Daily Business Report/Jan. 5, 2017
California Tax Season Officially Begins
The Franchise Tax Board has begun accepting 2016 state tax returns for a filing season that extends through April 18, three days beyond the traditional deadline because of a federal holiday.
Free filing help is available for many taxpayers with limited incomes, and is often available on military bases for service members. For a list of Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program locations throughout California, go to ftb.ca.gov and click on free filing assistance.
Second Year of State Earned Income Tax Credit
Last year, California began offering its own Earned Income Tax Credit to many people who make use of the federal EITC. The CalEITC is refundable, meaning that taxpayers will receive money if the credit is greater than taxes owed.
The state credit is available to California households with adjusted gross incomes of $6,717 or less if there are no qualifying children; $10,087 or less with one qualifying child; or $14,161 or less with two or more qualifying children. Unlike the federal EITC, the CalEITC is based only on income that was reported on a W-2 form (such as wages, salaries, and tips) and was subject to California withholding. Income from self-employment cannot be used to qualify for the CalEITC.
More details about the credit are at CalEITC4me.org.
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New Law Protects People Who Rescue
Animals from Locked Vehicles
A new law went into effect Jan. 1 that protects good Samaritans from being held criminally liable if they break into a locked vehicle to rescue an animal in distress.
County Animal Services says there are certain things to keep in mind before anyone breaks into a vehicle to free a pet.
First, it is not illegal to leave a pet in a vehicle. Animals can stay inside as long as they aren’t in danger from the heat, the cold, lack of adequate ventilation, lack of food or water, or any other circumstances that could put them at risk.
If the animal is alert and active, then it is not in immediate danger. In those instances, county animal control officers would not break into a vehicle. The officer would post a notice on the vehicle and return to check on the pet later depending on the weather conditions, the temperature inside the vehicle, whether the windows are cracked open and if the pet has water. If the animal does need help, officers have tools to rapidly break into the vehicle and free the animal.
A member of the public must follow these steps before breaking into a vehicle:
- Determine the vehicle is locked and there is no other way to remove the animal.
- Have a good faith belief that forcible entry into the vehicle is necessary because the animal is in imminent danger if it is not immediately removed.
- Contact local law enforcement, the fire department, animal control or call 911 before forcibly entering the vehicle.
- Use no more force than necessary to remove the animal.
Once the animal is out, the rescuer must stay with the pet in a safe location near the vehicle until it can be turned over to a peace officer, humane officer, animal control officer or another emergency responder.
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Ickler Electric Corp. Purchases Future
Site of Headquarters for $5.4 Million
Ickler Electric Corp., a San Diego-based electrical construction firm, has acquired an office and warehouse campus at 13250 Kirkham Way in Poway for $6,409,220. Ickler plans to relocate its corporate headquarters to the 34,655-square-foot, two-building property beginning in March. It is currently located at 12155 and 12175 Dearborn Place, Poway.
CWTN Associates LLC was the seller. Colliers International represented both parties in the sale.
“We are excited about this next step for Ickler Electric. This new location will consolidate our existing locations into a large campus that will also accommodate the consistent growth of the company,” said Randy Minnier, owner of Ickler Electric.
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Illumina Joins Coalition Aiming to Boost
Access to Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing
A group of five genetic testing firms — including San Diego-based Illumina — have formed the Coalition for Access to Prenatal Screening (CAPS), an organization that aims to boost access to cell-free DNA-based noninvasive prenatal testing.
CAPS is composed of Illumina, Counsyl, Progenity, Natera, and Laboratory Corporation of America’s speciality lab Integrated Genetics.
According to the companies, their new coalition will promote public awareness of cell-free DNA-based noninvasive prenatal testing as well as encourage legislation measures and push for reimbursement coverage policy changes that support testing.
“CAPS members are working together towards the common goal of ensuring that this innovative and highly accurate screening method is easily accessible to all pregnant women who choose to pursue aneuploidy screening, regardless of their risk factors, income, age, or geographic location,” said Arnold Cohen, chairman emeritus of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the Einstein Healthcare Network.
Cohen serves as chairman of the CAPS clinical advisory board, which is recruiting new members to be announced in the first half of this year.
