A new survey examines retirement plan sponsorship by businesses with fewer than 100 employees. Among reasons business owners cite for not offering a plan are their uncertainty about future revenue and workers’ preference for higher wages or other benefits ( www.ebri.org/sers/2001/index.htm ).
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Personal financial planning
Financial Reporting
Corporations whose press releases provide pro forma earnings should also include a reconciliation to GAAP results, according to best practices guidelines jointly issued by the Financial Executives Institute and the National Investor Relations Institute ( www.niri.org/publications/alerts/ea042601.cfm ).
Smart Stops on the Web
Links, Links and More Links www.estateplanninglinks.com This site offers both the consumer and the professional planner links to estate planning and related sites. The home page is organized under headings such as Charitable Planning, Elder Law, and Probate and Living Trusts. The Understanding Estate Planning section offers links to glossaries
Personal Financial Planning
Fewer than three of four workers saved for retirement in 2000, says a new survey. According to researchers, while health care expenses worry workers who have tried to estimate their retirement needs, those who have not fret less about their retirement income ( www.ebri.org/rcs/2001/index.htm ).
Insurance
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners says its plan to improve the uniformity, efficiency and effectiveness of state insurance regulation will serve consumers better than the American Council of Life Insurers’ call for an optional federal charter for life insurance companies. Meanwhile, the Shadow Financial Regulatory Committee—an independent research group—evaluates
FYI
Gary S. Schieneman, CPA, begins a two-year term with FASB on July 1, replacing Anthony T. Cope, who has joined the International Accounting Standards Board ( http://accounting.rutgers.edu/raw/fasb/news/nr051401.html ). The United Kingdom’s accounting standards board appoints Douglas Flint to a three-year term ( www.frc.org.uk/publications/publication335.html ).
International
A new IFAC discussion paper examines the methods different countries’ accounting organizations advocate for defining and achieving competence in professional accountancy. Comments are due by October 31 ( www.ifac.org/News/LastestReleases.tmpl?NID=99010990012150 ). The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s initiative on harmful tax practices draws the opposition of the U.S. Treasury secretary,
Counseling Older Clients
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AS AN INCREASING PERCENTAGE OF AMERICANS reaches age 65, counseling older clients will become a more important part of a CPA’s practice. WORKERS AGE 65 OR OLDER CAN RECEIVE FULL Social Security benefits regardless of earnings; those under age 65 will lose benefits if they earn too much.
Estate Planning Strategies
iven the complexity of the Internal Revenue Code, many estate planning techniques can be used to lower (or eliminate) the tax burden over the course of an individual’s life. One method taxpayers can use is simply taking advantage of lifetime-giving opportunities through the annual exclusion amount, the applicable estate and
Personal Financial Planning
Faced with a turbulent stock market, rising energy prices and other signs of an economy in flux, Americans are increasingly worried about their finances. And though individual investors admit to financial planners’ expertise, few consult one. So says a new survey the AICPA commissioned to better understand how
Using Money Managers
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ONE WAY CPAs CAN UPGRADE THEIR INVESTMENT advisory services is to offer their clients the services of individual money managers. Managed portfolios permit the CPA to gain more control over the investment process vs. mutual funds and to develop customized investment and tax strategies to meet clients’ special
How to Maximize IRA Accumulations
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY TAX LAW REQUIRES IRA OWNERS TO BEGIN TAKING minimum distributions from traditional IRAs starting in the year they turn age 70 12 . Since the balances in these accounts can be quite sizable, some owners prefer to continue generating tax-deferred earnings as long as possible. CPAs can
SEC Launches Online Investment Adviser Database
T he SEC and an association of state securities administrators have formally introduced a Web-based depository of information on investment advisory firms, ushering in a new phase of the digital age for both advisers and investors. The new system will enable the firms, which manage more than $18 trillion
The SEC’s Proposed Auditor Rule Threatens Our Profession and the Public.
SEPTEMBER 2000 VOLUME 190, NUMBER 3 Editorial Staff Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Colleen Katz Executive Editor Barbara J. Shildneck Managing Editor Elizabeth Uva Senior Editors Katharine W. Coveleski Peter D. Fleming Michael Hayes Raj Rangarajan Robert Tie Cynthia Waller Vallario Stanley Zarowin Assistant Editors Sarah Cobb Vincent Nolan Contributing Editors Maria
Facing a Hobson’s Choice.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY MANY MARRIED COUPLES FACE A CLASSIC ESTATE planning dilemma. They have combined estates large enough to require them to pay estate taxes, but each spouse has insufficient separate assets—other than retirement plans—to fund the bypass trust that could cut their estate tax bill. Funding a bypass trust
Personal Financial Planning
SSA Commissioner Urges Rescue Plan Speaking in June before an audience of AICPA technical managers, Social Security Administration Commissioner Kenneth S. Apfel shared his views on the major challenges confronting his agency, including the projected insolvency in 2034 of the Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Trust Fund. Apfel’s appearance was part
The Planning Peril
PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING Redesigning the budgeting function? Avoid built-in risks. The Planning Peril BY LAWRENCE B. MacGREGOR SERVEN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A REDESIGN OF YOUR organization’s planning and budgeting process is a risky business—for you and your company. Reasons: If the redesign lacks support and fails to deliver, the finger
The Dos and Don’ts of IRA Investing
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY THE DECISION OF HOW TO INVEST IRA ASSETS is complicated because the law does not allow taxpayers to hold certain investments in an IRA. CPAs will find little formal guidance on IRA investments from the IRS or the Department of Labor. IRA INVESTMENT GUIDELINES GENERALLY ARE limited to
Counseling Clients on Credit
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY WITH CONSUMER DEBT AT AN ALL-TIME HIGH, CPAs need to help clients focus more attention on debt management. The Federal Reserve says Americans owed $1.33 trillion, excluding mortgage debt, at the beginning of 1999. MOST LENDERS AND CREDIT COUNSELORS RECOMMEND that families limit debt payments to 36% of
The CPA As E-Consultant
FEBRUARY 2000 VOLUME 189, NUMBER 2 Editorial Staff Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Colleen Katz Executive Editor Barbara J. Shildneck Managing Editor Elizabeth Uva Senior Editors Katharine W. Coveleski Peter D. Fleming John von Brachel Michael Hayes Emily S. Plishner Stanley Zarowin Senior News Editor Robert Tie Associate News Editor Mavis C.
Features
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How to find the right CAS clients
The key to success with CAS is selecting the best clients. Tools like ideal client profiles (ICPs), buyer personas, and even artificial intelligence can help identify the businesses that best fit each CAS practice.
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