Sunday, December 15, 2019

School Finance Article Analysis Free Essays

After the Second World War, there has been a dramatic increase on school finance in the United States. Through the article, Guthrie explains some of the critical incidents that contributed the considerable increase of the per-pupil expenditures in public elementary and secondary learning institutions. Upon reading the article, one should have an understanding on how do certain events affect per student spending in America. We will write a custom essay sample on School Finance Article Analysis or any similar topic only for you Order Now Some of the factors cited by Guthrie are the constant expansions regarding the services offered by schools, more pricey specialized classes on high school students, and special education programs. Also, Guthrie includes that grants for students from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with disabilities make a contribution to increased costs. In the article, Guthrie suggests that it is very likely that the increasing expenditure on school finance continues. With this, the author offers some solutions to be considered to put a halt or, at the least, control its growth rate. Some of these are privatization and contracting. Just like the article states about the increasing per student expenditure, school finance in Massachusetts is also affected by the factors stated earlier. Thus, one can say that Massachusetts is on its way on a much higher education budget. In the event that the education status in Massachusetts will continue (that is, its school’s productivity is increased), there can be a possibility that the trend will snap, thus making the funds for public elementary and secondary schools could be minimized. How to cite School Finance Article Analysis, Papers

Saturday, December 7, 2019

Integration of Corporate and Shareholder Taxes

Question: Discuss about the Integration of Corporate and Shareholder Taxes. Answer: Introduction: In the present scenario, Kit is residing in Australia, but he spends most of the time in an oil rig of Indonesia; where he was recruited for his job in Australia. He is living in Australia from last four years with him family in his own house. The salary is remunerated directly into the bank account with Westpac Bank Ltd. in Australia. All the investment comprising dividend income remains in Chile. One month off is provided to him after every two months, and after these occasions, he meets with his family members either in Australia or at some other place for holidays. The primary test which is conducted for tax residency is known as a resident test. In case a person resides in Australia the same is considered as resident for tax purpose,and there is no need to apply another resident test. In case the person does not satisfy the resident test, he or she is still considered as Australian resident if any one of the three situations is satisfied by him. The prescribed three situations are as follows: Domicile Test: In case the person in domicile, i.e. your permanent home is in Australia, and the taxation officers are satisfied that your permanent place of abode in not Australia. Thus, it can be said that the onus of proof remains on those who assert a new domicile choice and appeals that their domicile of origin is lost (Graetz, and Warren, 2016). 183 Day Test: In case the person is actually present in Australia for more than half of financial year without any break or with breaks than it is assumed that you have a constructive residential house in Australia. The same is deemed to be assumed unless it can be proved that the person is usually outside Australia and having no purpose of taking up residence in Australia. Superannuation Test: The test assures that the Australian government employees employed outside Australia are treated as a resident for the taxation purpose (Harding, 2013). An explanation is also provided by the Commissioner relating to residency provisions that the length of time for which a person is present in Australia does not itself ascertain whether he or she is resident or not. Though, importance is given to continuity or habit consistent with someone residing who resides in Australia. The other factors which are considered are: Family and Employment/ business ties. Social and living arrangements Purpose of presence Social and living arrangements (Tax residency for individuals the domicile test. 2013/) Analysis of the case In the present case as Kit has a permanent house is Australia, according to the facts provided and his family is living there; he will be deemed to be a resident of Australian for taxation purpose. Thus if a person is deemed to be a resident of Australia has to provide details regarding his income from all the resources and has to pay tax liability on the same.Income earned through all direct and indirect sources is included in assessable income, and the tax is payable on same. However, Kit is an Australian resident according to provisions available in Domicile test as well as in accordance with the explanation provided by the commissioner. Taxation of Salary and Investment Income Salary is taxable as per provision of Sec 6-5 ITAA 1997. The present tax-free threshold for resident individuals in $18200 and the same will be available to Kit. The other provisions of specified sections will also apply accordingly.The dividend received on share portfolio will be taxed in accordance with provisions available in Section 6-10 of ITAA 1997 (Dividend Income, 2017). As per these provisions usually, a dividend is paid as money or credited with bonus shares. In case the company pays or credits the dividend the same would be applicable for franking tax offset.According to Steen and Peel, (2015), the same is also called imputation credit, and it is to be appropriately shown on the return for the purpose of availing this benefit. In case the same information is not in accordance with the amount declared on the return of taxpayer. It will prescribe the details with comparison with information which the department is having,and rectification is done accordingly. Explanation of Outcome: The high court concluded in specified case that the nature of gain produced from a business i.e. whether it is of income nature of relating to capital character it is majorly dependable on the character of existing transaction and business and relationship between the transactions through which gains have been produced (ATO Interpretative Decision. 