California CPA articles from March 2005

California CPA archives from March 2005

Yahng leads 2005-06 candidate slate.(CalCPA NEWS)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... CalCPA's Nominations and Leadership Development Committee has selected the following slate of candidates for 2005-06 statewide leadership positions: Christopher Yahng (East Bay), chair; Marc Parkinson, (Silicon Valley San Jose), first vice...

New CalCPA radio ad promotes California CPAs.(CalCPA NEWS)(California Society of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... A new CalCPA radio spot recently hit the air in the Fresno, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco Bay Area markets. The 60-second ad features a testimonial from John Oswald, CEO of Paul Frank Industries, referring to CPAs as...

Occupational fraud on the rise.(CalCPA NEWS)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
March 1, 2005... Despite increasing regulatory oversight, occupational fraud continues to flourish, according to the 2004 Report to the Nation on Occupational Fraud & Abuse. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] TOTAL LOSSES 2004 $660 billion 2002...

CalCPA's new auditor.(CalCPA NEWS)(Macias Gini & Company LLP)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Macias Gini & Company LLP will provide audit and tax services for CalCPA, the California CPA Education Foundation and CalCPA Institute beginning with the year ending April 30, 2005, and for the four subsequent years.

IRS, FTB liaison meeting Q&A available.(CalCPA NEWS)
March 1, 2005... Print versions of the 2004 Committee on Taxation's Q&A with the IRS and FTB are available for a limited time. Send your request, along with a $10 check payable to CalCPA, by April 30 to: Cindy Kuhlman; CalCPA; 1201 K St., Suite 1000;...

Committee on Taxation can help get your questions answered.(CalCPA NEWS)(California Society of Certified Public Accountants)(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Have a nagging question for the IRS or FTB? Well, fire away! CalCPA's Committee on Taxation is accepting questions for its fall 2005 tax liaison meetings. You also can pose questions to the Employment Development Department and Board of...

Education Foundation seeks Nominations.(EDUCATION FOUNDATION NEWS)
March 1, 2005... The California CPA Education Foundation's Nomination and Leadership Development Committee is accepting applications for trustees through Thursday, April 21. Information and applications are being mailed by request only. [ILLUSTRATION...

New website for PFP community.(AICPA NEWS)(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... The AICPA has introduced an online financial planning resource offering CPAs tools and educational materials on various financial planning practice areas, from disaster recovery and investment planning to ethics and fiduciary responsibility....

Information security top tech concern for 2005.(Tech Update)(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Information security and the paperless office are the nation's top technology concerns, according to the AICPA's annual Technology Survey. Information security held the No. 1 spot for the third consecutive year, followed by electronic...

New ethics rules: Circular 230 amended.(IRS UPDATE)(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... The Treasury Department and IRS have amended Circular 230, which outlines ethical behavior for tax professionals, to curb abusive tax avoidance transactions. The final regulations provide best practices for all tax advisers; mandatory...

Final rules for 401(k) plans.(IRS UPDATE)(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... New 401(k) plan regulations from the Treasury Department and IRS update and simplify many current rules. The regulations are effective for plan years beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2006, although employers can use the new rules for any plan...

IRS liberalizes interest suspension rule.(IRS UPDATE)(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... IRS Revenue Ruling 2005-4 liberalizes the rule for interest owed on additional taxes voluntarily reported by taxpayers. An existing regulation suspends interest accrual for individuals on taxes due if the IRS does not notify a taxpayer of...

Mandatory e-filing for some corps, exempt organizations.(IRS UPDATE)(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... The IRS will require certain large corporations and tax-exempt organizations to e-file their income tax or annual information returns beginning in 2006. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] For tax year 2005 returns due in 2006, the regulations...

New penalties on potentially abusive transactions.(IRS UPDATE)(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... The Treasury Department and IRS issued interim guidance on two new penalty provisions enacted as part of the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004. Notice 2005-11 deals with the new penalty for the failure to disclose information about...

FTB: form changes for real estate sales.(FTB NEWS)(Franchise Tax Board)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Tax professionals should be aware that the FTB has made changes to the forms for real estate sales closing on or after Jan. 1, 2005. Forms 593-C and 593-L have been expanded to include non-individuals, and Form 593-W has been eliminated....

Specialized tax service fees announced.(FTB NEWS)(Franchise Tax Board)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... The FTB has rolled out its fees for specialized services--including the installment payment program and tax-exempt status requests--for Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2005. For more, visit www.ftb.ca.gov/law/notices/2004/2004_9.pdf.

Final statement: accounting for Share-Based Payment.(FASB NEWS)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... FASB Statement No. 123 (revised 2004), Share-Based Payment, requires the compensation cost relating to stock option payment transactions be recognized in financial statements. The statement is the result of a two-year effort to improve the...

Contributions to cost-sharing pension, OPEB plans.(GASB NEWS)(Other Post Employment Benefits)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... The Governmental Accounting Standards Board has published a staff Technical Bulletin clarifying the application of requirements regarding accounting for employers' contractually required contributions to cost-sharing pension and OPEB plans. ...

