Page 14 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JUNE 4, 2021 Massachusetts business owners polled on reopening T he Fiscal Alliance Foundation recently announced the results of a new, statewide poll of Massachusetts business owners on issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Massachusetts reopening process. The poll, conducted with live operators and fi elded on May 25-26, 2021, surveyed 374 registered voters in businessowning/operating households statewide. The margin of error is +/- 4.9 percent with a 95 percent confi dence level and was sponsored by the Fiscal Alliance Foundation and conducted by James Eltringham of Advantage Inc, a polling company in the DC area. This is the fi rst statewide poll conducted of business owners, and what they think should be done to help get the state’s economy growing again. Governor Charlie Baker had originally called for Massachusetts to be re-opened by August 1. After neighboring states began accelerating their re-opening, updates from the Center for Disease Control, and intense political pressure, Baker set an earlier re-opening date to Memorial Day weekend. According to the poll, that pressure to get Baker to re-open earlier is widely approved of by the business community. The poll found overwhelming support for Baker’s move to fully reopen the state in time for the Memorial Day weekend holiday, with four out of fi ve business owners supporting the move from the original August 1 reopening target. Businesses related to manufacturing, health care, real estate/construction, and retail are the biggest pro-reopening sectors, while banking and fi nance are the least eager. “The poll confi rms what many of us know intuitively—those most aff ected by the shutdown are the most eager to get back into the normal swing of things and avoid the loss of a second early summer season,” noted Paul Craney, a spokesman for the Fiscal Alliance Foundation. The poll also questioned business owners on their views as to how to best spend the federal pandemic relief funding Massachusetts is due to receive. A plurality of business owners agreed those funds would best be used to provide tax relief. The second most popular choice was a tie between using the relief funds for “Get Back to Work” bonuses to get people off of unemployment, and using them to replenish the unemployment trust fund. The unemployment trust fund has been the recent focus of pro-business organizations as the Baker administration recently announced dramatic and unanticipated fee increases to this fund. Even if your business did not lay off workers during the pandemic, all Massachusetts businesses are being asked to pay this fee over the next 20 years. The fee would even be applied to businesses over that time period which haven’t even been created yet. “The fact that an obscure fee paid to the unemployment trust fund is tied as the second highest priority when polled shows you that businesses owners are really nervous about this issue. Lawmakers and the Governor should understand that businesses really want this issue addressed and want federal pandemic funds to be used to pay off this unfair debt they have to pay because of the shutdown orders issued by the Governor,” noted Craney. The fi nal question of the poll asked business owners on their feelings in the 2022 gubernatorial election. Heading into the election, there is clearly major concern about the business environment; roughly 75 percent are “much” or “somewhat” more likely to support a smallbusiness candidate and jobs and taxes are the top issues by a considerable margin. “If Governor Charlie Baker does not run for a third term, it would be wise for the next Governor and the candidates running in 2022 to know that what unites the business community is their desire to see the next Governor embrace a probusiness agenda,” concluded Craney. A full copy of the poll and its crosstabs can be found at: https://www.fi scalalliancefoundation.org/massachusetts-business-owners-polled-reopening Revere splits two against Lynn Classical By Greg Phipps T he Revere High School softball team couldn’t fi nd its off ense on Wednesday and lost a 5-0 decision at Lynn Classical in the second of consecutive games between the two teams. The Patriots were victorious, 5-2, in the first meeting last Friday in Revere. Unfortunately for the Patriots, Wednesday’s contest will count towards Greater Boston League play, and last Friday’s tilt was not considered a league game. Revere managed only four hits in Wednesday’s loss and was blanked but not dominated by Rams starter Brooke Warren, who fi nished with a modest fi ve strikeouts. The Revere hitters did make contact against Warren but couldn’t push across a run. “This game [was] the exact opposite [of last Friday’s contest]. They put the bunts