2014). The same provisions were pertained for ascertaining conclusion in the case of AA Finance Ltd v CIR (1994)16 NZTC 11383. Explanation of Outcome: The decision which was provided through this case was that the authority for the ordinary realisation of an asset in an enterprising way was on capital account. The taxpayer was having the intention of availing maximum benefit as the available land was no more suitable for original business, and thus he was selling off the same. Thus the court provided a decision in favour of the taxpayer as he was not engaged in the business of developing and selling, but he was merely disposing of the capital asset in best possible manner. Explanation of Outcome: It was unanimously held by High Court that the steps were taken by the taxpayer were for more that advantageous realisation of a capital asset; thus the activities deemed to be assumed as constituted a business of land and development (Taxation Ruling,2014) . The same gave rise to assessable income. The decision was taken by considering three issues: Whether business of land and development exist (ordinary usage vs.concept of income) Application of section 26a and its relationship with section 25 of ITAA97 Explanation of Outcome: It was concluded in the above case that for the purpose of satisfying taxable purpose requirement it is necessary that the project of the taxpayer must be an income- producing activity (Capital Gains Tax-Subdivision. 2015). In the present scenario, the project of the taxpayer was subdividing and trading capital asset which was available as capital land. Thus, according to the provision of paragraph 36 of Taxation ruling, it was concluded by the court that gain realised on investment will be not treated as income even in the case the individual present the same recognition in an enterprise way. In the present case as provision available in paragraph 40-840 (2) (c) of Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 were not satisfied; therefore no transactions are being conceded with a profitable objective in accordance with provisions of Subdivision 40-I of ITAA 1997. Explanation of Outcome: It was decided in above case by Federal Court that the profit from the subdivision and sale of property proportions is not assessable under the provision of section 25 (1) as well as 25A of ITAA 1997.It was argued by the taxpayer that subdivision and trading of property proportions, thus the same is the realisation of the capital asset and not a transaction of profitable business (Capital Gains Tax-Subdivision., 2015). Further,in the present, the profit which is derived is not from the conduct of the business of selling and subdividing land mere represent the realisation of the capital asset. Explanation of Outcome: In above-specified case, the income was received by the taxpayer as a result of isolated transaction i.e. acquired land for working and sold the sand subsequently. Thus the income was treated as ordinary income by the High Court in accordance with provisions of section 25 (1) of ITAA 97. The profit arise from the resumption of land was treated as assessable profit as the ultimate purpose of the taxpayer was to make a profit and the same was assessable under section 26 (a). Explanation of Outcome: The decision in the present case was distinguished on the basis that the property was used as a mine for a longer period in comparison to farming. Thus the proceeds received from the sale of subdivided land which was acquired for the purpose of farming were treated as a realisation of a capital asset. Explanation of Outcome: It was concluded by Federal Court in above case that the sale of land was assessable under section 25(1) (Taxation Ruling, 2014). In the present case, the person enters into a business which was for the purpose of profit making. Thus as the property was attained with the objective of receiving profit the venture is not regarded as investment and profit from the same is treated as income for the purpose of section 25 (1). References Steen, A. and Peel, V., 2015. Economic and Social Consequences of Changing Taxation Arrangements to Working Holiday Makers. J. Austl. Tax'n, 17.Pp.225-230. Harding, M., 2013. Taxation of dividend, interest, and capital gain income. Graetz, M.J. and Warren, A.C., 2016. Integration of Corporate and Shareholder Taxes. Dividend Income. 2017. [Online]. Available through https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/data-matching-letters/types-of-letters/dividend-income/. [Accessed on 2nd May 2017] Tax residency for individuals the domicile test. 2013. [Online]. Available through https://talktoataxpert.wordpress.com/2013/03/10/tax-resdidency-for-individuals-the-domicile-test/. [Accessed on 2nd May 2017] ATO Interpretative Decision. 2014. [Online]. Available through https://law.ato.gov.au/atolaw/view.htm?docid=aid/aid2002483/. [Accessed on 2nd May 2017] Taxation Ruling. 2014. [Online]. Available through https://law.ato.gov.au/atolaw/view.htmldocid=TXR/TR923/NAT/ATO/00001. [Accessed on 2nd May 2017] Capital Gains Tax-Subdivision. 2015. [Online]. Available through https://austaxpbr.com.au/document/PBR. [Accessed on 2nd May 2017]

