Wauconda Area Chamber of Comerce

New MANDATORY NLRB Posting Requirement!  

The National Labor Relations Board has postponed the implementation date for its new notice-posting rule until April 30, 2012 in order to allow for enhanced education and outreach to employers, particularly those who operate small and medium sized businesses. AVAILABLE NOW - Place your order TODAY!

Every Illinois workplace is required by law to display certain current employment law notices. We have included this NEW NLRB 11 by 17-inch notice in our NEW Illinois and Federal Mandatory Employment Law Poster Sets.

A Very Successful Year for the IL Chamber

The Illinois Chamber saved your company money this year that will flow to the bottom line! Our official 2011 Annual Report helps to explain how (click here to download the full report).

Illinois Chamber initiatives and lobbying efforts have successfully influenced pro-business policy in Springfield and Washington, D.C.

Here’s a summary of the top ten policy areas where  the Illinois Chamber staff spent its time and your money in 2011.

January 24, 2012 Issue



Gov. Pat Quinn signs Unemployment Insurance Agreement

The U/I Trust Fund is more than $1.9 Billion in debt to the Federal government. As a result, Illinois business, without this legislative change, will pay more than $1.2 Billion in penalties and the State of Illinois will be responsible for nearly $250 million in interest payment to the Feds. This agreement will allow the State to reduce the interest penalties by nearly two-thirds and employer penalties to be reduced by one-third.

The agreement saves more than $400 million in unemployment insurance taxes for Illinois businesses. It also provides a significant reduction in taxes of all employers with no history of layoffs, which is nearly half of all businesses in our state. And while it will return the Trust Fund to solvency by 2018, it also calls for meetings before that date if the economy improves more quickly than anticipated, which could provide an avenue for additional tax savings.

Without this agreement, taxes will increase significantly for everyone across the board, and there would be no new mechanisms to fight employee fraud and recover fraudulent payments from workers, such as garnishing their federal tax return.

Illinois Caustic/Corrosive Substances Act (Public Act 97-0565)

Starting January 1, 2012, every retailer in the State of Illinois that sells products that contain substances regulated by the Federal Caustic Poison Act, AND the label on the product contains the affirmative statement “causes severe burns” must maintain a  Registry for customers to sign prior to purchase.

Batteries are excluded from the registry.

The Illinois State Police maintains the authority to request the registry at any time to pursue police matters, so the registry must be made available to the department at its request.

Here is a partial list of just some of the products that are covered by this new law. There may be other products and we will attempt to update as we receive them. You should check your inventory with your supplier(s).

Electronics Disposal Ban Takes Effect Jan. 1

Beginning January 1, it will no longer be legal for individuals to dispose of unwanted electronics in their regular trash. Discarded electronics, including computers, monitors, electronic keyboards, scanners, fax machines and many other electronic devices, must now be taken to a registered recycler for proper management. It will be illegal for the consumer to dispose of them in the trash and it will be illegal for Illinois landfills to accept them.

The Illinois Electronic Products Recycling and Reuse Act, which took effect in 2008, required manufacturers to establish a recycling program for discarded and unwanted electric products, if they sell their products in Illinois. This newest phase will include individual citizens in the effort to keep electronics, which contain a variety of potentially toxic contaminants, out of the state's 48 active landfills.
A 2007 report showed that electronic products were the fastest growing portion of the solid waste stream. That year, three million tons of electronic products became obsolete, yet only 14 percent of those products were recycled.

During calendar year 2011, electronics manufacturers are being required to collect and recycle or refurbish more than 28 million pounds of products. The reuse of these products, including metals, plastics and glass, conserves natural resources and saves energy. The law requires manufacturers of 17 electronic products, including televisions, computers, monitors, printers, keyboards, and DVRs, to recycle their percentage of a statewide recycling goal. Manufacturers typically hire local recyclers to help them meet their goal.

The metals, which include gold, cadmium, lead and silver, if landfilled can threaten groundwater. When the metals are reused, it eliminates some of the need for mining for new supplies and can also be valuable resources when reclaimed.

The Illinois EPA maintains a web site at: http://www.epa.state.il.us/land/electronic-waste-recycling/index.html, which explains requirements for individuals and for manufacturers, a list of registered collectors, as well as a complete listing of all electronic items included in the ban.

Sales Tax Rate Change Summary

ATTN:  All retailers and servicepersons conducting business in taxing jurisdictions whose sales tax rate is changing effective January 1, 2012:
Effective January 1, 2012, certain taxing jurisdictions have imposed a local sales tax or changed their local sales tax rate on general merchandise sales. The following taxes are affected:
--home rule sales tax
--non-home rule sales tax
--business district sales tax
--county home rule tax
--county school facility tax
These local sales taxes are referred to in this bulletin as "locally imposed sales tax."  

You must adjust your cash register and any computer program so that beginning on January 1, 2012, you will collect and pay the correct sales tax. You need to contact your software vendor if you use software to create your forms.  

To verify your new combined sales tax rate (i.e., state and local sales taxes), go to the Tax Rate Finder on our website at tax.illinois.gov and select rates for January 2012.

Electronic Filing for Businesses

Effective for tax years ending on or after December 31, 2011, corporations, including S corporations, that are required to file their federal Forms U.S. 1120 and U.S. 1120S income tax returns by electronic means, are now required to file their Illinois returns through the IRS and Illinois Modernized Electronic Filing program (MeF). The Illinois MeF program currently supports the

•    2009 Form IL-1120, Corporation Income and Replacement Tax Return, and schedules (excluding unitary filings)
•    2010 Form IL-1120, and all schedules (including all unitary filings)
•    2011 Form IL-1120 and all schedules (in testing)
•    2011 Form IL-1120-ST, Small Business Replacement Tax Return, and all schedules (in testing)

In the event that you are required to file electronically for federal purposes and the Illinois MeF program does not support your return type, you are exempt from the requirement until such a time that we are prepared to include your return type (i.e., partnerships, trusts and estates, exempt organizations, composite returns, pass-through entities). Illinois MeF does not support any amended returns. Therefore, these returns are exempt from the new requirements.

Beginning August 2010, the Department of Revenue began accepting the IL-1120 and Schedules electronically.  Click here for for more information.