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OPINION
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, December 2, 2020
Trust the governed
when making
COVID-19 rules
O
regonians made it
through Gov. Kate
Brown’s statewide
two-week “freeze,” but there
has been much more public
resistance to this latest effort to
slow the spread of COVID-19
than to her original stay-at-
home order in March.
The new rules restricted
or closed many businesses,
curtailed activities and put a
six-person limit on gatherings.
Brown ordered the Oregon
State Police to work with local
police to limit social gatherings
and use their discretion to cite,
fine or arrest violators.
“I’m not asking you, I’m
telling you,” Brown said.
That has led some to resist
outright and to refuse to take
even minimal precautions.
That’s wrongheaded.
The danger from COVID-19
is real. Wearing masks, main-
taining social distancing and
taking steps to keep surfaces
clean are not a threat to individ-
ual liberty.
Still, legitimate con-
cerns have been raised to this
one-size-fits-all, top-down
approach.
• Fifty-one elected officials
from 11 rural Eastern Oregon
counties wrote to Brown asking
she allow restaurants and bars
to stay open, to fully reopen
schools, to reopen state agen-
cies to the public and to allow
religious leaders to use their
own judgment in operating
their places of worship. They
hope to establish a dialogue
with Brown.
• The state’s restaurant asso-
ciation sued to block the order.
The hospitality industry has
been devastated by the reaction
to the pandemic. The associa-
tion argues that the order will
put thousands of Oregonians
out of work and likely lead
to many more establishments
never reopening. It mostly
wants to force a conversation
with the governor.
• Ag operators have been hit
by a host of ad hoc regulations
dealing with worker safety,
housing and agritourism. Farm-
ers have complained that they
had no hand in crafting these
regulations, that no one from
government came to ask even
rudimentary questions about
how the industry works and
potential negative impacts are
overlooked.
People don’t think they have
a voice — not only in Ore-
gon, but throughout the region.
They want to work with Brown
and other governors to develop
pragmatic solutions to protect-
ing workers, businesses and
slow the rate of infection with-
out destroying the economy.
The Declaration of Indepen-
dence says that “governments
derive their just authority from
the consent of the governed.”
Many Oregonians — many
Americans — are straining to
recall when they consented to
be ruled by diktat sanctioned
by never-ending states of
emergency.
King George wielded none
of the arbitrary powers in 1776
exercised by governors today,
but provoked a revolution for
his failure to listen to his sub-
jects. Governors should take
note.
Brown and her colleagues
are not tyrants, though their
actions have at times seemed
heavy-handed and unnecessar-
ily draconian. They are people
of goodwill, each with a sin-
cere desire to protect lives.
They extol us to trust sci-
ence and the experts, even
though the science has at times
been thin and the experts’
advice contradictory.
We ask that they, in turn,
trust the people and consult
those who are to be regulated
before issuing their orders.
B USINESS D EVELOPMENT
Home office deductions
ot everyone qualifies for the
home office deduction. First
and foremost, according to the
Internal Revenue Service, employees
are not eligible, unfortunately. An arti-
cle written by CCH Tax Group states
that the home office deduction has
always been a tough one for employ-
ees to claim, “but now it is impossi-
ble.” They further say that in the past
employees could claim the deduction
only if the employer required them
to work at home. However, I rec-
ommend you speak to a CPA to see
if any changes might be made as a
result of COVID-19 and the manda-
tory shut down many businesses have
experienced.
Here are tips from the IRS:
The home office deduction form
8829 is available to both homeowners
and renters.
There are only certain expenses tax-
payers can deduct including mortgage
interest, insurance, utilities, repairs,
maintenance, depreciation and rent.
Taxpayers must meet specific
requirements to claim home expenses
as a deduction. The deductible amount
of these types of expenses may be
limited.
The term “home” for the purpose of
this deduction:
• Includes a house, apartment,
condo, mobile home, boat or similar
property.
• Also includes structures on the
property. These are places like an
unattached garage, studio, barn or
greenhouse.
• Does not include any part of the
taxpayer’s property used exclusively as
a hotel, motel, inn or similar business.
There are two basic requirements
for the taxpayer’s home to qualify as a
deduction:
• There must be an exclusive por-
tion of the home used for conduct-
ing business on a regular basis. For
example, a taxpayer who uses an extra
room to run their business can take the
deduction only for that room as long as
it is used both regularly and exclusively
in the business.
• The home must be the taxpay-
er’s principle place of business. A tax-
payer can also meet this requirement if
administrative or management activi-
N
ties are conducted at
the home and there is
no other location to
perform these duties.
Someone who con-
ducts business out-
side of their home
Greg Smith
but also uses their
home to conduct
business may still qualify for a home
office deduction.
Expenses that relate to a separate
structure not attached to the home will
qualify for a home office deduction.
It will qualify only if the structure is
used exclusively and regularly for the
business.
Again, it is very important to check
with your tax preparer regarding this
and other deductions.
What is the Difference Between
Bookkeepers, Accountants and
CPAs?
Many times, these terms are used
interchangeably by small business
owners, but there are distinct and
important differences. Sometimes
people balk at paying for these profes-
sional services, but the investment is
well worth avoiding getting sideways
with the IRS or Oregon Department
of Revenue. Do-it-your-selfers many
times make errors especially when it
comes to payroll and the timely sub-
mission of reports and payments.
This is something the IRS and Ore-
gon Department of Revenue take very
seriously, and the penalties are severe.
Here is a brief summary of what
duties bookkeepers, accountants,
and CPAs typically perform and the
requirements of each.
