BUSINESS BRIEFS: Nov. 13, 2016

Wasilla chamber board ballots now online

Online balloting for the Greater Wasilla Chamber of Commerce 2017 board of directors’ election opened Nov. 9 and will run through Nov. 23, according to the business group. Two seats are up for election.

According to the chamber, three candidates have filed to run: incumbent Stephanie Berta along with Tammy Lincoln and Victoria Roberts.

Berta has been a Wasilla resident for 13 years and is a business banking relationship manager and commercial lender at Wells Fargo Bank. Stephanie is completing, by appointment, a 2016 term.

Lincoln moved to Alaska in 1986 and currently works as the marketing manager for Mat-Su Title Agency. Lincoln currently serves on the GWCC events committee, the Valley Board of Realtors events committee, is the board secretary for the Wasilla Rotary noon club and also serves on the sustainability board for Alaska Family Services.

Roberts came to Alaska when her family moved to the state with the Air Force in the early 1980s. She works for Real Estate Brokers of Alaska. Roberts attended Chugiak High School, moved on to a trade school that focused on computer science and worked her way to becoming a Realtor in 2004. She became a broker in 2011.

For complete candidate bios and information on voting, visit www.wasillachamber.org

IRS reminds businesses of new W-2 filing deadline

The Internal Revenue Service is reminding employers and small business owners of a new Jan. 31 filing deadline for W-2 forms.

According to the IRS, the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act, enacted last December, includes the new requirement for employers, who are now required to file W-2 copies to the Social Security Administration by Jan. 31. The Jan. 31 deadline also applies to certain 1099-MISC forms for reporting nonemployee compensation such as payments to independent contractors.

The Jan. 31 deadline has applied to employers furnishing copies of the forms to employees, and that date remains unchanged, according to the IRS.

The new law also requires the IRS to hold refunds involving two refundable tax credits — the Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit — until at least Feb. 15, according to the release.

“By law, the IRS must hold the entire refund, not just the portion related to the EITC or ACTC,” according to the press release.