Transportation Update

June, 2011
EDITORIAL FEATURES
American Trucker July issue features Managing Parts and Moving & Storage Commercial Carrier Journal July issue features Data Retention and Driver Screening Driver Health August issue features Prevention FoodBusinessNews June 16 issue features Immune System Support Food Logistics July/August issue features Managing Relationships with 3PL and Cold Chain Providers Land Line Aug/Sept issue features Idle Reduction Logistics Management July issue features 22nd Annual State of Logistics Report and Improving WDC Network Design Modern Materials Handling July issue features Salary Survey: Original Research Motor Magazine July issue features Ford Misfire Diagnosis and Valve Technology Overdrive July issue features Owner-Operator Pay Trends Transport Topics June 13 issue features Tech Tools for Revenue Management Truckers Connection July issue features Heroes of the Highway Truckers News August issue features Great American Trucking Family and Keeping a Budget

LAYOFFS
Aramark Aviation Services, which operates at Memphis International Airport, is eliminating more than 100 positions when its contract with Delta Air Lines expires on May 17. Another two dozen layoffs are expected when its contract with Delta subsidiary Mesaba Airlines expires on June 15. Total layoffs are expected to number 130. The jobs include supervisory and hourly positions, but about 30 of the displaced workers have accepted jobs with new provider Air Serv and the company is working to help place others, Aramark human resources assistant Jamiemarie Reyes said. Memphis Commercial Appeal Gulf Air, Bahrains state-owned carrier, fired 200 employees and reported a 25% drop in bookings in the first five months of the year because of unrest in the Middle East. Bloomberg City of Houston is laying off employees at Bush Intercontinental Airport. More than 100 people were recently given pink slips. Employees are receiving pink slips at the airport, having had no prior knowledge they were about to lose their jobs. The layoffs are expected to save the city about $3 million but aren't related to the budget-related layoffs happening across the city. ABC News Missouri Department of Transportation plans to cut staff by 1,200 positions, close 135 facilities and sell more than 740 pieces of equipment. The department believes the $512 million saved can be used for road and bridge projects. Under the plan, MoDOT would close its district offices in Macon, Joplin and Willow Springs, but will continue to maintain a presence in those cities. KSDK

CONFERENCES
Using National Household Travel Survey Data for Transportation Decision Making: A Workshop June 6-7 Washington, DC Combined 13th Annual Harbor Safety Committees and Area Maritime Security Committees Conference June 7-9 Houston, TX 6th International Driving Symposium on Human Factors in Driver Assessment, Training, and Vehicle Design June 27-30 Lake Tahoe, CA TRB Joint Summer Meeting July 10-13 Boston, MA 10th International Conference on Low-Volume Roads July 24-27 Lake Buena Vista, FL Geophysical Exploration, Non-Destructive Evaluation and Monitoring Techniques for Landslides, Rockfalls, and Other Geohazards July 25 Lexington, KY

TRENDS
Tax Time Never Ends As a self-employed driver, most expenses related to running your business are tax deductible. Most people think about taxes in April, but as an owner-operator, you should be thinking about your taxes every month. Your tax obligations include federal and state income taxes. As an owner-operator, youll be required to pay estimated taxes each quarter, and you are responsible for setting aside funds for taxes. We see almost every day a new owner-operator who hasnt set up automatic withholding, and all of a sudden at tax time they owe [thousands], and they dont have it, says Dennis Bridges, a CPA and tax preparer. Youre also responsible for self-employment tax based on net earnings. If you have a second truck and employ a driver, youre responsible for employee payroll taxes for federal and the state where youre based, says Perry Wiseman, owner of Truckers Accounting Service. Using Form 2290, you must pay the annual Heavy Road Use Tax. The $550 fee covers trucks weighing more than 55,000 pounds and is due by August 1 for the July 1-June 30 period.

Especially important are expenses you incur running your business. If its work related, chances are its deductible according to the Internal Revenue Service. We tell our clients to supply us with everything except restaurant and grocery store receipts, says David Blair, owner of Blair Tax Consulting. Everything they do on the road is deductible. Keep every receipt or bill for tolls, cell phone use, showers, truck supplies and so on. If the receipt doesnt specify the expense, write the details on the receipt. If you dont get a receipt, write it down and note the date and place it in a notebook that you keep for the year. Keep your settlement statements and handwritten logbooks, not only for current taxes but for potential IRS audits. Blair says the IRS wants to see expense categories rather than itemized deduction. He organizes his owner-operator client expenses into three categories: Truck expenses, such as fuel, maintenance and insurance; office supplies, such as cell phone bills and computer; and truck equipment, such as tools and work gloves. There are some expense exceptions. Clothing generally isnt deductible unless you have your name and company name applied to your cap or shirts or if you need steel-toed boots to load and unload your flat bed or if youre a Florida trucker who needs long-johns to run in the north in winter. Food and motel expenses are covered under a per diem for transportation workers, which is $59 a day and 80 percent deductible. The IRS audited a woman driver who had about $10,000 in per diem, Wiseman says. The IRS asked for [proof]. She didnt keep her logbooks, and it disallowed the deduction. The IRS can audit back three years. Typically, I tell people to keep them for five years. Youll also want to keep track of expenses back home. If you or your spouse makes work-related trips such as driving to a repair shop for tires, the mileage is deductible, Bridges says. If you maintain a home office, its expenses, supplies and related costs, such as a computer and printer, are deductible. Bridges advises using an accounting professional who knows the trucking industry. Contact that individual when youre planning a major business transaction like disposing of your truck. If youre selling it outright, your proceeds are going to be taxable, he says. If you traded it in on another tractor, theres no taxable event, and you avoid a taxable gain. Dont overlook these common deductible expenses: Air freshener Floor mats Alarm clock GPS device Batteries Hard hat Bedding Ice scraper Cab curtains Keys Camera Lawn chairs Coffee maker Logbook Coveralls Luggage Duct tape Map lamp Facemask Power cord First-aid supplies Refrigerator Seat covers Sunglasses Tire gauges Trash bags Truck magazines Vacuum cleaner