Accounting Today back issues from July 2005:
Compromising offers in compromise: Highway bill provision could effectively kill the IRS's OIC program.
Jul 11, 2005; ... The passage of H.R. 3, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible and Efficient Transportation Act of 2005, will effectively destroy the Internal Revenue Service's offer-in-compromise program, according to both the American Association of Attorney-CPAs and the American Institute of CPAs. ...
PCAOB: 12% of cos. below SOX standard.(Public Company Accounting Oversight Board reports)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Washington -- Better than one in every eight U.S. corporations that have undergone the more rigorous audits mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act during the past year have been flagged for ineffective internal controls over their financial reporting, officials at the Public Company Accounting ...
Tougher regs help boost software for nonprofits.(accounting software for non profit organizations regulations)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Since Sarbanes-Oxley regulations went into effect for large enterprises, holding executives accountable for their company's financial records, the spotlight has been slowly turning towards nonprofits. For example, California, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine and New Hampshire have passed ...
Call For Nominees.
Jul 11, 2005 ... Accounting Today has issued a call for nominations for our highly regarded Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting list. The list profiles the wide range of figures who wield influence over the profession, from accounting firm executives to state and federal regulators, ...
Weiser merges in Leslie Sufrin & Co.(Weiser LLP)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... New York -- Weiser LLP has merged in nearby Leslie Sufrin and Co. PC, a boutique accounting, audit, tax and consulting firm that specializes in servicing publishing, media, information and communication businesses. New York-based LS&Co. will operate as a separate division of ...
IRS board worried over TAC cuts.(Internal Revenue Service)(Taxpayer Assistance Centers)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Washington -- The IRS Oversight Board at its recent meeting raised concerns over the agency's plan to close some of its Taxpayer Assistance Centers this fall. As part of cost-cutting measures, the Internal Revenue Service said in May that it would forge ahead with plans to close ...
HealthSouth in $100M deal with SEC.
Jul 11, 2005 ... Birmingham, Ala. -- HealthSouth Corp. will pay $100 million to settle charges brought against it by the Securities and Exchange Commission alleging that it cooked its books by more than $2 billion over several years. In a March 2003 civil action, the SEC charged the health care services ...
IRS behind the wheel on charitable auto deductions.(Internal Revenue Service)
Jul 11, 2005; ... The popularity of donating used cars to charity has increased in recent years, to the point of creating a subculture of companies that do nothing but collect and distribute old cars. Billboards, radio ads, flyers in the mail - they all attempt to encourage people to donate vehicles to ...
Europe taking timid steps toward tax harmonization.
Jul 11, 2005; ... Brussels -- An initiative to breath life into the harmonization of corporate taxation rules across the European Union - which got a nudge from the European finance ministers' meeting in September - is now rumbling its way through the Brussels-based EU institutions. But any ...
O'Kelly steps down; KPMG names new chair, CEO.
Jul 11, 2005 ... New York -- The board of KPMG LLP elected Timothy P. Flynn as chairman and chief executive, succeeding Eugene O'Kelly, who will step down to deal with a recent diagnosis of advanced-stage cancer. The firm also named John B. Veihmeyer as deputy chair and chief operating officer ....
FASB converges with global standard on acct'g changes.(Financial Accounting Standards Board)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Norwalk, Conn. -- The Financial Accounting Standards Board has taken a long look at an international standard on accounting changes, found it better than the American standard, and promptly adopted the gist of the international position. Member Michael Crooch expressed ...
CPAs juggle hire-wire act of working with other pros.
Jul 11, 2005; ... Courts look unkindly at CPAs who advise clients beyond their qualifications - for instance, by dispensing legal advice (if they're not attorneys as well). Knowing where to stop and refer clients to other professionals, as well as how to manage the other specialists in a client's financial ...
Practice Management & Development.(Directory)
Jul 11, 2005 ... * Accountants' Marketing Secrets - www.mostad.com Mostad & Christensen Inc. sells marketing aids such as client newsletters, brochures, newsletters and newspaper columns. * Accounting Transition Advisors - www.transitionadvisors.com This site offers a ...
