Black Line Group Announces the Extension of the R&D Tax Credit

Minneapolis, MN – Oct. 10th, 2008.  Black Line Group, a leading provider of Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit Services, is pleased to announce that Congress has approved a seamless two-year extension of the R&D Tax Credit, a tax credit for U.S. businesses that expired at the end of 2007.

The R&D tax credit provides support to U.S. businesses for research and development capital expenditures incurred in the United States.  The extension is retroactive to January 1, 2008 and runs through 2009.  In addition, the bill also strengthens the R&D tax credit by increasing the rate for the Alternative Simplified Credit (ASC) to 14 percent in 2009 from 12 percent.

Because of its very specialized nature, large numbers of small and mid-size manufacturers are not taking advantage of this underutilized part of the tax code that provides qualifying firms with substantial tax benefits.

The definition of Research and Development (R&D) is much broader than people realize. Manufacturers of all kinds, including metal stampers and fabricators, welders, precision machiners, mold builders and plastic injection molders often believe that they DON’T have R&D taking place. They mistakenly believe it’s only their customers who are doing the R&D, and that they are simply making products for their customers who provide them with drawings for products/parts. However, these companies can have substantial R&D taking place through their “PROCESS” development and improvement activities.

For companies that have not taken advantage of the R&D Tax Credit in the past, this can potentially mean the creation of immediate and substantial amounts of cash, minimally into the many tens of thousands of dollars, and often $100,000 or more. In addition, companies can reduce future tax liabilities and improve cash flow.

Black Line Group is one of the nation’s leading providers of R&D Tax Credit services. For more information about the R&D Tax Credit and Black Line Group’s work, call Scott Schmidt at 763-550-0111 or visit our website at www.blacklinegrp.com