CPA Now Blog Archive

If your customer or client base is diverse, then your employees should be diverse as well. The varied perspectives and experiences of your employees only work to improve the customer or client experience.

For those ready to begin the CPA Exam process, there are some important considerations when deciding where to apply to take the exam.

Investors need to factor in the tax consequences of both making certain investments and timing the sale or purchase of stocks. Here are some things to consider during tax season, and all year long.

In making the decision to gift real estate, two factors will shape the ultimate tax effect of the transfer: who will be the donee, and is any consideration being given to the donor? Both of these need to be considered early in the decision making process.

In front of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, Gov. Tom Wolf announced his budget proposal for fiscal year 2016-2017. In strong, and sometimes scolding, terms, Wolf called on lawmakers to both fix Pennsylvania’s structural budget deficit and invest more in schools. It did not sit well with the opposition.

Section 1045 of the tax code allows a taxpayer who has held an investment in qualified small business stock for at least six months to defer the capital gains tax if they roll over the proceeds from the sale of this stock.

Before we get too far into the depths of filing season, here are some tips and helpful information for taxpayers and practitioners alike that might make it a little more bearable.

What do you do when your client comes to you with a Form 1099-MISC and tells you he was not an independent contractor, but was actually an employee? Or as happened to me last year, the client comes to you with no documentation at all?

The arrival of W-2s, 1099s, 1098s, and other income notices are the harbingers that tax season is upon us. Whether you go to a preparer or prepare yourself, here are some tips to help you get this task complete so you can move on to more exciting things.

It’s that time of year again. We are all perusing our checkbooks looking for tax deductions. When it comes to deductible charitable contributions, it’s not always just the check records you need. Here is a refresher on what are deductible charitable contributions and outright gifts to an organization.

If you think studying for the CPA Exam is hard, try doing it in sub-Saharan Africa. Karen Purkey, a recent CPA Exam scholarship winner, is doing just that. Upon graduation from Moravian College, Karen decided to begin her career in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Just as last tax season was peaking toward the final filing deadline, the United States Office of Personnel Management noticed it had been hacked. A few months later it revealed that one of the single largest data breaches in U.S. history had occurred, potentially affecting more than 21.5 million individuals.

Diversity continues to be top of mind for business and accounting leaders across the country. So, how have we done? What progress has been made across our industry? Unfortunately the answer remains, not much. Certainly not enough.

The PICPA had a lot to say in 2015. In fact, PICPA’s committees, task forces, professional team members, and multiassociation coalitions have weighed in on more than 20 issues affecting CPAs.

3-Dimensional Leadership is a simple and practical model of leadership which groups critical competencies into three dimensions or categories:

A few years ago the PICPA hosted several focus groups with young CPAs. The traditional firm model was not necessarily appealing to this new generation of workers.

Clients understand the receiving of 1099s – they get them in the mail reporting the interest from their bank or brokerage house. But the same form that they receive from those payors is one they have to send the people they pay in the course of their business.

I once met a senior accounting major who was behind in her 150-credit-hour requirement and needed to complete them before beginning her job. The CLEP was her ticket to earning credits quickly and inexpensively.

Exploring how to use Excel beyond the traditional functions.

Opportunity, motivation, rationalization, and poor internal controls are the root of most fraud schemes executed by management, employees, or volunteers at school districts across the nation. The best protection against many fraud schemes, is halting them before they begin. One of the most commonly discussed fraud schemes identified at school districts is asset misappropriation, more specifically, employee embezzlement. Proper internal controls coupled with managerial oversight can provide a proactive defense mechanism against these internal predators.