Footnotes.(Harvey Bookstein)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... RBZ Co-Founder Donates $1M to Alma Mater: Harvey Bookstein, co-founder of the Los Angeles-based CPA and business advisory firm RBZ LLP, recently donated $1 million to Cal State University Northridge, for the creation of the Harvey and Harriet Bookstein Chair in Taxation in the university's ...
Andersen meets King Pyrrhus.(Arthur Andersen L.L.P)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Once, after a particularly rough football game between my high school and our archrival, I spotted our coach glumly sauntering into the locker room. I thought his manner was out of sorts for a coach who had just handed a major-league ass-kicking to our most hated opponent. When ...
Letters.(opinions of tax professionals on new rules passed by Internal Revenue Service)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Author responds to criticism of IRS article In response to Michael Franskoviak's letter, "The dark side of the IRS" (Accounting Today, June 6-19, 2005, page 6), I agree that the Internal Revenue Service does not hand out tax penalty abatements like candy. Unless ...
Clarity: The secret ingredient of strategic plans.(Column)
Jul 11, 2005; ... I have either worked in or served accounting firms since 1990, and I see a number of consistencies from firm to firm. My greatest observation is that most, if not all, firms find it difficult to implement great ideas. These ideas may be in the form of a strategic plan, stem from a formal ...
AICPA adds new director of international relations.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Gary M. Scopes)
Jul 11, 2005 ... New York -- The American Institute of CPAs has named Gary M. Scopes as director of international relations. In his new role, Scopes will serve as liaison for the AICPA's international activities and strategic initiatives. He will report to James A. O'Malley, institute senior ...
Tax Practice.
Jul 11, 2005 ... IRS CONTINUES CRACKDOWN ON FRIVOLOUS CASES: The Internal Revenue Service is reminding taxpayers that the agency isn't kidding around when it comes to frivolous cases aimed at delaying tax collections. In published cases since the beginning of 2004, the U.S. Tax Court has imposed ...
How tough is enough? OPR set to enforce stricter rules.(Office of Professional Responsibility)(rules for accountants)
Jul 11, 2005; ... The decline in ethics that took place over the 1990s hurt not only the taxpayers who took positions they shouldn't have taken, but it also hurt responsible tax practitioners, who saw their business taken away by the more aggressive practices, according to Internal Revenue Service ...
IRS clarifies new rules on auto donations to charities.(Internal Revenue Service)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Some taxpayers apparently believe that the ability to claim a charitable deduction for donation of an automobile ended on Dec. 31, 2004. The advertisements on the radio would make one believe that nothing has changed, and that you can still claim a deduction for donated automobiles just as ...
Change Of Auditors.
Jul 11, 2005 ... DELOITTE RESIGNS AS ICU AUDITOR: Big Four firm Deloitte has resigned as independent accountant to ICU Medical Inc., a San Clemente, Calif.-based provider of medical connectors and intravenous systems. In a federal filing, the client said that Deloitte's reports on ICU's ...
AICPA and FASB making move forward on new GAAP.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Financial Accounting Standards Board)(Generally Accepted Accounting Principles)
Jul 11, 2005; ... One of contemporary accounting's most persistent issues has taken a turn toward resolution as the American Institute of CPAs and the Financial Accounting Standards Board agreed to consider creating some kind of generally accepted accounting principles for privately held, for-profit ...
Dumping Rule 203 exceptions: FASB's troubling move.(Financial Accounting Standards Board)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Every so often, people and organizations mistakenly become so self-satisfied that they stumble into assuming their own infallibility, often accompanied by smug statements. Inevitably, events turn these boasts to dust. Here are a just few examples that should raise a chuckle or ...
PFP Briefs.(Piascik & Associates)(financial concierge program)
Jul 11, 2005 ... FIRM UNVEILS FINANCIAL CONCIERGE PROGRAM FOR PRO ATHLETES: Piascik & Associates, a Richmond, Va.-based CPA and financial planning firm, has rolled out a financial concierge program for its professional athlete clients. The program is designed to keep professional athletes on a managed ...
Let the investors beware: NASAA issues red flag list.(North American Securities Administrators Association)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Do you know the best ways you as an investor can get cheated? The North American Securities Administrators Association recently identified some of the most common ploys used today to cheat investors: * Ponzi schemes. You know this as a pyramid scheme. It's named after ...
