• Dean Heyl, Attorney & Manager, GR, Direct Selling Association

2:30 p.m. – 3:45p.m.
International Tax Issues Affecting Our Industry
During the past 10 years, more and more direct selling companies—particularly small companies new to the industry—have expanded internationally to broaden their market share. If your company is exploring an international move or has opened operations in another country and is now experiencing challenges, this session will be an eye-opener for you! A representative from the Department of Commerce will join us as we discuss the ins and outs of international taxation and unlooked-for challenges that may be waiting for the unprepared.

• Gretchen Sierra, Attorney Advisor, Department of Treasury

4:00 p.m. – 5:00p.m.
Direct Selling Sales & Use Tax Issues
Sales and use tax, nexus, corporate income or franchise tax, independent contractor law and more vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The ways direct sellers collect and remit taxes affects the way your company needs to collect and remit taxes. We’ll go over the nuts and bolts of tax collection and provide practical guidance relevant to all direct selling companies to insure you and your distributors are in compliance, and that you’re not working harder than you should be to stay on the right side of the tax man.

• Jim Richmond, President, Professional Tax Services

5:00 p.m. – 5:45p.m.
Accounting Software Solutions
Every direct selling company experiences accounting software challenges, particularly during periods of high growth. What methods should your company employ to choose an application successfully? And how should you determine if it’s time for an upgrade? This year’s seminar will include a session focusing on accounting software available for our industry, and will assist you in determining if you have the software you need to manage your business. Let our presenters relieve your accounting software headaches!

• Michael Mahoney, President, Brittenford Systems
• Annette Pelliccio, President, The Happy Gardener

6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Networking Reception

7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Dutch-Treat Dinner
Join your colleagues for a night on the town, D.C.-style! Enjoy local fare and get a "taste" of D.C. while spending time with those who share your profession - and it's headaches! More information about dinner options will be available shortly.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

8:00 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.
Breakfast & Registration

8:30 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
The Challenges of Growth
Rapid company growth is great news, right? A bigger salesforce means more customers and more sales ... along with less stocked inventory, higher manufacturing costs and outgrowing your warehouse, too. How do you keep up with the challenges caused by periods of high growth while also keeping track of what needs to change within corporate finances? A panel of representatives from quickly growing member companies will share their first-hand experiences about the unforeseen challenges they’ve encountered, and how they’ve resolved them.

• Kevin Herdman,Chief Operating Officer, Silpada Designs
• Richard Miller, Chief Financial Officer, Tastefully Simple, Inc.

9:30 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
The Direct Selling Audit Technique Guide
The Direct Sellers Audit Technique Guide is a substantial document that shows impressive efforts on behalf of the IRS and DSA to ease the auditing process for independent contractors in our industry. Its contents affect your salesforce and will greatly assist them if an IRS auditor ever knocks on their door. An IRS representative will be on hand this July to discuss highlights of the Guide. If your company is not well-informed about this resource, make sure you’re in D.C. for this discussion!

• Milton Pagan, Senior Program Analyst, IRS

10:15 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Home-Based Office Deductions
The tax benefits and consequences of working in the home are numerous and can be confusing for members of your salesforce. But where do they learn about these details? If your salesforce has ever come to your company for help in the past and you’ve not been able to assist them, you’ll be prepared next time after you’ve joined us to discuss this very important subject.

• Milton Pagan, Senior Program Analyst, IRS

11:00 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
Tax Updates & Changes
Do you know that tax laws vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and from state to state? Do you know which tax laws have changed in which jurisdictions in the past year? If you can’t answer these two questions quickly and with certainty, it could cost your company money—perhaps lots of it. We will be dedicating time to this very important subject this July to insure you’re brought up-to-date on the most important legislative developments impacting our industry.

• Jane Fergason, Partner, Gardere Wynne Sewell L.L.P.

Noon – 1:00 p.m.
Networking Lunch

1:00 pm. – 1:30 p.m.
IRS Free-File and Other Electronic Initiatives
IRS and DSA are interested in closing the “tax gap” between the taxes owed and the taxes paid by the direct seller workforce. IRS offers Free File and other electronic services that allow your sellers to both file and pay their taxes electronically. Tom Davis from the IRS will take you through the basics of Free File and show you how filing taxes online with this free service can benefit your sales force – and your company. He’ll also cover other services Electronic IRS offers, including IRS e-file, EFTPS and FIRE, and address the benefits they offer to DSA members and their sales force. Attend this session and do your part to help the industry reduce the tax gap and increase compliance and learn what all these acronyms mean.

• Tom Davis, Marketing & Brand Manager, Eletronic Programs, Electronic Tax Administration, IRS

1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
The Tax Gap
Congress is, again, looking at the tax gap (the difference between taxes owed and taxes paid to the government voluntarily and on time), and is, again, focusing on independent contractors as targets of proposals to reduce the gap. What does this mean for our industry and the 14.1 million independent contractors that comprise our salesforce? DSA’s legal staff will lead this important discussion, as we explore the ways our industry can combat this challenge. Being present for this conversation will help you prepare for any possible changes in the law.

• Dean Heyl, Attorney & Manager, GR, Direct Selling Association
• John Webb, Assoc. Legal Counsel & Man., GR, Direct Selling Association

Hotel Information

Hotel reservations are the responsibility of the individual delegate. Reservations can be made by contacting:

The Westin Washington, DC, City Center
1400 M Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 429-1700

Identify yourself as being with DSA for a special rate of $169 per night. DSA’s block of rooms will be released to the public on June 15, 2007. Reservations can't be guaranteed after this date so please make your reservations as soon as possible.

Register Now!