COVID-19 news and information for CPAs

TOPICS

February 27, 2021

Tax provisions in the American Rescue Plan Act

The stimulus bill passed by the House contains many tax provisions, including a new round of economic stimulus payments, tax credits for COBRA continuation coverage, and expansions of the child tax credit, the earned income credit, and the child and dependent care credit.

February 24, 2021

AICPA seeks certainty on filing deadline and relief for 2020 tax year

The AICPA has written to Treasury and the IRS, calling for certainty about the April 15 tax filing and payment deadline and for underpayment and late-payment penalty relief during the COVID-19 pandemic.

February 22, 2021

New PPP changes attempt to ease smallest businesses’ access

The White House said it will allow only businesses with fewer than 20 employees to apply for PPP loans during a two-week period starting Wednesday. The administration also will change the PPP loan calculation formula to help sole proprietors, independent contractors and self-employed individuals receive more financial support.

February 22, 2021

PPP processing delays continue

Anti-fraud screenings by the SBA are delaying the processing of Paycheck Protection Program loan applications, sometimes for weeks, AICPA executives said during an online Town Hall.

February 22, 2021

How to support working parents without losing efficiency

This article explores policies companies can put in place to support employees with children during this uniquely challenging time without sacrificing efficiency.

February 19, 2021

IRS provides cafeteria plan relief for the pandemic

The IRS issued guidance on how employers can amend their health flexible spending arrangements and dependent care assistance programs to respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

February 18, 2021

From the filings: Supply chain lessons from the pandemic

Industrial giants 3M, Arrow Electronics, and Caterpillar explain how they navigated disruptions.

February 16, 2021

4 tips for launching a new initiative virtually

This article offers tips for forming, testing, and launching a new endeavor under remote-working circumstances.

February 11, 2021

Single audits: Deliver high quality in a challenging time

The federal funding surge that accompanied the coronavirus pandemic has made single audits more challenging than ever. But now that the rules have been released, practitioners need to focus on delivering high-quality single audits in this difficult time.

February 10, 2021

SBA announces PPP process changes

The US Small Business Administration said that it is updating the Paycheck Protection Program’s processes and application platform to speed up the flow of funds to small businesses.

FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

Build reusable Skills in Anthropic’s Claude AI

Instead of rewriting prompts each time, CPAs can turn routine tasks into reusable AI Skills. This Technology Q&A walks through how to build Claude Skills that process files, ask setup questions, and export clean Excel outputs.