529 plan assets reach $55.4 Bn.(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Washington -- Assets in Section 529 college savings plans rose to an estimated $55.4 billion at the end of the first quarter, according to data released by the nonprofit College Savings Foundation. The quarterly asset total was up 6 percent from an estimated $52.3 billion at the end of ...
CFOs: Economic optimism hits 12-mo. Low.(Chief financial officers)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... New York -- Chief financial officers' optimism about the economy and their own companies' prospects is the lowest it has been during the past 12 months, according to a survey of Financial Executives International members. According to a second quarter survey of 186 CFOs ...
ADP forges relationship with ICPAS.(Automatic Data Processing small business services)(Illinois Certified Public Accountants Society)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Roseland, N.J. -- Payroll and human resources services provider ADP Small Business Services has forged a relationship with the Illinois CPA Society to serve as the preferred payroll services vendor for the society's more than 22,000 members. Under the agreement, ICPAS members ...
Tech Briefs.(accounting software)
Jul 11, 2005 ... INTUIT LAUNCHES TAX RESEARCH SITE: Intuit has launched an online tax research Web site called TaxAlmanac, in which it is enabling practitioners to post questions and answers. Although the beta site has links to government Web pages, most of its content will come from users, ...
Write-up software adapts to new uses, new practices.(Write-up packages)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Marc Einbinder, a CPA and founder of his own accounting practice in Miami, believes that traditional write-up practice - where a client comes in with a shoebox full of receipts - is becoming a "thing of the past." But that does not mean write-up services or software are becoming ...
Drake names Hubbs CEO, prez.(Drake Software)(Tim Hubbs)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Franklin, N.C. -- Tax prep software maker Drake Software has named company veteran Tim Hubbs, CPA, as its president and chief executive. He replaces company founder Phil Drake, who will continue to serve as chairman of the board and as a technical consultant and software architectural ...
Trial balance: Crank out quick statements.(Trial balance software)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Just as time and billing software can be considered a subset of practice management, trial balance is often thought of as a subset of write-up. That's because the ultimate product of these two applications, a set of financial statements, is the same. The intent of trial balance software, ...
Vendor information.(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... * CaseWare Working Papers CaseWare International Inc. 2425B Channing Way, Suite 590 Berkeley, Calif. 94704 (800) 267-1317 www.caseware.com Pricing: Single-user license - $499; up to five users - $1,299. * CCH ProSystem fx ...
Leadership and training: Success in the trenches.(Ostroff, Fair & Company, P.C.)
Jul 11, 2005; ... It's the 15th of February and your firm is just going into the heart of tax season. The managing partner learns that the document management implementation is not going as planned. In fact, people - including partners - have lost their commitment to the project and are saying that the ...
Software & Hardware.
Jul 11, 2005 ... Inventory help The thing with taking inventory is this: While you spend time counting the things you want to sell, you're not actually selling them. Speed is of the essence, so Intuit has introduced a new physical inventory scanner to go along with its QuickBooks Point of Sale ...
Books.(Balanced Scorecard Diagnostics: Maintaining Maximum Performance)(Show Me QuickBooks 2005)(The Loyalty Advantage)(Starting & Building a Nonprofit)(Effective Fundraising for Nonprofits)(A Manual for Investors, a guide to assessing governance policies)(Book Review)
Jul 11, 2005 ... 'Show Me! QuickBooks' The phrase "I know what I'm doing" has probably preceded more military debacles, chainsaw accidents and irretrievable computer disasters than any other. While there will be plenty more defeated armies and one-handed lumberjacks, Show Me! QuickBooks 2005 can ...
People.(Jordan Castellon & Co. LLC)(Callaway Partners)(ASSA Abloy Door Group LLP)(Sturn Wagner Lombardo & co)
Jul 11, 2005 ... CALIFORNIA Paul T. Kangail has joined Rothstein Kass as tax principal to lead the Walnut Creek and San Francisco tax practices. He brings over 17 years of experience, including service as a tax partner at Deloitte & Touche, and 10 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers. ...
Firms.(IGAF Worldwide)(JFS Auditores Independentes SS)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005 ... GEORGIA IGAF Worldwide, Atlanta, an international accounting network, announced the addition of JFS Auditores Independentes SS, Recife, Brazil. IOWA Theobald, Donohue & Thompson PC celebrated its 30th anniversary earlier ...
