|
INDUSTRY NEWS Bi-Partisan House Bill Seeks to Remove Dollar Limit on Funeral Trusts U.S. Reps. Chris Chocola (R-IN) and Jim Matheson (D-UT) have introduced H.R. 3061, a bill that would repeal the dollar limits on preneed funeral trust accounts, technically known as "qualified funeral trusts" in section 685 of the Internal Revenue Code. Created by Congress in 1997 with the support of the ICFA and other industry groups, qualified funeral trusts, or QFTs, allow the trustee the option of electing to pay the tax on the trust earnings instead of the purchaser of the preneed arrangements whose funds have been deposited into the trust. Initially, the dollar limit that applied to the QFT election was $7,000, but that amount was indexed for inflation and for 2004 has been increased to $8,000. H.R. 3061 would eliminate any dollar limit. In March, the U.S. Treasury responded to an inquiry by Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) concerning whether the Bush Administration would support removing the QFT dollar limit. The March 17 letter from Treasury (see the April 2, 2005, edition of ICFA Wireless for details) pointed out that as of 2002, approximately 3.5 million taxpayers had established QFTs and the tax liability amounted to $9.1 million for that year. The Treasury letter also stated that the current $8,000 limit equaled the average cost of a funeral and burial in the United States. Curiously, the Treasury letter did not respond to Sen. Lugar's inquiry over whether the Bush Administration would support removing the dollar limit. H.R. 3061 is the latest in a series of bills that have been introduced in each Congress since 1997 seeking to remove the dollar limit. The bill has been referred to the House Ways and Means Committee, and ICFA members will be informed of significant developments. Congress Passes Junk Fax Law to Block Anti-Business Regulations by FCC Last week, both houses of Congress approved S. 714, the Junk Fax Prevention Act of 2005, to block new regulations by the Federal Communications Commission that would have prohibited businesses from sending fax messages to customers where they had an established business relationship. The FCC regulations would have required all businesses to obtain written permission from their customers prior to sending any faxes. The new legislation approved by Congress, which President Bush is expected to sign into law, prohibits sending unsolicited fax advertisements to anyone who has requested that they not be sent. However, unsolicited faxes can be sent if the senders have an established business relationship with the recipient. Under the new law, the fax message must also contain a conspicuous notice on its first page stating that the recipient may request not to be sent any additional faxes. In addition, to prevent third-party mass marketers from buying fax lists, the businesses must obtain fax numbers either directly from the recipient or from a published directory, advertisement or Internet site where the recipient has listed his or her fax number. The FCC regulations, proposed in July 2003, were opposed by a broad range of over 600 businesses and trade associations, including the ICFA, which joined the "Fax Ban Coalition" to reverse the FCC regulations. ICFA Seeks Members' Photos with Congressional Reps The ICFA Government and Legal Affairs Program is seeking recent photographs from ICFA members with their respective senators or representatives. Submitted photographs will be considered for publication in upcoming issues of the ICFA magazine, International Cemetery & Funeral Management. The purpose of the project is two-fold: first, to give recognition to those ICFA members who have taken the initiative to meet members of their Congressional delegation, and second, to encourage other ICFA members to do so as well. For more information or to submit a photo, please contact Bob Fells at rfells@icfa.org. ICFA NEWS Reality-Based Selling: Get More for Less! The ICFA Sales & Marketing Committee is putting together a blockbuster program for the 2006 Wide World of Sales Conference. "Reality-Based Selling," January 12-13 at Treasure Island in Las Vegas, is expected to draw the industry's highest ratings and widest "viewership" of all time. Cemetery and funeral services sales managers and their teams will start off 2006 with a training conference that provides more content for less cost. That's because, due to popular demand, this year's all-new program will include an extra networking lunch. The added meal will result in a slight increase in the registration fee, but, since the room rate at Treasure Island is just $99 for the first two nights, attendees will realize a net savings of up to $95 off the total cost of the 2005 conference. "Reality-Based Selling" will include keynote addresses from "Survivor" star Rupert Boneham and sales trainer Barry Maher, more than a dozen "how to" sales and marketing presentations from experts within our profession, an "American Idol" Welcome Reception and Karaoke Party, two networking lunches, two continental breakfasts and a take-home binder filled with speaker handouts and ancillary materials. For additional details and specific pricing information, visit www.icfa.org/sales06.htm. ICFAU Enrollment Up; Slots Still Available To date, 128 people have registered for ICFA University, July 15-20 at the University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee. That is 17 more students than attended last year, but slots are still available in each of the five colleges. ICFA University offers more than 24 hours of classroom learning time, as well as many opportunities for networking and idea sharing. Students enroll in one of five tracks, or "colleges," offering expert and highly interactive training: Cemetery Administration & Management, Funeral Home Management, Cremation Services, Sales & Marketing and Land Management & Grounds Operations. Company executives and students who have attended ICFAU for four or more years can create their own curricula by selecting courses from among all of the colleges. For details and to register, visit www.icfa.org/icfau05.htm or call 1.800.645.7700. ICFA Fall Management Conference Hotel Rooms Selling Quickly Registrations for the ICFA Fall Management Conference, October 19-22 at Kapalua Bay in Maui, Hawaii, continue to come in steadily. With the printed program mailed to