Saturday, November 30, 2019

Plato And Aristotle Essays (2179 words) - Ancient Greek Philosophers

Plato And Aristotle Plato, a Greek philosopher was among the most important and creative thinkers of the ancient world. He was born in Athens in 428 BC to an aristocratic and well-off family. Even as a young child Plato was familiar with political life because he's father, Ariston was the last king of Athens. Ariston died when Plato was a young boy. However, the excessive Athenian political life, which was under the oligarchical rule of the Thirty Tyrants and the restored democracy, seem to have forced him to give up any ambitions of political life. In 388 BC he journeyed to Italy and Sicily, where he became the friend of Dionysius the ruler of Syracuse, and his brother-in-law Dion. The following year he returned to Athens, where he devoted his time to research and instruction in philosophy and the sciences. Most of his life thereafter was spent in teaching and guiding these activities. In 347 BC Plato died, while he's published writings all still live. They consist of some 26 dramatic dialogues on phil osophy and related themes. The philosopher Socrates was a close friend of Plato's family as well as his teacher. Plato's writings attest to great influence on him. This could be a good explanation to why Plato uses Socrates to voice his own opinions about his Ideal State. Book I of Plato's Republic, beings with Socrates, Cephalus, Polemarchus and Thrasymachus discussing justice. Each give their own meaning of justice or dikaiosyne. Cephalus says justice is truth telling and debt paying. He views justice this way because he is an honest and just businessman. Polemarchus, who is Cephalus's son, agrees with Cephalus's definition, but continues by saying justice, is giving each his own due. By this he means, helping one's friend. Finally, Thrasymachus, who is a sophist, defines justice as the advantage of the stronger. Justice is not to the advantage of everyone but to the advantage of the rulers. Socrates proves that justice brings unity to any group of people, because it allows them to trust and rely on one another. The discussion of justice is continued in the beginning of Book II. Glaucon enters the conversation and he divides all things into three categories: 1) Those that are pleasurable for themselves and their results, 2) Those that bring good results, but with difficulty, and 3) Those that bring no results, but are pleasurable. Glacon then asks Socrates which category justice falls within. He replies by placing it in the first category. ?I myself put it among the finest goods, as something to be valued by anyone who is going to be blessed with happiness, both because of itself and what it comes from? (Republic, Book II 358a). Glaucon claims that the general view of justice lies in the second category, the mean between two extremes. Glaucon defends his argument by using the example of the ?Ring of Gyes,? a magical ring that turns its wearer invisible. He continues to argue that if humans were given the opportunity to be unjust without getting caught or without suffering any punishment or l oss of good reputation, they would naturally choose a life of injustice, in order to maximize their own interests. Now the issue at hand is to prove whether it is more beneficial to lead a just or unjust life. In an attempt to provide a satisfactory definition of justice, Socrates tries to make an analogy between the justice of an individual human being and of an entire society or city. He then begins to build and imaginary city. Socrates defines the basic city as the Health City opposed to a Feverish City. Socrates states that the fundamental needs of human beings in the society are food, shelter, and necessary clothing and things needed for production. However, Socrates is aware that the people of this city will want more then just the bare necessities. He continues to build this political correct city by manipulating a number of different things such as; adding a specialized class of soldiers, adding guardians, controlling any false information (censoring), creating men and women equal, and balancing their education between philosophy and physical training. Finally, Socrates just city is built. Now that Socrates has built his just city

