A Dozen Categories. Some Categories Alone Encompassing Up to 20 New Taxes. Here’s the Detail. The American Taxpayer Relief Act, passed by Congress on Jan. 1, permanently extends a large number of tax items from the 2001 and 2003 tax acts and extends many expired tax provisions. Here is a comprehensive look at the many changes contained in the bill, as well as other new taxes that took effect Jan. 1. Paul Bonner and Alistair M. Nevius at the Journal of Accountancy report. A full summary of just the main categories is here:
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Extra Help for Puerto Rican Rum, Asparagus Farmers, Hollywood TV Production, 2-3 Wheeled Electric Vehicles, and Diesel Fuel Joe Weisenthal at Business Insider gives us the lowdown:
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Intent: Not to Constrain Economic Growth Which Could Lead to Future Revenues David Lawder and Kim Dixon report that The Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday said Senate-passed legislation to avert the “fiscal cliff” would add nearly $4 trillion to federal deficits over a decade, largely because it would extend low tax rates for almost all Americans.
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Economic Recovery, Intensified Competition, Squeezed Profit Margins, Upward Pressure on Salaries, Downward Pressure on Rates, and a Rush to the Cloud Rick Telberg counts up the list of the top 20 most-clicked articles at CPA Trendlines provides a roadmap to the profession’s anxieties, aspirations and, just maybe, a glimpse into what 2013 holds:
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There’s good news and bad news. Here’s the low-down. Dean Zerbe offers his take at Forbes on how the current deal will affect small-business owners:
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Ambitious plans to overhaul the individual tax code, tackle corporate rates, revamp the Medicare program and consider changes in Social Security appear to have given way mainly to a tax increases for big earners Jennifer Steinhauer of the New York Times reports that “doing business in pieces” seems to be :the nature of what constitutes progress in such a sharply divided political world.” More:
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Find Fulfillment, Get Productive, And Create Healthy Habits Drake Baer at Fast Company weighs in with his choice of Top 2012 titles, asserting that “these 12 books have shaped not only the way we work this year, but how we think and the conversations we’re having. Authored by luminaries like Nate Silver, Clay Christensen, and Susan Cain, these delightful-to-read tomes offer insight into the power of vulnerability, habit, social media, and more.” Here are his top three:
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Compensation and Growth Opportunities are Key to Employee Retention; Other Factors—and How to Differentiate Jennifer Wilson at CPA Insider writes that firm leaders should be prepared to provide clear answers to the most pressing questions young high performers have about what to expect on the path to partner.
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Small Business Owners Hiring Intentions for the Next 12 Months Dropped to -4 in November, Down from +10 in July Jeffrey Sparshott at the Wall Street Journal Real-Time Economy Blog reports the news:
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Bay State Charges Two Firms with Fraudulent Security Sales Investment News, the daily online publication of the financial advisory industry, reports that Massachusetts took aim Thursday at two players in the small but potentially vast arena of crowdfunding, which lets small private companies sell equity directly to investors:
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Engage Employees with Teamwork and Consensus; Look Beyond Your Own Industry, and Execute Carefully In a recent issue of the Financial Planning Association’s Practice Management Solutions, Paul R. Brown identifies important factors successful business owners pay careful attention to when managing substantial change in their organizations successfully. Here’s what to pay attention to.
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Business Owners Need to Establish Clear Guidelines for Future Buyouts with Their Partners John Markel explains that it’s critical for partners to put together a buy-sell agreement that establishes in specific detail the standard of value, the level of value, and acceptable methods for funding a buyout. Here’s why.
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Typical Household Taxes Go Up by $2,000, Says Non-Partisan Tax Policy Center More than a dozen tax cuts are set to expire Dec. 31 and a couple of new taxes are scheduled to start with the new year, Catherine Rampell at The New York Times reports. Here’s more:
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Media Vary on Whether Election Increases or Decreases Uncertainty; Concur It’s Good for Business A number of media outlets have begun to weigh in on the topic. At Accounting Today, the editors have put together a topical list of some of the relevant issues:
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A Balance of Valuation and Litigation Work; Secrets to Enhanced Productivity Marcie Bour, Founder and President of the Florida Business Valuation Group, offers tips and strategies on time management, favorite appraisal tools, marketing strategies, the benefits of client diversification, and the value of networking and seeking out mentors.
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Appraisers in Violation of 6701 May Face Devastating Consequences. Learn More About Potential Penalties—and How to Stay in Compliance Joel N. Crouch and Joseph D. Brophy discuss the IRS Code’s Section 6701 and the relevant penalties that can be leveraged against violators. While IRS sources say that the number of penalties imposed is still negligible, this number has increased significantly and the trend continues.
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Top Vote-Getters Include Fed Honchos, Private Sector Leaders, and Association Chief Who’s the most important person in Accounting? Is it Leslie Seidman (Chairman of the FASB), Hans Hoogervorst (Chairman of the IASB), or Douglas Shulman (Commissioner, IRS)? Or instead, might it be James Doty (PCAOB Chair), Mary Shapiro (SEC), or even an as-yet-unnamed person—our next president? Or someone else entirely? Find out how respondents voted in an Accounting Today survey.
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Authors of New Book Describe How Ability to Bring in New, High-Quality, Well-Paying Clients Consistently is Key Bruce H. Rogers and Russ Alan Prince are the co-authors of the just published book Profitable Brilliance: How Professional Service Firms Become Thought Leaders. At Forbes, the authors detail how a strong referral strategy is critical to a profitable, growing business, and that one of the best ways to build a referral network is by establishing yourself as a thought leader:
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Good Mentors Not Only Catch Errors, but Speed Professional Development, Provide Perspective, and Help Build Your Company Brand The mentoring process is invaluable, explains Baria Jaroudi. That’s not simply because it provides a proofread and detail check, or even because it strengthens professional development and solicits team expertise and new perspectives. Perhaps most importantly, strong mentoring helps firms deliver the sort of work that builds a company’s brand, attracts new business, and defends the value of analyst work in a world of increasing automation.
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Divorce Proceedings Can Stall Operations, Distract Key Employees, and Require Expensive Outside Counsel. Here’s How Good Planning Can Mitigate the Costs. Solid legal counsel, pre- and post-nuptial agreements, shareholder agreements, confidentiality, and structured settlements can all ease the strain on a small business during a divorce proceeding, explains Jennifer A. Brand at the Fox Small Business Center. Find out the details.