Yearly Archives: 2012
Photo ID is NOT Required to Vote this November
There is good deal of confusion about whether Pennsylvania voters will be required to produce a photo ID at polling places on November 6th. The current status of the voter ID law is that photo identification is not necessary to vote on November 6th. Even… Continue reading
Monitoring an Agent Under a Power of Attorney
We frequently receive calls from individuals who are concerned about the conduct of their loved one’s agent under a power of attorney. While the details change, the pattern is often the same; a child who is not his or her parent’s agent under a power… Continue reading
In Passing: Judges are Only Human
In Arkansas a Supreme Court Judge, Sam Pope, has been suspended for 30 days for getting himself into a fistfight. In a Walmart’s no less! Seems that Judge Pope’s wife was involved in extramarital behavior with a man whose name is Bill Murray (not that… Continue reading
Pennsylvania’s New Public Works Employment Verification Act
Beginning January 1, 2013, a contractor or a subcontractor on a “public work” project in Pennsylvania must verify to the public body it is contracting with that it has checked the employment eligibility of its newly hired workers. As a precondition of being awarded a… Continue reading
Responding to a Liquor License Citation
Sale of alcohol is regulated by both the federal government and the Commonwealth. The agency that regulates and controls the sale of alcohol in Pennsylvania is the Liquor Control Board (LCB). Before a restaurant, bar, deli, brewery, hotel or similar establishment can legally sell alcohol… Continue reading
Ice Beer – – Yum!
Although it is not promoted widely by the beer manufacturers, ice beer (also known as eisbock, the German designation for it) may be working its way into your consciousness. It is manufactured by taking ordinary beer and sending it to subfreezing temperatures. (Note that this… Continue reading
PA Lawmakers Help Developers by Extending Permit Deadlines Again
In a prior article we reported that in July, 2010 the Pennsylvania Legislature adopted a law that extended until July, 2013 the expiration date of certain permits and approvals related to real estate development. Before the Pennsylvania Legislature recessed for summer break this year, it… Continue reading
Change in Transfer Tax Law on Transfers of Partnership Interests
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania imposes a 1% transfer tax on transfers of real estate. In most counties other than Philadelphia, the local governments generally charge a matching 1% transfer tax. The City of Philadelphia charges a 3% transfer tax in addition to the 1% payable… Continue reading
Estate Planning Alert
The ever-shifting tax battles in Washington have left estate planners in a quandary for the past 12 years; and it’s beginning to look as though the angst is to continue at least until November’s election. As you know, the so-called “Bush Era Tax Cuts” are… Continue reading
Supporting Indigent Parents
Supporting Indigent Parents In our Winter 2011 issue we discussed a 1994 case where a child was ordered to pay $125 per month to the child’s parent’s health care provider, under Pennsylvania’s “Support of the Indigent” law. That statute has again been in the news… Continue reading