William Penn Life, 1996 (31. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1996-12-01 / 12. szám
I Page 2, William Penn Life, December 1996 William Penn LIFE Official Publication of the William Penn Association Published Monthly Office of Publication: 709 Brighton Road Pittsburgh, PA 15233 Phone: 412/231-2979 Third Class U.S. Postage Paid Pittsburgh, PA Permit No. 2724 George S. Charles, Jr. Editor-in-chief Richard W. Toth Diane M. Torma Associate Editors John E. Lovász Managing Editor NATIONAL OFFICERS George S. Charles, Jr. National President Richard W. Toth National V.P.-Secretary Diane M. Torma Acting Nat’l V.P.-Treasurer BOARD OF DIRECTORS Michael J. Hrabar Chairman Roger G. Nagy Vice Chairman Elmer A. Furedy Vice Chairman Anthony C. Beke Louis A. Fodor Barbara A. House Michael R. Kara Andrew W. McNelis George F. Mirkovich Michael F. Tomcsak Elmer W. Toth Frank J. Wukovits, Jr. Frank J. Radvany Secretary of the Board AUDITING COMMITTEE Robert A. Ivancso Chairman Margaret H. Boso Secretary Dennis A. Chobody Charles J. Furedy Joseph Hamari Ernest J. Mozer, Sr. CONSULTANTS Bruce &. Bruce Company Actuary Horovitz, Rudoy &. Roteman C.P.A. Rothman Gordon Foreman <5k Groudine, P.C. General Counsel Dr. Julius Kesseru Medical Director Unsolicited articles, letters, manuscripts, pictures and other material submitted to the WILLIAM PENN LIFE are forwarded at the owner's risk, and the WILLIAM PENN LIFE expressly denies any responsibility for their safekeeping or return. The WILLIAM PENN LIFE reserves the right to edit, revise or reiect any article submitted for publication. Postmaster: If undelivered, please send form 3579 to: William Penn Association 709 Brighton Road Pittsburgh, PA 15233 Fraternal spirit makes man 'handi'capable’ When multiple sclerosis put Harold Bosley in a wheelchair 26 years ago—stealing from him the use of both legs and eventually his right arm and hand—he made a decision that would change his life forever. "1 decided that I didn’t need to think of myself as being handicapped,” he said. "Instead, I decided to become handi-capable.” And with that, Bosley decided to devote the rest of his life to helping others with disabilities. Though his hard work is often done behind the scenes with little or no fanfare, Bosley’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. The Sheridan, Wyoming, native was selected as the 1996 Fraternalist of the Year by the National Fraternal Congress of America. Bosley was honored for his outstanding fraternal volunteer efforts. He has worked extensively to educate the public about multiple sclerosis and has crusaded fór public reforms for people with disabilities. He was chosen from candidates nominated by 41 of the NFC A’s fraternal benefit societies. Along with the award, Bosley received a $1,000 check which he has donated to the Wyoming Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. He was nominated by the United Transportation Union Insurance Association, of which Bosley has been a member for 50 years. In June 1966, Bosley developed an unexplained limp in his right leg. After visiting several different doctors in three states, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis by a doctor at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Four years later, his illness bound him to a wheelchair. "I didn’t realize the barriers that people in wheelchairs face until I was in one myself,” he said. "I wanted to prove to people that a handicap doesn’t have to be limiting.” In his mission to educate the public, Bosley presents in-services to school groups, nursing homes and community organizations. He has campaigned to place educational literature throughout Sheridan and has pushed local and state authorities to make reforms for people with disabilities. He conducted a letter writing campaign to the University of Wyoming and the governor’s office which lead to the creation of a new handicap-accessible seating area at the university’s football stadium. Whenever he learns of someone in Sheridan who has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, he is right there with kind words and boundless support. "I invite others with multiple sclerosis over to my apartment, so I can show them that the disease doesn’t have to control their lives,” he said. His volunteer service has included helping to coordinate an annual art auction in Casper, Wyoming, with proceeds benefitting the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. He also serves on the board of directors for Rehabilitation Enterprises of North Eastern Wyoming and as a consulting PITTSBURGH — Members from Pittsburgh and surrounding areas are invited to attend an open house sponsored by the Nationality Rooms of the University of Pittsburgh on Sunday, Dec. 8, from noon to 4:00 p.m. The two dozen rooms, including the Hungarian Room, will be adorned with traditional ethnic holiday decorations. If you can not attend the open member of the International Year of the Disabled Person Committee of the VA Medical Center in Sheridan. Additionally, he has helped paint signs in local handicapped parking lots, provided educational materials about multiple sclerosis for the Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library and area nursing homes, encouraged community compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and helped coordinate a golf tournament and a walk-a-thon to raise money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. house, the rooms will be open during the holiday season until Dec. 31 for viewing and tours. Hours are Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturday from 9:30 a m. to 3:00 