Advertiser Index.(Illustration)
Jul 11, 2005 ... <Pre> AdvertiserPage 1st Global 15 AccountantsWorld23 Best Software7 CaseWare22 CCH Tax and Accounting 19, 32 Creative Solutions 2 ...
Money...Money...Money.(PDP Services)(Doris Rubenstein)(Brief Article)
Jul 11, 2005; ... We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give." The words come from the mouth of someone who needs no introduction: Sir Winston Churchill. It relates to our cover story, "The Giving Guru," a feature about Doris Rubenstein who heads PDP Services in Minneapolis and who has ...
Practice Growth.(Financial Services Authority in London )
Jul 11, 2005 ... New Online Resource The Financial Planning Association has an updated version of FPA MarketPlace, an easy-to-use online resource directory designed to connect financial planning professionals with products and services to enhance their practices. The directory contains a search ...
Partners.(ValueNomics Research)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Joint Ventures on Rise According to a KPMG survey, some 64 percent of U.S. executives claim they will increase the use of strategic alliances over the next 24 months, with 52 percent planning to be involved in joint ventures within two years. The reasons are said to be increased ...
Regulatory Watch.
Jul 11, 2005 ... FPA Challenges SEC The Financial Planning Association filed a petition in a District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals challenging a SEC rule exempting certain broker-dealers from the requirements of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. "The FPA is concerned about the quality ...
Tech Tools.(RetireNow version 2005)(EstateWorks 2005)(AdvisorAssurance)
Jul 11, 2005 ... 10-K Lookup CCH, a provider of tax and accounting software and services, has, via a licensing agreement with 10-K Wizard Technology, an online provider of Securities and Exchange Commission filings, given its Accounting Research Manager customers access to SEC Edgar listings via ...
Asset Builders.(ES Magnitude)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Business Performance Management Cartesis has unveiled its ES Magnitude, a leading-edge financial consolidations and management reporting application. It enables managers to accurately and quickly assess and report on the financial state of their businesses, including the ability ...
The Giving Guru.(Doris Rubenstein)(PDP Services)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Many female clients may be caught up in what I call 'the cheesecake syndrome,'" says Doris Rubenstein, founder and principal consultant in Minneapolis-based PDP Services. "What does cheesecake have to do with financial planning? My mom died last year at age 93. She was famous in her ...
Accountants Beware!(Column)
Jul 11, 2005; ... When someone meets you for the first time, here's the scoop, good or bad: <Pre> * In one-quarter of one second, a person makes up his or her mind about you. * In the first five seconds, a person's first impression of you flips back and forth 11 times. * Your first ...
The Progression of Wealth: (CPA Wealth Provider's interview with Jay L. Heller, CPA/PFS and Brian Kohute, CPA/PFS, CFA, co-owners and co-creators of "The Progression of Wealth").(Interview)
Jul 11, 2005 ... Messrs. Heller and Kohite are considered experts on CPAs delivering wealth management or financial planning services. What is their background and to what do they attribute their success? We both are CPAs and have been our entire professional careers. We realized that there was ...
The Entrepreneur's Personal Financial Plan.(Column)
Jul 11, 2005; ... When entrepreneurs consider their personal finances, it is critical they understand that the greatest intergenerational transfer of wealth in history will occur in the United States over the next decade. An estimated $10 trillion is expected to change hands, much of this resting in the ...
Understanding Your Clients From the Inside Out.(course for financial planners)
Jul 11, 2005; ... Golden Gate University in San Francisco has shattered the financial education mold with a new 15-week course that explores the emotional side of financial planning. The Psychology of Money: Understanding Your Clients From the Inside Out, examines the crucial role a clients' psychological ...
Financial Literacy for Women.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' new online course)
Jul 11, 2005 ... The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants has launched a financial literacy program targeted toward women. It is named 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy for Women and focuses on educating and empowering women to take control of their personal finances and achieve greater ...
3rd Annual Financial Planning Awards Call for Nominations.
Jul 11, 2005 ... Nominations are now open for CPA Wealth Provider's Third Annual Financial Planning Awards in the following categories: CPA/Financial Planning Firms Broker/Dealers Financial Planning Software Vendors Winners are those firms or companies that have ...