Bookkeepers work for a company
to keep track of the finances. They
are responsible for accounts receiv-
able and payable, inventory, accurate
and timely recording of transactions,
monthly, quarterly and annual report-
ing and, in some instances, payroll.
They can be independent contractors
or employees. With regard to train-
ing, some bookkeepers have only a
high school diploma, but many com-
panies prefer someone with at least an
associate degree. Bookkeeping certi-
fications and licensing are available
through national organizations. As an
aside, bookkeepers are in very high
demand, and for someone qualified, is
it a highly profitable business.
Accountants typically can prepare
detailed financial statements, audits
of a company’s books and prepare
reports for tax purposes. It is import-
ant to note that only CPAs, tax attor-
neys and enrolled agents are able to
represent a taxpayer to the IRS.
What can a CPA do? To begin
with, they have a much higher level
of training and expertise. They have
passed required examinations, meet
all statutory regulations and obtained
licensing. A CPA can prepare and sign
tax returns for businesses and indi-
viduals and represent clients before
the IRS for audits and other import-
ant matters. The national profes-
sional association for CPAs is the
American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants.
Small business owners are busy.
Many lack the expertise or simply
don’t keep their financial records up to
date and are unaware of legitimate and
important tax deductions. Depending
on the size and type of business, an
owner may have a bookkeeper and/or
accountant, and then depend on a CPA
for more complex matters, tax plan-
ning and preparation of tax returns.
While it is always best to accu-
rately track income and expenses
throughout the year, the begin-
ning of the fourth quarter will allow
you a short window of time to get
your books in order and implement
the services of one or more of these
professionals.
Especially with all the unique cir-
cumstances surrounding COVID-19,
it is highly recommended that busi-
ness owners employ the services of a
CPA. Make the appointment as soon
as possible so plans can be made to put
the business in the best possible posi-
tion before 2020 tax returns are due. If
delayed, not only will this compromise
the business, but this is when CPA’s
schedules become full and they may be
unable to accept new clients.
The level to which a business
owner keeps tabs on the company’s
finances is a sure recipe for either suc-
cess or failure.
Make that appointment today.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
by supporting a president who is
plans for “World” domination). Profes-
Christianity versus vail
sor Bhattacharya’s extensive research
a pathological liar and claims a Chris-
Trump’s behavior
tian identity by holding a Bible in front
shows that in March, only the small
Blue Mountain
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To the Editor:
Diane Strasser of Mt. Vernon asked
how I dared to judge her Christianity
based on who she voted for. A simple
answer is that I don’t see how the values
and teachings of Christianity align with
who Trump is. A more complex answer
goes to my personal history. As a child,
my mother made me go to church. I
would have many times rather been out
with my father hunting or fishing. But
with all that time in church, teachings of
Jesus Christ rubbed off on me. Later in
life, after being a drunken, womanizing,
two-fisted hell-raiser, I took Christian-
ity to heart.
Fast forward to the Sunday I
attended church in Mt. Vernon follow-
ing the 1992 presidential election that
put a Democrat in the White House
for the first time in 12 years. The pas-
tor came out and with a loud, groan-
ing moan declared that “the forces of
darkness have prevailed in the elec-
tion!” She went on to state that, despite
this, we as Christians would prevail
in the long run. Everyone present but
me cheered wildly. Doesn’t Jesus love
Democrats, too? Good grief! I tried
to continue to go to church there, but
this would never leave my head. I do
not believe politics should come from
the pulpit. How do Christians pre-
of a church? Understand that I’m a
very rough version of what a Christian
should be.
Terry Steele
Ritter
‘Critical research’
lacking in Brown’s plan
To the Editor:
Once again Hillsdale College
“Imprimis” touches on a subject so
near and dear to our hearts with an arti-
cle by Jay Bhattacharya, professor of
medicine at Stanford University with
an M.D. and Ph.D. in economics, on
the medical and economics effects of
COVID-19. The subjects he addresses
are the potential effects of the deadly
widespread lockdowns on economy
and the misinformation provided on
fatalities. Failing to understand the dif-
ference between “cases” and “infec-
tions” has resulted in fear and confu-
sion. The World Health Organizations
takes the lead in manipulating the con-
fusion and its effect on people and
economics. (Any organization with
“World” attached should set off alarm
bells. “World” Order, “World” Bank,
“World” Health Organizations, et. al.,
identifies them as deeply seated in the
United Nations with their agendas and
fraction of infected people who got sick
and went to the hospital were identi-
fied as cases. But the majority of peo-
ple who are infected by COVID have
very mild or no symptoms. These peo-
ple weren’t identified in the early days,
which resulted in a misleading fatal-
ity rate. An accurate fatality rate would
be to test for seroprevalence to see
how many people have evidence in the
bloodstream of having had COVID or
test for antibodies (which fade in time
and result in an underestimate of total
infections). Data indicates that COVID
is much more deadly to older people
than children (although I feel strongly
that using children is the biggest scare
tactic utilized by politicians to jus-
tify their dictatorial decisions leading
to economic disaster). This year in the
U.S. more children have died from the
seasonal flu than from COVID. Addi-
tionally, the UN estimates that 130 mil-
lion additional people (including chil-
dren) will starve this year as a result of
the economic damage from the lock-
downs. This letter barely touches on the
information provided by the editorial,
but it addresses what I see as “critical
research” lacking in the mentally-chal-
lenged dictatorship of the state governor
and her minions.
Judy Kerr
Canyon City