p.m., and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Large groups are asked to call ahead to make arrangements. For more information call (412)624-6150. Nationality Rooms to host holiday season open house Corporations By Emil W. Herman, Esq., General Counsel We have been talking about business entities (with a brief intermission to discuss conflicts of interests), and what factors may affect your choice of a business entity for that small business you may wish to start. You have already learned the benefits and detriments to a sole proprietorship, general partnership and limited partnership, Another form of business entity is the corporation. Corporations can be huge organizations with millions of shareholders whose shares are registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and appropriate state securities agency, and whose shares are freely transferable on the New York Stock Exchange or some other similar exchange. Many small businesses which operate as corporations, however, usually have from one to five shareholders, are not registered with any securities agency, federal or state, and have restrictions on the transferability of their shares. Many are family corporations, in which the only shareholders are family members. A corporation is called a "creature of statute,” that is, it only exists because the law of the state lets it exist. To be formed, and to continue to exist, the corporation must comply with the statutory laws of the state it wishes to call "home.” Each state sets its own registration requirements and fees to form the corporation. These requirements may include advertising the formation of the corporation as a form of public notice. If you check the legal ads in your local newspaper, you may find advertisements about the formation of corporations. Registration with the state securities commission and federal Securities and Exchange Commission may also be required in some states, or the corporation may be entitled to an exemption from registration. If the corporation intends to open offices in states other than its "home,” or will otherwise be considered to be "doing business” in other states, it may have to register in those other states as a foreign corporation, and meet the registration requirements set by those other states for foreign corporations. Registration in another state will generally impose paying taxes to that state on income earned in that state. Certain other corporate formalities must be followed. The corporation must adopt bylaws, which are the rules the shareholders, directors and officers of the corporation must follow in operating the corporation. Most state laws governing corporations anticipate that the shareholders will elect a board of directors to "run” the corporation, and the board of directors will elect officers to be responsible for implementing the directions of the board of directors on a day to day basis. In many small corporations, however, there may be only one director who is the only shareholder, and who also serves as all of the officers of the corporation. The down side of the corporate form of business is that the profits of the corporation are taxed twice. If a corporation has $100,000 in net income in one year, it will pay corporate income tax at both the federal and state level on that net income. If it then pays that amount to its shareholders in the form of dividends, the shareholders will then be required to pay federal and any state personal income tax on those dividend payments, and thus the same money is taxed twice. If the corporation qualifies, it may register for S-corporation status with the Internal Revenue Service and the state taxing agency. If granted S-status, the IRS and state taxing agency will treat the corporation, for tax purposes, as if it were a partnership; that is, the net profits of the business will not be taxed at the corporate level, but only at the shareholder level. There are requirements which must be met to qualify for S-corporation status, and these were recently liberalized under the latest tax reform legislation. The benefit of the corporate form of business is that its owners have limited liability for the debts and obligations of the corporation. If, for example, someone were injured as a result of a product the business manufactured, and obtained a judgment against the corporation in excess of its insurance coverage, the only thing the judgment holder would be able to reach to satisfy that judgment would be assets of the corporation, and not assets of the shareholders of the corporation. While the corporation may thus suffer a financial hardship, or even be forced into bankruptcy, any personal assets of the shareholders will be free from attachment to satisfy the corporation’s debts, in most instances. The "in most instances” is key. If the shareholder also is an officer of the corporation, or a director, liability can be imposed, not because of the person’s status as a shareholder, but rather because, as an officer or director, he may have been involved in the action causing the liability. Also, if the shareholder does not follow corporate formalities in operating the business, the shield of personal assets can be lost. We will talk more in a later article about "piercing the corporate veil.” If you have any topics you would like us to consider for this column, please send them to: Emil W. Herman, Esq., Rothman Gordon, Third Floor, Grant Building, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. Topics will be considered based on space considerations, interest to all readers, and appropriateness for general legal discussion.
