About

Business Organizations

Entrepreneurial Resources.

Thinking of starting a business? Already have one but need some help with tax planning? Thinking of selling your business? You've come to the right place. Click on "Business Structures" and get moving. We are here to help you every step of the way, so contact us. See also our "Additional Resources" page.

Tax Information For Businesses

The State of California also has online resources. See, for example, the Employment Development Department's guide on Independent Contractor Reporting Requirements. (To determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor, see Revenue Ruling 87-41, also available here on this website.) There are also resources here for:

	Disability Insurance Information
	Employer Advisory Council
	Employment Tax Information
	Job Recruitment/Referral Services
	Labor Market Information
	Unemployment Insurance Information
	Welfare-to-Work for Employers
	Work Opportunity and Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit (WOTC)
	Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act

Here are a number of other California business tax resources:

	FAQ for Business
	Beginning a Business in California
	Beware! Haven't paid your city's business license tax? Home-based businesses will be snared by filing California income tax returns. See AB 63 and AB 205 which authorize the Franchise Tax Board to "fink" on you.
	S-Corporations - California Franchise Tax Board. Get answers to questions about taxes and S-corporations. Download forms and tax tables.
	Partnership and Limited Liability Companies - California Franchise Tax Board. Download California tax forms for partnerships and limited liability companies.
	Tax Incentives for Businesses - California Trade and Commerce Agency. Read the guide, Incentives and Guidelines for Investing in California.
	Sales, Property, and Use Taxes - California State Board of Equalization Obtain complete information on California property and use tax. Download guides on business tax law and property tax law. Get contact information for county assessors.
	Tax Assistance - California Franchise Tax Board Get forms and information online or get phone numbers and office locations to provide tax assistance.
	Environmental Requirements
	Trade
	California Business Laws and Regulations
	California Business Agencies
	California Business Policy Sources

Small Business Information from TotalBusiness.com. TotalBusiness.com is a Website providing entrepreneurs and business owners with the information they need in order to successfully start, manage, grow, and sell their businesses. On our site, you will find over 300 free tutorial and over 1,000 articles on business topics such as starting a business, financing a business, sales and marketing, building a Website, setting up an office, hiring employees, selling a business and small business legal, accounting, and tax issues.

Official Links to Corporate and Business Filing Bureaus.