Some are glum as SOX turns 3.(Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002)
Jul 25, 2005; ... If corporate accountants got the chance to blow out the candles on the Sarbanes-Oxley birthday cake, they'd probably wish the birthday boy would go away. Investors, on the other hand, would probably applaud and call for many happy returns. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act has ...
Epidemic of ID theft spreading: Security strategy tops Tech agenda.
Jul 25, 2005; ... June marked the latest in a series of massive breaches of identity security, when a shipment of unencrypted tapes of information on 3.9 million Citigroup customers was lost while en route to a credit-reporting agency. But the loss of the Citigroup client records was just one in ...
H&R cell block? Jailbirds scam IRS.
Jul 25, 2005; ... Washington -- While the Internal Revenue Service is working overtime to send tax cheats to prison, officials at the tax service are discovering that a considerable portion of them are already behind bars. During hearings before the House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee, ...
Action Idea: Character witnesses.(Brief Article)
Jul 25, 2005 ... No offense, but there are more credible sources of information about your company than your marketing department. Take your clients, for instance - a testimonial from a satisfied customer can be worth a hundred brochures. The trick is to reach out for them. Whenever you know a ...
House approves $10.5B for IRS.(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief Article)
Jul 25, 2005 ... Washington -- The U.S. House of Representatives passed a Treasury appropriations bill in early July to provide the Internal Revenue Service with $10.5 billion in fiscal year 2006. The Senate has yet to take up consideration of the bill. The bill easily won passage with a 405-18 ...
Bush nominates Cox as SEC chair.(Securities and Exchange Commission)(Christopher Cox)(Brief Article)
Jul 25, 2005 ... Washington -- President Bush formally nominated Rep. Christopher Cox, R-Calif., to become the next chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, succeeding William Donaldson, who stepped down June 30 after nearly two-and-a-half years at the helm of the regulator. In the interim, the ...
SEC settles with KPMG Canada.(Securities and Exchange Commission)(KPMG L.L.P. (Toronto, Canada))(Brief Article)
Jul 25, 2005 ... Washington -- The Securities and Exchange Commisson has settled with KPMG Canada and two of its partners for the audit firm's lack of independence related to its audit of Southwestern Water Exploration Co., a now-bankrupt Colorado concern. KPMG Canada provided bookkeeping ...
Ebbers to settle civil litigation.(Bernie Ebbers for accounting fraud)(MCI Inc)(Brief Article)
Jul 25, 2005 ... New York -- Facing a potential prison sentence of 85 years for his conviction in the massive accounting fraud at WorldCom, former chief executive officer Bernie Ebbers agreed to pay $5 million and transfer the majority of his assets to a liquidation fund to settle all civil charges related ...
Accountants' malpractice insurance is in state of flux.
Jul 25, 2005; ... The CPA professional liability market is in a transitory period. "We're coming off a hard market, where prices were increasing," said Ric Rosario, vice president of Redwood City, Calif.-based carrier Camico. "We're in transition at this point - I'm not sure what will happen. It ...
Deloitte, Grant Thornton can be sued for Parmalat.
Jul 25, 2005; ... Big Four firm Deloitte & Touche and international firm Grant Thornton lost their bid to dismiss a class-action suit brought against them by investors of now-bankrupt Italian dairy conglomerate Parmalat. A federal judge in New York recently ruled that the accounting umbrella ...
PwC names new head of global assurance practice.(PricewaterhouseCoopers L.L.P. (New York, New York))(appointment of Rob Ward )(Brief Article)
Jul 25, 2005 ... New York -- Big Four firm PricewaterhouseCoopers has named Rob Ward to head its global assurance practice - the company's largest line of service. Ward had previously served as deputy global assurance leader and will succeed Gerald Ward (no relation), who is retiring after more than 30 ...
IIA paper helps internal auditors express opinions.(Institute of Internal Auditors)
Jul 25, 2005; ... Altamonte Springs, Fla. -- Internal auditors have always had a problem expressing an opinion - or rather, expressing an opinion that others take the right way, with a proper understanding of its scope and type and the criteria used to produce it. The issue has come to the ...