January 2019

January 30, 2019

IRS issues updates on post-shutdown activities

The IRS posted guidance for the public explaining how it will be operating now that the shutdown has ended, to catch up on its backlog in audits, collections, tax return processing, and Tax Court cases.

January 28, 2019

Government shutdown ends in time for tax season

The partial shutdown of the federal government ended just in time to allow the full IRS workforce to return to work for the start of tax season.

January 24, 2019

News quiz: Uncertainty looms as year begins

The partial government shutdown and uncertainty about its effects dominated the news as 2019 began. See how much you remember from recent news reports with this short quiz.

January 24, 2019

Americans’ personal financial satisfaction dips in fourth quarter

The AICPA’s Personal Financial Satisfaction Index (PFSi) declined for the first time in two years in the fourth quarter of 2018, largely due to the stock market’s end-of-year downturn.

January 23, 2019

Paid preparer’s checklist expands to include head-of-household, other tax credit questions

Practitioners should be aware of changes to the due-diligence requirements for returns that claim the earned income tax credit, the American opportunity tax credit, and/or the child tax credit.

January 23, 2019

Cost-of-complexity exercise enables better decisions

Determining the right amount of packaging specialization helps management accountants balance customer preferences with cost-effectiveness.

January 22, 2019

Qualified business income deduction regs. and other guidance issued

The package includes final regulations, guidance on how to calculate W-2 wages, a safe-harbor rule for rental real estate businesses, and new proposed rules on the treatment of previously suspended losses.

January 17, 2019

Some individual taxpayers get relief from underpayment penalty

The relief applies to individuals whose tax withheld and estimated tax payments equal at least 85% of the tax shown on their 2018 tax return.

January 16, 2019

Final regulations govern Sec. 965 transition tax

The IRS finalized proposed regulations issued last August on the new transition tax, which generally taxes the accumulated post-1986 deferred foreign income of a corporation.

January 15, 2019

Half of IRS employees to be recalled during tax season

The IRS issued an updated contingency plan outlining how it will function during tax season.

January 14, 2019

North American CFOs’ optimism falls sharply

Deloitte survey indicates the euphoria of the first quarter of 2018 has diminished, mainly because of concern about a lack of trade clarity.

January 11, 2019

IRS announces Free File launch

The IRS announced that its Free File program, which provides free electronic filing options to moderate-income taxpayers, opened Jan. 11 and will operate through Oct. 15.

January 8, 2019

A new framework for audit quality disclosures

A new framework designed by the Center for Audit Quality can help firms develop their audit quality disclosures and provide transparency to the public.

January 7, 2019

IRS sets start date for tax season, will issue refunds during government shutdown

The IRS announced Monday evening that tax season will start in late January and that it will issue refunds to taxpayers despite the partial shutdown of the federal government.

January 7, 2019

AICPA publishes broker-dealer working draft

The AICPA Financial Reporting Executive Committee has published a working draft of an illustrative note to financial statements of SEC-registered broker-dealers.

January 4, 2019

Changes related to peer review proposed for UAA

The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) is proposing changes to the Uniform Accountancy Act (UAA) Model Rules related to peer review programs.

January 3, 2019

GASB proposes implementation guide for fiduciary activities standard

GASB published a proposed implementation guide that provides questions and answers about the board’s new standards for state and local government accounting and financial reporting for fiduciary activities.

January 3, 2019

ASB changes align GAAS with PCAOB standards

The AICPA Auditing Standards Board voted to issue a new standard that will more closely align generally accepted auditing standards and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s standards.

FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

AI risks CPAs should know

Are you ready for the AI revolution in accounting? This JofA Technology Q&A article explores the top risks CPAs face—from hallucinations to deepfakes—and ways to mitigate them.