Monday, November 25, 2019

Playing with Titles

Playing with Titles Playing with Titles Playing with Titles By Maeve Maddox Sometimes writers need to take time out from the slogging business of writing to play a little. This week several members of my critique group had a little fun with a feature at Lulu.com. The Titlescorer is an interactive feature that purports to analyze a book title in terms of how likely it is to find its way to the bestseller list. According to the information at the site, a research team analyzed the title of every novel to have topped the hardback fiction section of the New York Times Bestseller List during the half-century from 1955 to 2004 and then compare[d] them with the titles of a control group of less successful novels by the same authors. The data is based on about 700 titles. If you type in the titles of some bestsellers you’ll find yourself wondering how the research team arrived at its conclusions. Some blockbusters come up with â€Å"a 10.2% chance of being a bestselling title.† Along with typing the title, you have to choose from a couple of drop-down menus that ask you to specify â€Å"grammar type† and indicate part of speech. Depending how you answer, The DaVinci Code can score as high as 35.9% or as low as 10.2%. I’ll have to admit to having spent more time than I should have playing with it. No matter what combinations I tried, the highest score for any title I was able to come up with was 59.3%. One of my colleagues put in a title that scored 65%. I wouldn’t be too influenced by the results you get for your title, but playing around with the Titlescorer is as good a way as any to hash out your ideas. Just don’t play too long. That draft is waiting. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Is She a "Lady" or a "Woman"?Comma Before ButThe Two Sounds of G

Friday, November 22, 2019

A Case Study On Brand Equity Marketing Essay

A Case Study On Brand Equity Marketing Essay Brand equity can be viewed both as an intangible or tangible asset and or liability. The tangible being the monetary value of a brand and best viewed as the amount of additional income expected from a branded product over and above what might be expected from an identical, but unbranded product. To best illustrate this point would be a supermarket, they frequently sell unbranded versions of name brand products. The branded and unbranded products are produced by the same companies, but they carry a generic brand or store brand label like No Name or Home brand. Store brands sell for significantly less than their name brand counterparts, even when the contents are identical. This price difference is the monetary value of the brand name. However, according to (Aaker,1996) the most important assets of any business are intangible: its company name, brand, symbols, and slogans, and their underlying associations, perceived quality, name awareness, customer base, and proprietary resources su ch as patents, trademarks, and channel relationships. The intangible value associated with a product that can not be accounted for by price or features is illustrated by globally renowned company Nike. I has created many intangible benefits for their athletic products by associating them with star athletes. Children and adults want to wear Nike’s products to feel some association with these star athletes (â€Å"be like Mike.† ) The marketing image that has been created for Nike is the driving force of the demand for the products rather than the physical features. Buyers are willing to pay extremely high price premiums over lesser known brands which may offer the same, or better, product quality and features. Ideally brand equity is a set of assets (and liabilities) linked to a brand’s name and symbol that adds to (or subtracts from) the value provided by a product or service to a firm and/or that firm’s customers.(Aaker,1996) These assets, which comprise brand equity, are a primary source of competitive advantage and future earnings. (Aaker, 1996) The overall description of Brand Equity incorporates the ability to provide added value to company’s products and services. This added value can be an advantage to charge price premiums, lower marketing costs and offer greater opportunities for customer purchase The assets/ advantages of brand equity: Allows you to charge a price premium compared to competitors with less brand equity. Strong brand names simplify the decision process for low-cost and non-essential products. Brand name can give comfort to buyers unsure of their decision by reducing their perceived risk. Maintain higher awareness of your products. Use as leverage when introducing new products. Often interpreted as an indicator of quality. High Brand Equity makes sure your products are included in most consumers consideration set. Your brand can be linked to a quality image that buyers want to be associated with. Offer a strong defense against new products and new competitors. Can lead to higher rates of product trial and repeat purchasing due to buyers’ awareness of your brand, approval of its image/reputation and trust in its quality.