Americans with Disabilities Act	Information and technical assistance on the ADA by the U. S. Department of Justice.
BusinessLaw.gov	Home page, operated by the U. S. Small Business Administration, with links to legal and regulatory information, and plain English guides for starting a business, handling finances, managing employees, and other topics.
CIA, The World Factbook	US government profiles of countries and territories around the world
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)	EEOC site with basic introduction to employers’ rights and responsibilities under the federal equal employ-ment opportunity laws.
Federal agencies (through Library of Congress site)	A Library of Congress resource page with links to most federal agencies.
Federal Citizen Information Center (FCIC)	Part of the U.S. General Service Administration, the FCIC’s Small Business Links offer information for persons planning or owning small businesses, including information on procure-ment, taxes, woman and minority-owned businesses, human resources, financial and legal issues.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)	Home page with links to statistical data, pertinent regulations, and FAQs.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco	Home page. The current FRBSF discount rate, used to determine the usury ceiling in California, is posted at http://www.frbsf.org/banking/data/discount/index.html
Federal Trade Commission	Home page for businesses, with links to business publications, advertising guidance, fair packaging and labeling, antitrust law guide, and other topics. Information concerning the Hart-Scott Rodino pre-merger notification requirements is at: http://www.ftc.gov/bc/hsr/introguides/introguides.htm
FirstGov.gov	The official web portal of the U.S. government, with links to information on contracting with the U.S. government, export licenses, business financial assistance, and many other topics.
Internal Revenue Service	Home page; access to downloadable IRS forms and publications.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)	Home page.
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)	Home page with statutory, regulatory, and compliance information regarding nondiscrim-ination requirements for federal contractors.
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)	Home page with links to reports and other resources for banking industry professionals as well as public inform-ation about the national banking system.
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative	Home page.
Private International Law Database: Trade/Business Transactions Law, U.S. Department of State	Access to treaties in force for the United States, other international instruments, and information on current negotiations and projects concerning private international law. Documents of the U.N. Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), the Hague Conference on Private International Law (Hague Conference), the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT), and the Organization of American States (OAS) can be downloaded. Updated through January 1, 2001. For treaty action since President Bush took office, see http://www.state.gov/s/l/c3428.htm.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)	Home page with links to information for small businesses; online access to proposed and final rules, SEC releases, policy statements, and other commission notices and information; search-able database of all electronic company filings since 1994.
SEC Edgar	SEC Edgar main page, with access to electronic filings and forms.
Small Business Administration	Home page with extensive links to federal and other resources for small businesses.
Social Security Administration	Home page. SSA forms are available online at http://www.ssa.gov/online/forms.html
U. S. Copyright Office	Home page with links to copyright registration and other information.
U.S. Department of Commerce	Home page.
U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division	Link to Antitrust Division Guidelines and Policy Statements.
U.S. Department of Labor	Home page with links to statutory and regulatory information, labor statistics, small business regulatory compliance assistance, and other information.
U.S. Department of State	Home page with links to international commercial laws and guides.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency	Home page.
U.S. Government Printing Office	Home page with links to products and services, including online searchable copies of the United States Code and the Code of Federal Regulations.
U.S. International Trade Commission	Home page with rules, regulations, reports, and other information including an extensive list of links to international trade resources.
U. S. Patent and Trademark Office	Home page with downloadable forms and information on patent applications and trademark registrations.
	FreePatentsOnline.com provides fast, easy-to-use access to millions of patents and patent applications.
California Department of Corporations, Securities Regulation Division	Access to forms, departmental public-ations, Commissioner’s releases, opinions, and notices, franchising information, and other topics.
California Department of Fair Employment and Housing	Home page.
California Department of Insurance, Workers’ Compensation Information	Access to information on workers’ compensation insurance.
California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH)	Access to information concerning the CalOSHA program.
California Employment Development Department (EDD)	Home page; information concerning job placement and referrals, unemploy-ment insurance, disability insurance, employment and training, labor market information, payroll taxes, and other topics.
California Franchise Tax Board (FTB)	Home page, links to downloadable state tax forms and publications.
California Legislative Counsel	Full text of bills, resolutions, and constitutional amendments, as well as their status, history, votes, analyses, and veto messages.
California Online Professional Licensing	Online licensing services
California state agencies	State of California site with links to California agencies, departments, and commissions.
California State Association of Counties	Home page with links to all California counties except Tuolumne County (for Tuolumne County, see its Chamber of Commerce site at http://www.tcchamber.com/)
California State Board of Equalization	Home page with access to information about sales and use taxes, sellers’ permits, forms, and publications.
California Commerce & Economic Development Program (formerly, California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency)	Home page.
California Secretary of State: California Business Portal	Home page.
Forms	Directory of forms and samples for different business filings including UCC forms; some in fill-in format.
Business Filings:
Corporations	Corporations main page with links to filing tips to meet statutory minimum requirements, name availability, FAQs and more.
Limited Liability Companies (LLCs)	LLC main page with links to forms and fees, name availability, FAQs and more.
Limited Partnerships	Limited partnerships main page with links to forms and fees, name availability, FAQs and more.