Despite its participation in CAPS, however, Natera has also filed a suit against Bio-Reference Laboratories that may limit that company’s ability to offer its own noninvasive prenatal testing testing to customers.
Natera claimed that Bio-Reference breached a contract between the two firms when it launched and promoted a noninvasive prenatal test based on Illumina’s technology, according to a research note issued by investment bank Piper Jaffray. Bio-Reference has been offering Natera’s Panorama noninvasive prenatal screening test since 2013, but last month it launched its own noninvasive prenatal testing, ClariTest, which is based on technology it licensed from Illumina.
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Engineering Teams Get a Boost
At Triton Innovation Challenge
By Ioana Patringenaru | UC San Diego News Center
Three teams with ties to the Jacobs School were recognized at this year’s Triton Innovation Challenge at the University of California, San Diego. LifeCycled Materials, led by two Jacobs School alumni, won the competition and a $10,000 prize. Evolution Solutions, a startup cofounded by students at the Jacobs School and the Rady School of Management, came in third and received $2,500. One Village Philippines, a team that is part of the Jacobs School’s Global TIES program, won the competition’s social venture track and $2,500.
Now in its fifth year, the Triton Innovation Challenge is an annual business competition focused on fostering creativity and developing environmentally focused technologies generated by members of the UC San Diego community.
LifeCycled Materials focuses on helping disadvantaged communities turn waste paper and plastic into durable building materials. Led by engineering alumni Kimberly Nguyen and Brandon Reynante, the team is designing low-cost manufacturing processes and equipment to do this.
Evolution Solutions is developing ANSA, a new plant growing technology that uses solar-powered energy as its primary energy source. The device extracts nutrients from compost through a series of filters where the nutrients are then used to feed a multi-layer, poly-culture hydroponic unit.
The One Village Philippines Global TIES team is working with the non-profit organization, Gawad Kalinga, to create opportunity for a rural village in the Philippines. Specifically, the team has designed an extremely affordable solar “tiki torch” that can be manufactured and sold by the villagers.
Personnel Announcements
Lawyer Prominent in Trump University
Settlement Elevated to Law Firm Partner
Aaron Olsen, part of a multi-lawyer team that negotiated a $25 million settlement on behalf of students who attended Donald Trump’s Trump University, has been elevated to partner in the San Diego law firm Zeldes Haeggquist & Eck.
Olsen was the first lawyer to field the phone call from and investigate the claims of Tarla Makaeff, who would eventually become the class representative in the case, and was instrumental in prosecuting the nearly seven-year litigation against Trump and his company.
A graduate of California Western School of Law, Olsen has spent the last seven years of his practice as an associate in the law firm’s employment law and consumer litigation departments. He focuses his practice on representing employees in all aspects of labor and employment litigation in federal and state courts and is experienced in prosecuting complex class action suits, including consumer fraud actions, product defect cases, wage and hour actions, and unfair competition and false advertising claims, among others.
Olsen has obtained millions of dollars in damages for his individual employee clients and has negotiated hundreds of settlements in labor and employment cases for causes of action including wrongful termination, harassment, retaliation, and misclassification. The law firm said hisnwork has also resulted in significant changes to employers’ labor practice across California, which has had a ripple effect in positively changing the lives of thousands of workers throughout the state.
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Shailendra Kulkarni Named Shareholder
In Sullivan Hill Lewin Rez & Engel Firm
Shailendra “Shay” Kulkarni has been named a shareholder in the law firm of Sullivan Hill Lewin Rez & Engel in San Diego.
Kulkarni, who joined Sullivan Hill as an associate in 2015, focuses his practice primarily in the areas of construction, insurance coverage litigation and analysis, and complex civil litigation. He also practices in the areas of surety litigation and construction-industry contracts. Prior to joining Sullivan Hill, Kulkarni practiced in the areas of construction and surety litigation in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Kulkarni earned his J.D. from Tulane University Law School, and his B.A. from University of California, Berkeley. He is a member of various organizations including the the Louisiana State Bar Association, the ABA Forum on Construction Law, and the National Bond Claims Association.
In 2017, Kulkarni will be serving a second term as chair of the San Diego County Bar Association’s Construction Law Section.
