An old solution to a new question; misconceptions about making partner; keeping staff; and other highlights from our favorite tax bloggers.
Numbers games
- Sovos (https://sovos.com/blog/?region=united-states): There are 600 reasons this’ll be a filing season like no other for your 1099-K clients. Five tips to ensure they’re ready, including pre-season communications and making sure your own team is prepared for the inevitable questions.
- Tax Vox (https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/): Following passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the U.S. is on track to attain a roughly 40% reduction from 2005 emissions levels by 2030. But the country’s goal from the 2015 Paris Agreement is to cut global greenhouse gas emissions at least 50% by then. What policy action would close that gap?
- Don’t Mess with Taxes (http://dontmesswithtaxes.typepad.com/): A recent report shows that partially due to COVID and/or inflation and/or the stars and the moon, the average 401(k) balance and the average IRA balance have dropped. Not all the news is terrible, though.
- Summing It Up (http://blog.freedmaxick.com/summing-it-up): The average cost of a ransomware incident that includes business interruption and recovery costs is $623,000 for small and midsize businesses, and in recent years 98% of cyber-insurance claims came from SMBs: among the numbers reminding us that cybercrooks don’t take holidays.
- Palm Beach Accounting and Financial Services (https://www.pbafs.com/blog): Five deductions that aren’t always front of mind — but sure should be this year.
Much ado
- Tax Foundation (https://taxfoundation.org/blog): Remote work looms as a potential income tax nightmare come filing season. An old idea — state reciprocity agreements — can come to the rescue.
- Eide Bailly (https://www.eidebailly.com/taxblog): Will retirement legislation pass in the lame-duck session? Some folks seem to think so.
- Gordon Law (https://gordonlawltd.com/blog/): What’s involved in high-net-worth clients protecting assets with offshore trusts.
- Taxjar (https://www.taxjar.com/resources/blog): Modernization and big changes around non-luxury items highlight the latest trends in sales tax heading into 2023.
- The Rosenberg Associates (https://rosenbergassoc.com/blog/): Five ideas are addressed about becoming a partner — enlightenments that include such phrases as, “One of the biggest misunderstandings…”, “In the olden days…” and “Those fears are largely much ado about nothing.”
- Sikich (https://www.sikich.com/insights/): What is “spend management” and how can it figure into your plans for cutting back on biz costs?
- Global Taxes (https://www.globaltaxes.com/blog.php): How the IRS looks to turn up the heat on compliance of foreign nationals who live in the U.S.
- Solutions for CPA Firm Leaders (http://ritakeller.com/blog/): How to keep staff? Try getting rid of clients.
- Peisner Johnson (https://peisnerjohnson.com/blog/): Real horror stories from the realm of sales tax maleficence.
- National Association of Tax Professionals (https://blog.natptax.com/): This week’s “You Make The Call” looks at Charlie, sole beneficiary of a supplemental needs trust funded by his grandmother. The trustee, a professional trust company, directly paid a ticket vendor for Charlie’s seat at the next big game between Charlie’s favorite football team and their rival. Before paying the expense on Charlie’s behalf, the trustee determined that doing so would not conflict with the terms of the SNT or Charlie’s ability to continue receiving specific government benefits. The trustee has hired you to prepare a 1041. Is the direct payment to the ticket vendor treated as a distribution even though it was not paid to Charlie?
Get talking
- Turbotax (https://blog.turbotax.intuit.com): What to remind them about the latest on getting a deduction for charitable donations.
- AICPA Insights (https://www.aicpa.org/blog):  The marketplace — and increasingly, regulators — demand good organizational information on environmental, social and governance topics. How to meet this need.
- TaxConnex (https://www.taxconnex.com/blog-): Help your online seller clients stay safe this Black Friday, at least from sales tax messes.
- Tax Pro Center (https://proconnect.intuit.com/taxprocenter/): What’s in a name? Biz clients might wonder — and you can reply “Plenty!” when it’s the name of a business entity and Uncle Sam might get involved.
- Surgent Income Tax School (http://www.theincometaxschool.com/blog/): It doesn’t matter if they’re a first-time client or you’ve worked with them for years: Don’t assume you know everything about them, from estimated payments to life changes to every source of income. A few tips to dig subtly.
- CPA Growth Trends (https://www.cpagrowthtrends.com/): The November series takes an in-depth look at internal communications, including tips and tricks for Microsoft Teams.
- Henry+Horne (https://www.hhcpa.com/blogs/): What to remind them about the benefits of online IRS accounts.
