In a case of first impression, the Tax Court ruled that the costs of hormone therapy and sex reassignment surgery for an individual diagnosed with gender identity disorder (GID) qualified as deductible medical expenses. However, the court also said the cost of breast augmentation surgery was cosmetic surgery and not
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Nominate an Outstanding CPA in Government
The AICPA is seeking nominations for the 2010 Outstanding CPA in Government Award. The award recognizes the achievements of individual CPAs employed in government and promotes the CPA designation as the premier professional credential for accounting, auditing, and finance professionals in government. Nominations for the annual award can be submitted
AICPA Members’ Donations Help Build Homes in Haiti
As part of its ongoing relationship with Habitat for Humanity, the Institute collected member donations to help pay for the construction of 10 Core houses for families affected by the earthquakes in Haiti. (Visit tinyurl.com/yhc32wo for more information about Core houses.) Donations were collected through the AICPA’s CPAs in Support
Practical, But Not Perfect
I have been a CPA and recipient of the Journal of Accountancy for more than 30 years. Earlier in that tenure, the articles in the JofA were focused on the knowledge needs of CPAs to perform their services in a professional manner. It has now been years since I read
Gamel Wins PFP Distinguished Service Award
Beth C. Gamel is the recipient of the Institute’s 2009 Personal Financial Planning Distinguished Service Award. The award recognizes an AICPA volunteer who significantly contributes to the advancement of personal financial planning as a practice discipline and exemplifies the CPA as financial planner. Co-founder and executive vice president of Pillar
News Highlights for May 2010
The Auditing Standards Board recently issued six clarified Statements on Auditing Standards related to risk assessment resulting from its clarity project, through which all of its auditing standards will be redrafted over the next one to two years. The board also issued additional proposed SASs. The goal of the clarity
Registration of CPAs, Other Paid Tax Preparers to Start in 2011
The IRS recently provided additional details and a timetable for its proposed requirements for registration of all paid, signing tax return preparers including CPAs. The target date for starting implementation of the registration requirement is September 2010. Preparers who don’t already have one will need to obtain a Preparer Tax
CPAs Provide Expertise for Transfer Pricing Analyses
Transfer pricing, the process by which multinational companies set arm’s-length prices for cross-border transactions within a corporate group, is complex and consistently ranks as the No. 1 international tax issue facing multinational companies, according to Ernst & Young’s 2009 Global transfer pricing survey. To avoid penalties and potential interest, most
Financial Reporting
The AICPA, the Financial Accounting Foundation (FAF) and the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) on Feb. 26 announced the members of the new blue-ribbon panel on U.S. accounting standards for private companies. The 18-member panel includes lenders, investors and business owners as well as preparers and auditors.
Auditing
The AICPA’s Audit and Attest Standards staff has issued Technical Practice Aid (TPA) 9110.16, Example Reports on Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Loss Sharing Purchase and Assumption Transactions, to provide guidance to independent auditors on the type of report they might have to give to the FDIC regarding a loss-sharing
Changes on Tap for Compilation and Review Standards
Significant changes to the standards for compilation and review engagements will soon take effect. The AICPA’s Accounting and Review Services Committee (ARSC) issued Statement on Standards for Accounting and Review Services no. 19, Compilation and Review Engagements, in December. The standard’s effective date is for compilations and reviews of financial
AICPA Positions on Recent IRS Proposals
Editor’s note: The AICPA Tax Division prepared this summary. IRS COMMISSIONER SHULMAN’S ANNOUNCEMENT ON UNCERTAIN TAX POSITIONS On Jan. 26, IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman released a new proposal (see tinyurl.com/ydy4v7e) that would require companies to disclose “uncertain” tax positions in their annual income tax return filings (based on FIN 48
Deducting LLC Losses
The Tax Court held that a managing member of a California LLC and S corporation was not prevented by the passive activity loss limitation rules of IRC § 469 from deducting his share of the entities’ net losses. The holding thus extended the reach of the court’s similar holding last
FYI
The Financial Accounting Foundation selected Michael H. Granof, CPA, Ph.D., to serve as a member of GASB starting July 1, 2010. His term runs until June 30, 2015. He succeeds William Holder, whose second five-year term on GASB ends June 30. The FAF Board of Trustees oversees the activities
James “Butch” Hogan Jr., CPA
I seem to have a knack for managing chaos. It’s a good thing, otherwise, I don’t think I could have succeeded as a volunteer coordinator for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. My first experience in this role (I’ve done it three times!) was in 2006. The television show approached my company,
Test Your Knowledge of International Standards
More than 100 countries around the world, including all major U.S. trading partners, now use or have committed to adopting IFRS. Nearly as many use international auditing and assurance standards and international ethics standards developed by independent standard-setting boards under the International Federation of Accountants. To ensure that CPAs have
International
The International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) Foundation published its second batch of training material for the International Financial Reporting Standard for Small and Medium-sized Entities (IFRS for SMEs). The training material is designed to assist companies and accountants in applying the standard. The remaining material will be published in
Economic Outlook
Amid widespread uncertainty regarding government actions, the real estate market and credit, CPA financial executives expect slow employment and economic growth, according to a survey co-sponsored by the AICPA. However, the outlook for the beleaguered manufacturing sector brightened considerably from the fourth quarter of 2009. Results from the Economic Outlook
Health Care Reform Reshapes Tax Code
In March, Congress passed two pieces of legislation designed to reform the U.S. health care system. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PL 111-148) was enacted on March 23, and was quickly followed by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (PL 111-152), which amended several portions
How to Create a Super-Safe Password That’s Easy to Remember
Q I have to remember so many passwords that require all kinds of number and letter combinations. How can I create something that I can remember? A First, remember what not to do. Don’t use simple words or numbers someone might guess—your child’s name, your birthday or your anniversary date
Features
FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE
4 ways solo practitioners can stand out
Five years ago, a grieving Angel Zhen started his own CPA firm with no clients and no revenue. Today, he has 300 clients, $600,000 in revenue and 12 weeks of annual vacation. In this JofA article, he shares how he set up his firm and how you could do the same.
From The Tax Adviser
April 30, 2026
Current developments in taxation of individuals: Part 2
April 30, 2026