General Partnerships	General partnerships main page with links to forms and fees, name availability, FAQs and more.
Limited Liability Partnerships	Limited liability partnership main page with links to forms and fees, name availability, FAQs and more.
Trademarks and Service Marks	Trademarks and service marks main page with links to forms and fees, name availability, FAQs, private service companies and more.
Miscellaneous Filings	Links to filing requirements for unincorporated common interest development associations, unincorp-orated associations, unincorporated nonprofit associations, foreign lending institutions and foreign partnerships.
California Business Search	Fill-in boxes to check records online for corporations, limited partnerships and limited liability companies.
Starting a Business	A step-by-step guide for starting a business in California; available in English or Spanish.
e-file Statement of Information	Fill-in boxes to file a Statement of Information for a corporation online.
Notary Public	Notary public main page, with links to topics such as obtaining a notary public commission, handbook, authenti-cations, apostille or certification, forms and fees.
Uniform Commercial Code	UCC main page with links to financing state-ment forms, amendment forms, requests for information, revised Article 9 (as of July 1, 2001) and FAQs.
International Business Relations Program	Main page in English or Spanish with interna-tional resources and business tips; intended to assist foreign corpor-ations with various filing procedures.
Business Program Division, New Law Summary	Summaries and links to new state laws affecting businesses.
ABA Section of Business Law	Home page with links to publications and other resources for business lawyers.
AllBusiness	Small business portal, with links to forms, directories, and resources on many topics.
Angel Capital Electronic Network	Site dedicated to helping individual accredited investors, SBICs, and institutional venture capitalists find small, growing companies through a secure Internet database, and providing ongoing training and research for entre-preneurs and small investors
BenefitsLink	Compliance information and tools for employee benefit plan sponsors, service-providers and participants.
Better Business Bureau	Home page.
The Biz-Tech Network by Brint Institute, LLC	Portal with a meta-index of business, manage-ment, and information technology topics; it also provides search capabilities and full text articles on related issues.
Business.com	Business search engine and directory intended to help users find companies, products, services, and other business-related information; some features are fee-based.
Business 2.0 Web Guide	Directory of business links on the web.
California Business Law Legislation	Links to recent business law legislative developments, from the State Bar of California, Business Law Section,
CISG Database at Pace University School of Law, Pace Law Library, Institute of International Commercial Law	Site dedicated to U.N. Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), with annotated text of CISG, CISG in different languages, cases organi-zed by countries, and related CISG material.
CNN Money	General business news offered by CNN and Money magazine.
Corporate Finance Sourcebook	Link for ordering popular guidebook published by National Register Publishing, which features over 1500 top investment sources and 1700 service firms for business entrepreneurs.
Corporate Information	Research reports on public, private, domestic, and foreign corporations.
Academic Info Business & Economics Organizations	Portal with annotated links to a variety of business-related topics.
Edgar Online, Inc.	Edgar Online, Inc. is a private company, not affiliated with the SEC, specializing in the extraction, packaging and distribution of public company information contained in SEC filings.
Electronic Embassy Website	Information on all foreign embassies in Washington, D.C.
Enterpreneur.com	Free access to Entrepreneur magazine articles back to 1997.
Federal Gateway	Free portal for federal government information, federal agency index, as well as links to state and local governments, operated by nonprofit Small Business Contracts Council, Inc.
Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB)	Access to FASB Statements of Financial Accounting Standards and other resources.
Findlaw Business Center	Portal with links to articles and guides on starting a business, taxes and accounting, small business legal concerns , and more. Part of West Group.
FindNews.org	Online news directory with links to other news-oriented sites and small business portals.
Garage Technology Ventures	Venture capital fund for emerging technology companies.
Google Small Business Directory	A directory of small business resources.
Hieros Gamos Small Business Center	Portal with links to topics such as starting a business, choosing a legal structure, and financing.
Hoover’s Online	Subscription-based site with industry snapshots, company profiles, earnings and other information.
MarketResearch.com	Free database of market research reports representing all market and industry sectors.
MegaLaw.com Small Business Portal	Portal with links to federal agencies and other websites related to small businesses.
MultexInvestor (by Reuters Research, Inc.)	Database providing research reports on companies and industries.
NASDAQ and American Stock Exchanges (mirrored site)	Comprehensive current information on market performance and investments.
National Association of Secretaries of State, Business Registration and Filing Services	Access to most state business and corporations divisions from a single webpage.
National Business Association	Nonprofit association’s site for the self-employed and small business community.
National Venture Capital Association (NVCA)	Home page with links to members and other resources.
New York Stock Exchange	Comprehensive, current information on market performance and investments.
News Cuts	Free and fee-based small business news service.
Open Directory Project – Small Business	Free site with links to topics such as business plan, finance, home office, and start-up, edited by volunteers.
Public Register’s Annual Report Service	Free access to annual reports of over 2200 companies. Site also has links to the SEC’s Edgar database for filings.
SEC News Digest Reports	Jefren Publishing Co., Inc. site with SEC’s daily News Digest Reports organized by subject category. Reports are downloadable and searchable.
The Small Business Portal	Links to topics such as starting a business, franchise advice, financing, and home-based businesses.
Tripod by Terra Lycos	Portal with tips on starting an online business, yellow pages, some free and some fee-based services.
U.S. GAAP Website	Comprehensive source of information on generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S.
Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition	General business news.
Washburn University School of Law Small Business Portal	Portal with links to a forms library, business and economic data.
Yahoo! Finance	Free company profiles and stock charts for over 9000 public companies.
Yahoo! Small Business	Portal with links to topics such as creating a web-site, promoting a business, and selling online.