In his article “Building Blocks of a Successful Financial Close Process” (Dec. 2011, page 18) author Kevin Kelso failed to identify one of the most important aspects of the close process—analysis of variances to budget. He correctly states comparisons should be made with prior periods so that significant variances can
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The magazines
Heads in the cloud: Part 2
The rapid growth of cloud computing is whipping up a storm of change and challenges, opportunities and obstacles for CPA firms. While many firms have embraced the Internet as a place to conduct business more efficiently and effectively, others are holding back, often due to concerns about the security of
Watering your documents
Q: Is there an easy way to insert a prominent disclaimer on each page of a Word 2010 document that reads “For Management’s Eyes Only”? A: Word 2010, 2007 and 2003 provide a watermark solution that likely meets your needs. To use this feature in Word 2010 and 2007, click
Tagging along
Q: I see an increasing number of colorful square patterns popping up in magazines and newspapers, but I don’t understand their purpose. Could you enlighten me? A: Those colorful square patterns you see are Microsoft Tags. To use them, download the free Microsoft Tag reader to your smartphone and scan
International
The AICPA’s senior technical committee for financial reporting advised the IASB to continue focusing on completion of a conceptual framework, including a presentation and disclosure framework. The IASB requested the feedback when it issued its Agenda Consultation 2011 in July. Richard Paul, chair of the AICPA’s Financial Reporting Executive Committee
Authors contributing to the February 2012 issue
Heads in the cloud: Part 1 page 20Jeff Drew is a JofA senior editor. He oversees coverage of practice management and technology. He has more than 20 years of journalism experience, including a decade in various editorial capacities with American City Business Journals. Pricing, billing and collecting fees page 24Edward
Help clients choose the right charities
Many nonprofits operate with tight resources, and some are struggling to survive in the slow economy. Here are ways to determine if the charities your clients support are effectively governed, accountable and fiscally responsible. —By Betsy Brill (betsy@stratphilanthropy.com), MBA, founder and president, and Susan Winer (susan@stratphilanthropy.com), senior vice president–Business, both
Grantor retained interests clarified
The IRS issued final regulations providing guidance on the portion of property (held in trust or otherwise) includible in a grantor’s gross estate if the grantor has retained the use of the property or the right to an annuity, unitrust, graduated retained interest or other payment from the property for
Congress repeals 3% withholding, enacts worker credit for veterans
On Nov. 21, President Barack Obama signed into law an act (P.L. 112-56) that repeals a 3% government contractor withholding requirement. The act removes Sec. 3402(t), which required withholding of 3% of payments by the federal or state governments or their instrumentalities or subdivisions (including multistate agencies) to any person
Line items
Regs target GST “transactions of interest” The IRS issued final regulations Nov. 10 that add to the categories of listed transactions or transactions of interest those that reduce or eliminate the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax. The regulations also require disclosure of such transactions under Sec. 6011 (T.D. 9556). The final
Interest-netting relief allowed to consolidated group member
The Court of Federal Claims ruled that a member of a consolidated group is “the same taxpayer” for purposes of interest-netting relief both before and after becoming a member of the consolidated group. The IRS assessed a tax deficiency of $9,953,525 against Magma Power Co. with respect to its tax
Keep those names flowing
Q: We have 170 hourly employees and, as part of my job, I prepare job assignment reports in Microsoft Word that contain several lists, sorted by name. As you can see in the attached example report, I use a three-column table in Word to list these names. The problem arises
Ready, set, action!
Q: We would like to produce and publish on our website a simple, three-minute movie clip featuring two people talking about the merits of our financial services. I don’t want to spend a lot of money or take a lot of time, but I am finding this task to be
PivotTable growing pains
Q: I have created several dozen PivotTable reports in Excel to meet our reporting needs. However, as new rows of data are added to the source data, I must constantly redefine the source data range for all PivotTables, which is very time-consuming. Is there a way to make my PivotTables
Preparer fingerprinting delayed
The IRS will delay and reconsider its fingerprinting requirement for tax return preparers, IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman told the AICPA National Tax Conference in November. “We have decided to hold off fingerprinting while we consider issues that have been raised and have further discussions with interested parties,” Shulman said during
A matter of interest rates
I am CFO of Lakeland Industries Inc., which acquired a Brazilian company in 2008. I have been intimately involved with the Brazilian operations ever since, and I would like to comment on the excellent article “Business Basics in Brazil” (Nov. 2011, page 34). In the section addressing exchange rate risk,
All in the family
CPAs do their best to keep up to date with tax developments. However, much of their job involves dealing with family dynamics, requiring skills related more to understanding and communication than technical expertise. Three principles should guide practice management when families are involved: – Understand the perspective of each family
Nonprofits
FASB added two agenda projects—a standard-setting project and a research project—intended to improve financial reporting of nonprofit organizations. The objectives of these projects encompass suggestions from FASB’s Not-for-Profit Advisory Committee (NAC) at the panel’s September 2011 meeting. The NAC recommended action in these areas after its September meeting (see previous
Restricted stock awards and taxes: What employees and employers should know
The use of restricted stock awards to compensate employees is growing in popularity in place of the much-maligned stock option. One of the reasons for the shift to restricted stock is the reduced charge against income provided by restricted stock awards as compared to stock option grants. Restricted stock is
Disallowed deduction equals change in accounting method
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a Tax Court decision that a change in accounting method occurred when the IRS disallowed an accrual-basis taxpayer’s deduction for inventory purchased on account from a related-party cash-basis taxpayer. Therefore, the taxpayer was required to include amounts erroneously deducted in closed tax years
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FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE
Flip out with the latest Tech Q&A
The September Technology Q&A column shows how to create dynamic to-do lists with Excel's checkboxes and also how to set up multifactor authentication texts that don't rely on phones. Flip through both items and view a video walkthrough in our digital format.
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