The Institute launched two free, opt-in e-newsletters in January. Financial Planning Digest debuted Jan. 13. On Jan. 20, AICPA members were sent the inaugural issue of Forensic & Valuation Reporter. The newsletters include: Links to important stories, culled from hundreds of top news sources. Summaries of research, analysis, videos and
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The magazines
New Single-Member LLC Reporting Reqiurements
Many tax-exempt organizations have formed single-member limited liability companies (SMLLCs) as integral parts of their entity structure. SMLLCs enjoy flexible treatment for tax purposes, limitation of liability, easy transferability of ownership interest by sale or exchange, and separate governance and management. As a result, they are widely used to conduct
Institute Offers Two New Financial Literacy Resources for Consumers
The 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy Consumer Newsletter is now available to e-mail subscribers. The free monthly publication features articles and resources on personal financial topics and directs readers to the AICPA’s 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy Web site for more information. Also recently launched: the 360 Consumer Alert, which
Compilation and Review
The Accounting and Review Services Committee issued Interpretation no. 31, Preparation of Financial Statements for Use by an Entity’s Auditors, of AR section 100, Compilation and Review of Financial Statements. The document, available at http://tinyurl.com/7z9o24, provides guidance for situations in which a client engages an accountant, other than its auditor,
Publiese Voted Chairman-Elect of the Durham Chamber of Commerce
Anthony J. Pugliese, AICPA senior vice president–finance, membership and operations, was named 2009 chairman-elect of the Greater Durham (N.C.) Chamber of Commerce board of directors. The board is the governing body for the chamber, which serves more than 1,000 member businesses in Durham County. In the past decade, the chamber’s
CPA Firms Grow Despite Economic Downturn
Even when faced with the economic uncertainty of 2008, CPA firms weathered the changes pretty well, according to CPA Firm Statistical Analysis Reference Handbook 2009, a publication by the Institute of Management and Administration. The Accounting Office Management & Administration Report on which the handbook is based found that owner
The Rich Get Richer
It’s no secret that record amounts of capital have poured into private-equity firms over the past five years. What’s less widely known is that as they’ve grown ever larger, the megafunds have significantly widened the pay gap between themselves and midmarket firms. A Glocap-Thomson Financial study, the 2008 Private Equity
Banking
Amid surging loan losses and a rapid rise in noncurrent loans, profits at the nation’s banks fell to their second-lowest level since 1990 in the third quarter of 2008. The latest issue of the FDIC’s Quarterly Banking Profile said industry income fell to $1.7 billion, a 94% drop from $28.7
Be an “Energy Star”
For many business owners 2008 was a record year for energy costs. The Obama administration, while pledging to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80% by 2050, has said that ‘energy efficiency’ is the cheapest, cleanest and fastest energy ‘source.’ Consider the following tips to make your business more energy efficient.
Quick Way to Copy Comments to Multiple Excel Cells
When I review a client’s numbers in an Excel spreadsheet, I frequently add comments in many of the cells, and many of the comments are the same—such as “Looks Good!” Is there any way I can copy them, in one fell swoop, so I don’t have to type the same
Leisurely Approach to IFRS Conversion Ill-Advised
Athough mandatory IFRS adoption is not proposed to take effect until 2014 for large public companies and 2016 for all public companies, a Deloitte white paper suggests that companies in the tourism, hospitality and leisure (THL) industryshould start planning their conversion to international standards now to avoid major distractions from
Best of Both Worlds?
Over the past several years many companies pursued extremely aggressive growth, resulting in an accumulation of fixed assets on balance sheets. Many of these assets (especially land and buildings) have enjoyed an unprecedented appreciation in value. However, the current recession and accompanying credit crunch have caught some companies in a
Unhide Excel Rows or Columns When They Appear Inaccessible
Help! I hid the two top rows of an Excel file, and now I can’t figure out how to get them back because I can’t find a way to access them to reverse the Hide command. I sympathize. There is nothing intuitive about this solution, which works in Excel 2003
Adjust the Size of Received E-Mails
Sometimes the font of my newly arrived e-mail is so small I can hardly read it. Is there an easy way to enlarge it? Yes, but the method depends on which e-mail client or browser you use. Here are some of your choices: If you use Outlook 2007: Press the
A Measure of Success
While we wish our colleagues at Bailey & Co., Snyder & Co., Harrex Group and Kennedy and Coe LLC every success, the article “The Firm of the Future” (Nov. 08, page 68) made it difficult to determine the firms’ outcomes which, ultimately, will determine their success or failure—profitability. The only
Creating Joint Ownership: Avoiding the Tax Traps and Other Pitfalls
Last month’s column showed how adding a child or other nonspouse family member to the title of property as a joint tenant can create unintended consequences of deemed gifting for gift tax purposes. In that illustration, Jack added his daughter, Liz, as joint owner of rental property, immediately triggering a
Reporting Regs Issued for Employer-Owned Life Insurance
The IRS has issued final regulations on information reporting required for employer-owned life insurance policies. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 added IRC §§ 101(j) and 6039I concerning employer-owned life insurance contracts. An employer-owned life insurance contract is one owned by a person engaged in a trade or business employing
Time for a “Little GAAP”
Thank you for the article “Shaking Up Financial Statement Presentation” (Nov. 08, page 56). As a practitioner who regularly serves small business owners, I can only assume that those individuals involved with the FASB and IASB (International Accounting Standards Board) financial statement project have never worked with small businesses. The
Highlights
The study made several recommendations to improve the application of mark-to-market (or fair value) accounting standards. The suggested changes included, among others, reconsidering accounting for impairments of financial instruments and developing more guidance for determining the fair value of investments in inactive markets. The report is available at www.sec.gov/news/studies/2008/marktomarket123008.pdf. FASB
Features
FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE
Create interactive dashboards with Excel PivotCharts and slicers
Leave the static spreadsheets behind. This JofA Technology Q&A article with video walkthrough provides a step-by-step guide for creating interactive dashboards in Excel that decision-makers can use.
From The Tax Adviser
January 31, 2026
Trust distributions in kind and the Sec. 643(e)(3) election
January 31, 2026
Effects of the OBBBA on higher education
December 31, 2025
