CPA Now Blog Archive

Required minimum distributions are the minimum amounts that must be withdrawn annually from a retirement account. If they are not taken from your individual retirement account in a given year, any excess accumulation will result in an additional tax. Time is running out if you are required to make a withdrawal this year.

As the leadership of CPA firms turns gray, the administrative details of running a firm become less tolerable. As future leaders rise through the ranks, their interest in these tasks tends to wane. The firm administrator is the one who covers the important management tasks that others are unwilling to do.

One of the highest value services that a CPA can provide is to help business decision makers make better decisions. And the science of data analytics is key to helping with decisions that will improve business performance and return on investment

Emerging CPAs should take advantage of their knowledge of the time value of money from the beginning of their careers to maximize their potential retirement savings.

The first year of the CPA biennial continuing education cycle is almost at a close. Have you completed your required 20 CPE credits yet?

With speculation being rampant over what policies a Republican-dominated Washington will bring, there is one issue close to the profession that has a good chance to move forward next year: tax reform.

Pennsylvania House Bill 245 was an extremely important piece of legislation as it protected taxpayers from being double-taxed. The bipartisan bill garnered “yes” support from more than 75 percent of the Senate and the House. But Gov. Tom Wolf unceremoniously vetoed the bill. How could this happen?

The PICPA’s Personal Financial Planning Committee has been addressing the importance of PFP as a growth opportunity for many years. The surge in interest in personal financial planning has inspired new programs at the PICPA.

Donita R. Rudy has spent the past 25 years assisting clients from a variety of industries and business sizes with financial, strategic, and turnaround management services. In this Q&A she explains how crisis management is a process whereby you maintain control when the uncontrollable happens.

Unplanned distributions from traditional individual retirement accounts (IRAs) can have a serious unanticipated tax consequence. From Social Security benefits to health care costs, a lot can be affected by unchecked distributions.

Many CPAs in personal financial planning or forensic accounting can share war stories about clients or neighbors who have been taken advantage of, not only by strangers but also by family and friends. CPAs are in a position to spot potential fraud perpetrated on their clients, and the PICPA is developing resources to help identify early warning signs of elder fraud.

Most of us know that financial abuse of elders is a problem. Maybe you've witnessed it among your own family or friends. But just how big a problem is it? Try $36 billion per year.

The vast amount of analytical work performed in today’s business environments is through the use of rudimentary spreadsheets that typically focus on some level of retrospective review of budget to actual performance. Still, business owners can manage three common areas of concern through some relatively simple data analysis.

PICPA’s proposed changes to the Pennsylvania CPA Statute cleared its final hurdle and was unanimously approved by the state House.

Medical marijuana may now be legal in Pennsylvania, but the U.S. Congress maintains that marijuana is a Schedule 1 drug. That means the illegal distribution and sale of marijuana is a serious crime. This creates hesitation from banks when considering accepting customers whose businesses relate to marijuana.

CFOs, like any employee, could leave for any variety of reasons. Employers don’t want to have to hire the first person that comes along, but they do need someone with the expertise to fill this spot almost immediately. Many CPA firms can fill this CFO need until the company finds the right fit.

Every accounting program includes accounting and auditing, tax, and other core business courses, but no matter what your long-term career goals are there are additional courses you should consider to enhance your skills and increase your appeal in the job market.

Because Medicare plans can change coverage each year and because your particular health situation may have changed, you should spend some time to ensure that your health insurance coverage best meets your needs.

This past August, the Greater Philadelphia Women of the PICPA Committee hosted a Path to Partner panel, which spoke on their professional journey, the role mentors played in helping them along the way, and whether they feel like they’ve achieved success.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the average employee will stay with one employer for less than five years. Among CPAs, just switching jobs isn’t the only lane to travel to achieve success. CPAs can also get off the highway and switch career paths: from public practice to private industry, or vice versa.