Author Archives: Good Day Illinois

The Nation Celebrates Martin Luther King’s Birthday and Legacy on January 20

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On November 2, 1983, former President Ronald Reagan signed into law House of Representatives Bill Number 3706 declaring January 15, the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., a national holiday. His birthday is now observed on the third Monday of January.

In Freeport there will be a celebration of his birthday at the Boys and Girls Club at 511 S. Liberty Avenue, Freeport at 5 pm. The community is invited to celebrate the legacy of Dr. King through song, dance and praise. Praise and worship service from 5 to 6 pm, and the program begins at 6:15 pm with the theme “Strength to Love” with Rev. Dr. Kenneth Board, Pilgrim Baptist Church, Rockford as guest speaker. 815.233.1600

Case of the Week – If you Bowl for a Living You Better Win or Take Lessons on Improving Your Game!

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In Phillips v. Comm’r, T.C. Memo. 2013-215, the Tax Court rejected a taxpayer’s attempt to deduct expenses relating to bowling tournaments. The court noted that, although the taxpayer did win bowling tournaments in 2000 and 2003, by 2008 he had not won a tournament in three years and, despite this long losing streak, the taxpayer had done nothing to change his approach to the game. The fact that the taxpayer did not hire a coach, conduct additional research, or attempt to change his technique indicated to the court that he did not carry on his bowling activities in a businesslike manner. To make matters worse the taxpayer in his testimony could not identify a single tournament in which he had participated in 2008. Does this case mean that if you try hard and lose you can deduct your expenses, but if you lose and don’t really seem to try hard, you cannot deduct your expenses. Perhaps the old phrase “an A for effort applies.” (If you don’t know it, the building pictured is the IRS Headquarters in Washinington)

Local Weather Forecaster in Running for America’s Favorite Forecaster!

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Eric Sorenson of WREX TV in Rockford is presently number two in the voting which ends January 17.

Weatherist which is sponsoring the contest will be donating $500 to the winning forecaster’s favorite charity – and Eric’s favorite charity is Freeport’s own Friends for Ever Humane Society.
Let’s get voting because he is presently a few thousand votes behind.

Vote for Eric at http://weatherist.com/blog/2014/01/06/vote-for-americas-favorite-weather-forecaster

Freeport City Council Starts New Year By Approving Rental Housing Computer Program for $11,595 Plus Annual Fee of $1,595 With No Dissenting Votes!

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Give the bureaucrats a new program and they will figure out how to spend money. The program already has two employees (half time each) and next they will request new offices to house the program! This is just the start – after that will come a new building devoted entirely to the rental program. Look at Freeport Township – its own building. It’s good to know that Freeport has the unlimited funds to finance such ventures!

First Freeport City Council Meeting for 2014 Rescheduled for Monday, January 13 (Postponed on January 6 due to Extreme Cold) – Deputy Chief Wants to Spend $11,595.00 for a Computer Program for Rental Housing Registration Plus $1,595 Annually for Maintenance Fees!

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The meeting will be at 6:00 pm in City Council Chambers at 524 West Stephenson Street, 3rd Floor.
If you have Comcast Cable, go to channel 17 to watch live.

Items of interest:

Resolution to approve spending $32,100 for a preliminary Site Investigation for the Jane Addams Trail.

Request for approval from Deputy Police Chief, James Drehoble, to spend $11,595.00 for a Rental Property Registration and Crime Free housing software from Dynamic Design Software located in Bonita, California. In addition the program has an annual maintenance fee of $1,595.00. Pretty expensive program for a City the size of Freeport. In five years the City will spend almost $20,000 on a computer program for the Rental Program. I guess the City just wants to help a business in California!

For the complete agenda, go to http://www.ci.freeport.il.us/citygovernment/Agendas/A20140113.pdf

Schools Closed January 7 for Second Day in Northwest Illinois Due to Extreme Cold – Floridians Suffer Also!

The cold air has finally reached Florida, but tough Floridians just take it in stride. Most say it is jacket weather, and no lattés outside this morning. The Florida kids are in school, and businesses are open as usual. Our friends in Florida can serve as example – a little cold weather does not slow them down!

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Most Area Schools Closed Monday January 6 Due to Extremely Cold Weather Including Freeport and Rockford. First Freeport City Council Meeting for 2014 –

It is scheduled for Monday, January 7 at 6:00 pm in City Council Chambers at 524 West Stephenson Street, 3rd Floor.
If you have Comcast Cable, go to channel 17 to watch live.

One item of interest is a resolution to approve spending $32,100 for a preliminary Site Investigation for the Jane Addams Trail.

For a complete agenda go to http://www.ci.freeport.il.us/citygovernment/Agendas/A20140106.pdf

Heather McPherson of McPherson Law Offices, Freeport, Illinois Authors Article for Illinois State Bar Association

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When you of think decanting, you think of wine when you transfer the contents of a wine bottle into another receptable before serving which makes the wine taste better. In the estate and trust area, the term refers to transferring assets from one irrevocable trust to another trust. Many other states had statutes permitting decanting under certain circumstances, and as of January 1, 2013 Illinois has its own statute. Heather McPherson has written an article entitled “Pour Me Another Trust” which was published in the November issue of the Illinois State Bar Association’s Elder Law Section Newsletter. The article describes the circumstances where decanting would be beneficial, and how it is actually done. This is just another tool that experienced estate planners can use to be sure that the intentions of their clients are carried out by their estate planning documents. As Heather states in the article “Decanting is a great tool for practitioners to use in one’s estate, trust, and elder law practice, because it allows trusts that could otherwise not be changed to be rewritten to adjust to changed circumstances, as well as for corrections to trusts that were poorly drafted.”

Merry Christmas!

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You Don’t Have to Dream of a White Christmas If You Live in Northwest Illinois – Merry Christmas!

Case of the Week – If You Buy Lottery Tickets You Better Have a Will When You Win Million Dollar Jackpot!

A Chicago man 46 years old buys a lottery ticket and wins a million dollar jackpot. Days before collecting a lump sum settlement of $425,000 he dies. The night before he died he had dinner with his wife, daugher, and father-in-law. At first it was ruled that he died of natural causes, but when tests were made, it was determined that his blood contained a lethal level of cyanide His death is now considered a homicide, but no one has been arrested. The wife and daughter by a previous marriage reached a settlement dividing his estate. He did not have a will. The moral of this story is that if you win the lottery, be sure to tell everyone that you have a will and that none of them are beneficiaries under the will. That way everyone will have a reason to keep you alive! See story at http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2013/12/12/fatally-poisoned-lottery-winners-daughter-wife-divvy-up-his-estate/

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