advisors have been involved in Income Tax Planning , Estate Planning Succession Planning for over 30 years . For more information about Kopsa Otte services , please contact us via e-mail at lkopsa kopsaotte.com or call 800-975-4829. Tuesday , January 10, 2012 FARM EXPORTS The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City tabulated farm exports . These percentages are based upon their estimates for 2011-2020. The share of the US crops that is exported each : year Wheat 46 Corn 15 Rice 53 Soybeans 47 Cotton 81 The US share of total world crop : exports Wheat 18 Corn 53 Rice 11 Soybeans 39 Cotton 35 The share of livestock that is : exported Beef 10 Pork 22 Poultry 17 Posted by Legal : Disclaimer at 1:49 PM Newer Post Older Post