members just last week, the conference already has 44 member registrants and 24 spouse/guest registrants. Kapalua Bay has sold out all rooms outside of the ICFA room block for the week of the conference, and the ICFA block is selling quickly as well. As of July 5, there are no more deluxe ocean view rooms available, and more than a third of the remainder of the block is reserved as well. Members are encouraged to complete their flight arrangements, room reservations and registrations as soon as possible. For a complete conference program and to register, visit www.icfa.org/fall05.htm or call 1-800-645-7700. Call for Presentations: ICFA 2006 Annual Convention The ICFA will host its 2006 Convention & Exposition, March 15-18 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and the Hilton Riverside in New Orleans, Louisiana. Individuals who are interested in presenting workshops are invited to contact the ICFA with their proposed session title and description by July 22. Please submit proposals to Linda Budzinski via email at lacorn@icfa.org or via fax at 703.391.8416. Questions? Call Linda at 1.800.645.7700. ICFA to Relocate to Larger Offices; Move Date Now August 12 As was announced in the last edition of Wireless, the ICFA is relocating its headquarters offices to a 7,520-square-foot space in Sterling, Virginia, a larger space that will provide substantial room for future growth. However, due to an unexpected delay in the permit process, the move has been rescheduled for a week later than originally planned. The move will take place the weekend of August 12-14. The new offices are located directly adjacent to Washington Dulles International Airport, due west of our nation's capitol. Please note the new address, to take effect August 15: Suite 100 107 Carpenter Drive Sterling, VA 20164 The association's telephone, fax, Web and e-mail addresses will remain the same: 1.800.645.7700 703.391.8416 www.icfa.org gen4@icfa.org ICFA Moving Sale: We Reduce Inventory, You Save! In preparation for its move, the ICFA is offering substantially reduced prices on several products in an effort to reduce inventory. Until July 22, the following products are on sale:
And more ... The ICFA has secured music performance rights from the three music licensing agencies: ASCAP, BMI and SESAC. ICFA Music License members can now become fully licensed for the annual price of $238 per location, with no additional fees. Membership is open to any company in the cemetery and funeral service profession in the United States. Companies that are already members of the ICFA in another category must acquire the additional membership category (a Music License Membership) to be eligible for the Music License benefit. The ICFA Store allows members to purchase the latest ICFA resources and training products online. Some products are available for immediate direct download, including the newly released Wirthlin Report on consumer attitudes and article packages on cremation, cemetery and funeral home valuations and trust funds. The ICFA News Page takes you to sources throughout the world for industry news and updates. It brings you the most comprehensive selection of funeral service and cemetery news available anywhere, along with frequently updated general news items related to national and world events. The News Page reports the news before anyone else and is one of the most visited page on the ICFA Web site. Stop in each day and you'll see why. The Network is an online e-mail service that offers ICFA members an easy, free way to share questions and answers to everyday on-the-job challenges. Recent discussions have examined issues such as working with the Muslim community, distance between burial sites, direct mail marketing, the growing popularity of geocaching at cemeteries, recruiting staff and more. Ideal for smaller companies with smaller budgets. Join today! The ICFA Internet Expo is the largest online exposition in the cemetery and funeral service industry. Cemetery and funeral home owners and operators will find 300+ providers in more than 100 product and service categories. Exhibit space is provided as a free, exclusive benefit to all ICFA supplier and professional members. Check it out today! Need a labor relations and employment law attorney? Check out ICFA's HR Law Benefit program offering members no-cost telephone legal consultations, paid for by the ICFA via an exclusive retainer agreement. ICFA members now also have access to an attorney for tax-related questions regarding trust earnings, care fund allocations, capital gains, investments and more. The ICFA has retained Leslie Schneider, CPA, a tax attorney with Ivins, Phillips & Barker in Washington, D.C., for telephone consultations for up to 20 minutes with no obligation. To take advantage of this member benefit, call Schneider at 202.393.7600. The ICFA and Applied Merchant Systems of Chicago, Illinois, currently offer members a Credit Card Processing Program with a special low discount rate of 1.75 percent, with no per transaction processing fee. This new benefit makes it less expensive for cemeteries, funeral homes, memorial designers and related businesses to accommodate customers who wish to pay via credit card. For more information, call 1-800-675-6573. The ICFA Insurance Program, administered by Driver Alliant, allows members to purchase commercial property and casualty insurance -- including general liability, commercial property, automobile liability and physical damage, umbrella liability, professional liability, workers compensation, employee benefits and more -- at rates they probably would not be able to afford on their own. To advertise in the ICFA Wireless: The ICFA accepts limited advertising in the ICFA Wireless newsletter, a bi-weekly newsletter e-mailed to all ICFA members that are current on their dues and have provided a current e-mail address. For rates and to place your insertion, contact Quan Phan at qphan@icfa.org or 1.800.645.7700. To unsubscribe from the ICFA Wireless: Send an e-mail with "unsubscribe" in the subject line to: wireless@icfa.org. Please include your name and company name in the body of the e-mail. International Cemetery and Funeral Association 1895 Preston White Drive, Suite 220 Reston, VA 20191 1.800.645.7700 703.391.8400 Fax: 703.391.8416 www.icfa.org Copyright 2005 International Cemetery and Funeral Association. |
