Helping employers pay their taxes is one thing government is very good at. Sparing no expense on new technologies and userfriendly designs, all levels of government have excelled using the web to simplify the taxing process of giving money to the government.

The following are some of the web’s best resources for Washington employers:

1. http://dor.wa.gov/— This month’s Editor’s Choice Washington State Dept. of Revenue For any business doing business in Washington State, the Dept. of Revenue website is a “must have” resource. Much of the state’s tax-related information available over the web can be found here, including access to helpful tools or managing and paying business taxes. Tax categories are generally easy to understand, and the website’s  clean design makes it easy to find information. Be sure to check out DOR’s section dedicated to business taxes http://dor.wa.gov/content/business/bsness_main.asp.

2. http://taxpedia.dor.wa.gov/— Taxpedia
This resource is the Dept. of Revenue’s online database of tax laws, rules and decisions. As a clearinghouse for most of Washington State’s tax-related information, users can find information in different ways. For example, a plain English query allows people to search for information using simple phrases. Or use the menu-associated query which allows users to construct a search through a point-and-click
system.

3. http://gis.dor.wa.gov/default.asp?link=FIF- Geographic Information System
A little-known, but very handy tool is DOR’s Geographic Information System (GIS), which allows users to type in a street address and find the correct tax code and sales tax base. Users are also able to navigate a map and find tax information related to a specific location. Other useful information includes jurisdiction boundaries for sales taxes and other downloadable information. The sales tax lookup tool, http://gis.dor.wa.gov/lookups/gis_look_sales.asp, can be a valuable resource for retailers and consumers looking for specific tax rates.

4. http://dor.wa.gov/apps/elf/elf_main.asp— Electronic Tax Filing
The Dept. of Revenue's Electronic Filing (ELF) program is a secure method of filing and paying Washington State excise taxes over the Internet. Businesses can benefit from this convenient method of filing and paying taxes, which automatically performs all calculations and flags any potential errors or omissions before a return is filed. The system also allows filers to customize returns to include only those tax lines that are required, provides access to the latest tax rules and help screens, and allows filers to file early but delay payment until the due date.

5. http://www.wa.gov/esd/uifasttax/webmain.htm— Unemployment Insurance WebTax
UIWebTax™ is an Internet application that allows employers to file quarterly Unemployment Insurance Tax & Wage Reports online in real time. The UIWebTax™ application will only accept reports for the current tax quarter. Employers are also given the means to pay UI taxes electronically with E-Pay, http://www.wa.gov/esd/uifasttax/epaylanding.htm.

6. http://www.irs.gov/businesses/— Internal Revenue Business Resource
Taking the jump from state taxes to federal taxes, there is really only one place to go: the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). There is also a resource site targeted to small businesses at http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/. The IRS has done a great job compiling a helpful set or articles, tutorials and tools for business users. All of the information is free and provides tremendous insights to various tax-related business issues.

7. http://www.taxtopic.com/— Tax Directory
Conducting tax and business searches on major web search engines will yield some good results, but perhaps not as targeted for very specific tax issues. With the Tax Directory, users can get the data they need quickly with a specialized search engine. Users can search by word or general directory covering international, federal, state resources, statistics, forms, software and more.

8. http://www.taxgaga.com/dir-business.html— TaxGaga
Although the name sounds ridiculous, this site offers a great amount of excellent business tax information. Everything from corporate to small business taxes are covered and drilled down to specific issues such as small business health care issues and charitable contributions for employers.

The aforementioned sites are a great place to start for business owners and managers looking for tax resources. Federal and state government initiatives for more “e-government” will likely lead to even more great tax tools for employers in the near
future.

If you have any sites that you want to be considered for the next Top 10 list, please email me at AlexisN@awb.org. For the latest business developments, be sure to check out www.awb.org. Enjoy!