down, and we didn’t make the plays. They got the right hits and we didn’t,” Revere Head Coach Joe Ciccarello told the press after the game. “That’s just the way it goes. I hate to lose but when you step back and learn from it, sometimes you look back at the season and that loss can make you get better.” Revere starting pitcher Adrianna Fusco allowed fi ve hits and walked six, which helped lead to the fi ve Classical runs. But she was still overpowering with 14 strikeouts in the loss, which was the fi rst defeat of the season for the Patriots. In last Friday’s 5-2 victory, Fusco fanned 15, gave up four hits and walked fi ve. Ciccarello told the press after that game that Fusco was unable to compete in her junior year last spring due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result she is making the most of her senior-year opportunity. “Last year would have been her fi rst year starting but it didn’t happen,” he said. “She’s waited three years for this and now she’s fi nally the starter as a senior.” The Patriot offense also came through last Friday. Elianni Monge led the way with two hits and two RBI, and Lynzie Anderson stroked two hits and scored twice. Also driving in runs were Gianna Uminski and Nina Cassinello. Adrianna Keefe and Julianna Raff a each scored a run. Ciccarello said he had prepared his team in practice to face the left-handed Warren. “It worked. Everybody put the bat on the ball,” he said. “Even when we made outs, we made some good hard NEW 10-YEAR RULE FOR INHERITED IRA’S T he SECURE Act (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act) was signed into law on December 20, 2019. A significant provision of the SECURE Act was the repeal of the ability of a designated benefi ciary of an IRA account to withdraw the funds over his or her life expectancy. Designated beneficiaries inheriting IRA accounts after 2019 must now withdraw monies from the IRA account within 10 years. The IRS should be issuing proposed Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) regulations soon as a result of the changes made by the SECURE Act. It is no longer necessary to determine the age of the IRA owner at the time of death for distribution purposes as long as the IRA owner dies after 2019 and the benefi ciary is a designated benefi ciary under the IRA account (a Trust or an individual). For designated benefi ciaries subject to the 10-year rule, withdrawals from the IRA account are optional until December 31st of the 10th year following the year of death of the IRA account owner. The new 10-year rule also applies to a successor benefi ciary of a designated benefi ciary of the original IRA account owner, who inherited an IRA account prior to 2020, but who dies after 2019. A designated beneficiary will establish a beneficiary IRA account and will then select a benefi ciary of his or her inherited IRA account. That subsequent beneficiary would be deemed to be a successor benefi ciary. If the designated benefi ciary, however, had died prior to 2020, then the successor benefi ciary would have the right to withdraw the remaining balance of the IRA account over the life expectancy of the designated benefi ciary, and not be subject to the 10-year rule. Under the SECURE Act, an Eligible designated benefi ciary is eligible to withdraw the remaining balance of the inherited IRA account over his or her life expectancy. The following qualify as an Eligible designated benefi ciary: A. The surviving spouse of the IRA account owner B. A child of the IRA account owner who has not yet reached the age of majority. Once the child has reached the age of majority, the child then has 10 years to withdraw the balance in the inherited IRA account C. Disabled benefi ciary D. Chronically ill benefi ciary E. An individual not falling into A-D who is not more than 10 years younger than the IRA account owner. These are complicated new rules relating to benefi ciaries of IRA account owners. However, since IRA accounts are so common, it is important to understand the new rules. Joseph D. Cataldo is an Estate Planning/Elder Law Attorney, Certifi ed Public Accountant, Certifi ed Financial Planner, AICPA Personal Financial Specialist and holds a Master’s Degree in Taxation. outs.” The Patriots belted 11 hits in last Friday’s win, seven more than the four they managed on Wednesday Revere sports a 3-1 record entering Friday’s contest at Lynn English. Baseball: Patriots off to 2-1 start The Revere High School baseball team is off to a winning start in 2021. Coming off a 7-13 overall fi nish in 2019, the Patriots have scored victories thus far over Everett, 8-1, and the Salem Academy Charter School, 9-2. The loss was to Somerville by a 5-1 count. Revere is next scheduled to play at Medford on Monday.
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