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Balance Sheet, Income Statement and Objectives of Accounting and Firms Assignment

Balance Sheet, Income Statement and Objectives of Accounting and Firms - Assignment Example Contra Asset accounts are accounts that are offsetting accounts for certain asset accounts which are often called valuation allowances. Credits increase contra asset accounts, and debits decrease these accounts. Accounts such as doubtful accounts, and accumulated depreciation. Liability accounts are accounts that increase credits and decrease with debits. The examples of the liability accounts are accounts payable, long-term debt (loan), taxes payable and wages payable. Contra liability accounts are accounts that are offsetting accounts for certain liability accounts which are often called valuation allowances. Debits increase contra liability accounts, and credits decrease these accounts. The short-term portion of the mortgage payable is an example of a contra liability account. The accounts in the income statement are closed out every ending period and transferred to Retained Earnings and entered into the Income Statement. The two types of accounts used in the Income Statement are called Revenue and Expense accounts. Assumption: Cash would increase thus increasing the Cash account in the Balance Sheet, and Equity would increase thus increasing the Equity account in the Balance Sheet. Both sides of the Balance Sheet increase by $5000. The primary objectives of accounting are to fairly present the financial information in the financial statements with necessary disclosures in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) so that users of the financial statements can use them to make informative decisions. This fulfills one of the main objectives which is to give assurance to the public about financial statements. The main objective of the firm producing financial statements is to monitor business performance throughout the year and possibly compare with past results. When comparative financial statements are compiled, a better understanding of the level of consistency can be obtained.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Early Childhood Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Early Childhood Studies - Essay Example However, research has shown that this does not have immediate effect on speech development in children hence they are not necessary though they are helpful. From the above argument, it has been suggested that language acquisition by children is promoted through speaking to children in special way. Mothers often speak in a slow way such that they carefully articulate basic vocabulary which is easier to understand by the children. Grady (2005) calls this motherese where the mother speaks in a slow way so the child can grasp the meaning of speech or the words uttered. To a greater extent, it can be noted that this aspect of speech development is very important given that it is commonly believed that the child adopts a language from the mother. This is the reason why the child’s first language is called the mother tongue in different social dispositions. Though this aspect of motherese is not necessary in speech development, it has been observed that it significantly contributes t o the development of speech in young children. In some cultures, adults do not simplify their language when they are talking to the children but these children still learn their language perfectly. There is a misconception among people that children require special instructions for them to learn a language. According to the author of the given article, children can still learn a language without special help from the parent but there is one external condition that has to exist in as far as language acquisition is concerned. The author argues that children need to hear sentences they can actually understand before they know a lot about the language they are... This paper approves that it can be argued that language is acquired given that in some instances, it may not be possible to create a formal learning environment for infants whose minds are still very young to be reasonable enough to learn a language at a faster rate. It is pretty difficult for a child to be taught to create a meaningful sentence at a tender age as this can be confusing. Children often construct meaningful sentences without using the same words from their parents which brings us to the conclusion that language acquisition is not an art of imitation. This report makes a conclusion that it can be observed that there are different misconceptions with regards to language acquisition and learning in children. Some scholars believe that language is acquired naturally while others believe that it is learnt from the people around. However, a closer analysis of different concepts proposed by different scholars show that there is no agreed way about how children learn a language. It can also be said that the external environment has a bearing on the way children learn or acquire their first language. The culture of a particular group has a strong influence on the way at which a child acquires a language. Normally, the behaviour of people is shaped by their cultural values as well as their language. It is also easier for the children to learn to construct meaningful sentences through the guidance of someone but this does not necessarily mean to say that they have to undergo a formal learning programme as this can be done subconsciously. Yo ung children are capable of learning from the social environment around them.