California CPA articles from January 2004

California CPA archives from January 2004

IRS, FTB Liaison Meeting Q & A available.(CalCPA News)(www.calcpa.org)(Internal Revenue Service and Franchise Tax Board)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Print versions of the 2003 CalCPA Committee on Taxation's question-and-answer meetings with the IRS and FTB are available for a limited time. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] This information also will be posted on CalCPA's website,...

CalCPA's HR Committee wants you.(CalCPA News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Did you know that more than 25 human resources-based bills affecting California employers were passed into law in 2003? How can you keep up with this information? The CalCPA Committee on Human Resources can help you sift through this...

Want free CPE? Just ask.(CalCPA News; accounting services)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Ask your co-workers. Ask your friends. Ask that daughter of yours who just earned her CPA license--"Are you a CalCPA member?" [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Refer a CPA for CalCPA membership and we'll thank you with a free (three-hour) chapter...

Compensation for Cal's CPAs.(News & Trends)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The 2003 National MAP Survey and California MAP Survey Report found the following regarding annual gross compensation at firms for full-time accounting staff in California (if owner, net remaining). CalCPA members may download a copy at...

2004 Business and Industry Conference.(Education Foundation)
January 1, 2004... The California CPA Education Foundation, and CalCPA Members in Industry Committee, will hold its 2004 Business and Industry Conference Feb. 25, 2004 at LAX and Feb. 26, 2004 in San Francisco. The conference is scheduled from 8:30 a.m.-4:45...

First wave of e-services.(IRS News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The IRS recently began its push to broaden its online tools. Tax preparers can now apply for and receive PTINs immediately online. The IRS also introduced an Interactive Taxpayer Identification Number Matching program, which allows...

E-filing application processing delayed.(IRS News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The IRS has been experiencing delays as it transitions to a new web-based application process for Form 8633, "Application to Participate in the IRS' e-file Program." To avoid duplicate submissions, the IRS asks that you allow 10-12 weeks...

AICPA, ASA work on business valuation credential.(AICPA News; American Society of Appraisers )(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The AICPA and the American Society of Appraisers (ASA) have agreed on an educational equivalency program for business valuation professionals. While the AICPA offers the Accredited in Business Valuation (ABV) credential, the ASA offers two...

IFAC OK's audit quality reforms.(IFAC News; International Federation of Accountants )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The International Federation of Accountants approved several audit reforms to strengthen the audit standard-setting process and move closer to global standards. The reforms outline a transparent standard-setting process that gains greater...

GAO: mandatory audit rotation reforms should wait.(GAO News; General Accounting Office)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... After studying the impact of mandatory audit rotation outlined by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the GAO is asking Congress and federal regulators to delay potential rulemaking on the issue for several years. The report found that the benefits of...

Statement on asset impairment and insurance recoveries.(GASB News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... GASB has published Statement No. 42, Accounting and Financial Reporting for Impairment of Capital Assets and for Insurance Recoveries, requiring governments to report the effects of capital asset impairment in financial statements. The new...

Stock option expensing required in 2005.(FASB News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... FASB has agreed to require the expensing of stock options beginning in 2005 despite strong opposition from the high-tech sector. The board also voted to specify the approach that companies must use when expensing options. The final...

National CPA license database is on the way.(NASBA News; Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy has unveiled plans for a database that will validate the licensing status of CPAs throughout the country. The database, expected to go live in November 2004, was designed to ease the...

PCAOB proposes new auditing standards.(PCAOB News; Public Company Accounting Oversight Board)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The PCAOB has proposed two auditing standards relating to documentation. The first proposed standard would establish general requirements for documentation an auditor prepares and retains in connection with any public company audit. ...

Stricter nominating rules for public companies.(SEC News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The SEC adopted rules to improve disclosure to investors on the nominating committee processes at public companies, as well as the ways stockholders may communicate with directors. The new disclosure standards will require companies to...

SEC approves NYSE, NASDAQ governance standards.(SEC News; Secutites and Exchange Commission)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The SEC OK'd new rules proposed and adopted by the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Market requiring widespread strengthening of corporate governance standards for listed companies. The rules establish a stringent, more detailed...

