Read the complete story here.
Author: amyr
NJ.com reported that members of the 17 rail union coalition have authorized a strike against New Jersey Transit. However, SMART TD General Chairperson Steve Burkert said, “We are certainly hopeful that NJ Transit gets back to the negotiating table.” Read the complete story here.
According to Section 14 (45 U.S.C. Section 231m) of the Railroad Retirement Act retirement annuities are not taxable for individual state income tax purposes.
Bruce Rodman, of the Public Affairs/Office of Administration of the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board says, “Both of our primary enabling statutes – the Railroad Retirement Act and the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act – specifically exempt the benefits paid under them from state income taxes. However, if a person doesn’t know this – and sometimes this might stem from people using free tax-prep software or obtaining volunteer assistance in filing their returns – and declares it as taxable income, the state tax collection agencies probably won’t know any better.”
The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) also states on the FAQ section (see #18) of their website that railroad retirement, unemployment and sickness benefits paid by the RRB are not subject to state income tax. However, these benefits are taxable on the federal level.
Many tax preparers and even states are not aware of these statutes and may attempt to tax your annuities. It is up to us to make sure that our annuities are not taxed by the states in which we live.
The following letter was released yesterday, February 10, by Carolina Worrell, Managing Editor at RailWay Age Magazine: | ||||
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The Columbus Dispatch reported that yesterday, February 9, two CSX employees were injured when their train, bound for the Honda plant, collided with a stationary car. CSX has not yet issued a statement.
Read the complete story here.
TimesUnion.com reported that a snowstorm caused a charter bus to flip last night on Interstate 95 in Conn., leaving more than 30 passengers injured. Read the complete article here.
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SMART Transportation Division will be conducting a Treasurers’ Workshop at the International Headquarters located in North Olmsted, Ohio on March 8-10, 2016.
Attendance will be limited to 35 registrants, so those interested in attending are instructed to contact Dora Wolf in the Updating Department by calling (216) 228-9400, or by email at dwolf@smart-union.org as soon as possible to reserve a spot in the class.
While all treasurers will likely benefit from this workshop, newly elected treasurers are strongly encouraged to attend. The three-day training session comes at no cost to the local. However, the local is responsible for all expenses associated with the treasurer’s attendance. Lost time or salary, travel, hotel and meal expenses connected with attendance may be reimbursed if pre-approved at a local meeting as an allowable expense of the local.
The workshop will provide local treasurers training on the responsibilities and reporting duties pertaining to the office, including direct receipts and WinStabs. It will also focus on the completion of mandatory filings with the IRS and Department of Labor as well as instructions on completing a monthly billing properly.
A block of rooms is being held at the Radisson Hotel Cleveland Airport, 25070 Country Club Blvd, North Olmsted, OH 44070. Corporate room rate is $78 (+tax) without breakfast or $89 (+tax) with breakfast. The deadline for room reservations is Monday, February 29, 2016.
Reservations can be made by calling 1-800-395-7046 and providing code SMART TD Union when making reservations.
Training sessions will be conducted by SMART TD Field Auditors Mike Araujo, Bobby Brantley and John Purcell. Space is limited and attendees will be accepted on a first-come basis. It is recommended that those attending make their hotel reservations at the time of registration.
If possible, attendees should bring a notebook computer and USB flash drive.