CalCPA online bulks up professional resources.(WebFocus)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... CalCPA's website has updated and significantly expanded its Professional Resources section, adding Web pages concerning accounting, federal tax, California tax and regulatory issues, to name a few. Resources and links to relevant information...

Announcements.(Member Milestones)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... T. Michael Phillipson has been elected the new managing partner at West Covina-based Parke, Guptill & Company, LLP, CPAs... Jay J. Shapiro has been named CEO, president and treasurer of Los Angeles-based Hairmax International Corp.... Ken...

Firm news.(Member Milestones; accounting)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Robert Lovret has formed his own firm in Tustin specializing in forensic accounting, bankruptcy analysis and litigation support... Joel Framson has become a principal with Allied Consulting Group in Los Angeles.

Awards.(Member Milestones)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Nanette Miller of Stonefield Josephson received the Most Holy Redeemer AIDS Support Group's In-Kindness Award for outstanding service by an individual to the HIV/AIDS community. Miller was selected for her 18 years of community involvement,...

Accomplishments.(Member Milestones)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Vic Bucher of Davis was appointed to the five-member State Lottery Commission as its designated CPA... Campbell-based Kay Filler has been selected to serve a three-year term on the Technical Issues Committee of the AICPA's Private Companies...

Members in the news.(Member Milestones)
January 1, 2004... Arthur Perkins of San Francisco was quoted in an Oct. 10 article in the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal... Los Angeles-based David Nolte was quoted in an Oct. 11 article in the Los Angeles Times... An article written by Los...

Honeymoon's over: finances top list of concerns for state.(GovernmentRelations)
January 1, 2004... In his waning hours as governor, Gray Davis replaced two-term California Board of Accountancy member Michael Schneider with two new appointments--sole practitioner Olga Martinez, CPA and Ruben Davila, CPA, a USC professor of accounting with a...

Lessons learned: CPAs share tips on disaster recovery.(Certified Public Accountants)
January 1, 2004... ON OCT. 19, 1991, CPA Anna Maria Galdieri took a picture of her friend's children on their porch in the Oakland Hills. Galdieri and the children had just finished making Halloween costumes. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The next day, the...

Empowering Californians: financial literacy initiative tackles Californians' urge to spend.(Cover Story)
January 1, 2004... THE STATISTICS are downright staggering: [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * 40 percent of Americans say they live beyond their means. * One in four women retire on an income below the poverty level. * Outstanding non-secured consumer...

The future of peer review: it is a misconception that the CBA requires peer review.(PeerReview; California Board of Accountancy )
January 1, 2004... Peer review traditionally has been linked to AICPA membership. To maintain membership in the AICPA, an individual practicing public accounting must be enrolled in a practice monitoring program or be employed by a firm enrolled in such a...

A relationship to bank on: knowing your client's banker can help elevate your status as a financial adviser.(BankingRelationships; accounting)
January 1, 2004... How to make your banker your best friend or How to stop worrying and learn to love your bank. OK, perhaps the reference to Stanley Kubrick's 1964 black comedy "Dr. Strangelove Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" is a shade...

Goodbye stock options, hello common stock: companies are returning to the tried-and true grant of common stock.(TaxImplications)
January 1, 2004... As the memory of the technology boom fades, so does the once ubiquitous employee stock option. Large publicly traded corporations are no longer granting stock options to their employees for several reasons. First, many stock options are now...

E-file, e-file, e-file: requirements dominate IRS Liaison Meeting.(FederalTax; Internal Revenue Service)
January 1, 2004... E-filing issues made up the bulk of the discussion at the CalCPA Taxation Committee's annual IRS Liaison Meeting, held Nov. 12. Attendees discussed a range of issues, including possible regulation and certification of federal tax return...

Mind your manners: etiquette can go a long way toward getting results with the SEC.(SECCommunications)
January 1, 2004... Etiquette can go a long way toward getting results with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. You can reach more business goals when you work in cooperation with the SEC rather than take an adversarial approach. If you are a CFO or...

TaxTalk tips: repair vs. maintenance, "tax-free" distributions and more.(CaliforniaTax)
January 1, 2004... A common occurrence among partnerships that own appreciated property is refinancing the property, then distributing the proceeds to the partners. The question that occasionally has been posted on TaxTalk is whether or not anything special...