COSO working on SOX guidance for small biz.(COSO NEWS)(Committee of Sponsoring Organizations )(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... To aid smaller publicly traded businesses with internal controls compliance, the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations said that it would offer online guidance for internal controls assessment by summer. To learn more, visit www.coso.org.

Advocate's report to Congress available.(TAXPAYER ADVOCATE)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson recently said the complexity of the Internal Revenue Code is the most serious problem facing taxpayers and the IRS. In her annual report to Congress, Olson cites the alternative minimum tax, the...

More than just business.(Speak Out)
March 1, 2005... When a CPA introduces someone as their partner everyone assumes that it is a business relationship and nothing more. Well, Larry Becker and I have been business partners for more than 20 years and our partnership goes way beyond just business....

Double tax of dividends.(Speak Out)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... In reading William McNairn's letter "Double taxation of dividends?" (California CPA, December 2004), I feel that he is ignoring the substance over form in what he calls a "figment of conventional wisdom." Sure, it's easy to say that a...

In memoriam.(News & Trends)(Barbara Henderson, a CalCPA board member from 1984-86, died Nov. 28.)(Brief Article)(Obituary)
March 1, 2005... BARBARA HENDERSON, a CalCPA board member from 1984-86, died Nov. 28. She was 67. During her 35 years of public service, she served as director of finance and city treasurer for the city of Fullerton, finance director for the city of Irvine...

Join a state committee.(APPLICATION DEADLINE: MAY 1)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... CalCPA state committees address issues that affect every aspect of the profession and influence the direction of CalCPA and the profession. So don't delay, sign up today to join a state committee. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Serving on a...

Record number of restatements in 2004.(SURVEY SAYS)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Amended filings for financial restatements of public companies rose to a record 414 in 2004, up 28 percent from the previous year, according to Huron Consulting Group's 2004 Annual Review of Financial Reporting Matters. [ILLUSTRATION...

Identity theft more prevalent offline than on.(SURVEY SAYS)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Despite growing fears about information security and the Internet, the Better Business Bureau says more identity theft occurs offline. A lost or stolen wallet or checkbook is the most frequently reported source of information used to commit...

More CPAs becoming financial planners.(SURVEY SAYS)(Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... By 2006, almost 40 percent of all CPA firms will offer financial planning services, up from only 14 percent in 2002, according to a report by Tiburon Strategic Advisors. Of the nation's roughly 450,000 CPAs, almost 20 percent (or 90,000)...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
March 1, 2005... The Federal Tax column, "IRS Talks Enforcement," (California CPA, January/February 2005), incorrectly identified IRS Commissioner Mark Everson as Mark Emerson.

Interpretation 101-3 breaking news.(PRACTICE ALERT!)
March 1, 2005... The AICPA's Professional Ethics Executive Committee recently adopted revisions to Interpretation 101-3--Performance of Nonattest Services to provide clarification on the applicability and intent of the rule and ensure its continued...

Announcements.(member milestones)
March 1, 2005... Gale Moore has joined the Orange County office of Singer Lewak Greenbaum & Goldstein, LLP as partner and member of the firm's SEC Practice Group... Thomas O'Brien recently joined Palm Desert-based Godecke Clark CPAs... A. Christine Davis and...

Accomplishments.(member milestones)(Joe Galligan; Shari L. Freidenrich; Leonard Williams; Michael Stewart)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Joe Galligan, from Galligan, Thompson & Flocas LLP, was elected mayor of Burlingame and to the Transportation Authority of San Mateo County... Shari L. Freidenrich was re-elected Huntington Beach city treasurer and elected to the board of...

Awards.(member milestones)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Dennis Young, principal managing director of the Silicon Valley office of American Express Tax and Business Services, was named 2004 "Affiliate Member of the Year" by the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors... Laguna Hills-based Blytheco,...

Firm news.(member milestones)(Patrick, Buzarellos, Pregent, LLP )(Collins & Mason, CPAs )(Windes & McClaughry Accountancy Corporation )(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Sacramento-based Patrick, Buzarellos, Pregent, LLP celebrated its 15-year anniversary in October... Collins & Mason, CPAs has merged with Cote & Company, APC to create Oakland-based Collins, Mason & Cote, LLP... Long Beach-based Windes &...

Members in the news.(member milestones)
March 1, 2005... The Dec. 18 Fresno Bee quoted Joanne Riester... The Dec. 20 San Fernando Valley Business Journal profiled Mel Kohn... Andrew Armanino was quoted in a Dec. 21 article on WebCPA... The Dec. 24 Dixon Tribune quoted Mary Kay Foss about tax...

(Un)intended consequences? California's 2005 tax amnesty program.
March 1, 2005... While most associate "amnesty" with the idea of sanctuary, the word derives from the Greek root for "amnesia," a forgetting. For taxpayers who owe state taxes, California is willing to forgive and forget through its own sanctuary: the 2005 tax...

Achilles' heel: management override of internal controls a weak link in fraud prevention.(FRAUD PREVENTION)
March 1, 2005... ControlCo.'s audit committee chair was stunned when the company's counsel informed him that the prior year's revenue and earnings may have been overstated. "How could that happen?," the audit committee chair asks. "We have good internal...

Fighting back: CPAs on the lookout for Elder Abuse.(ELDER CARE)
March 1, 2005... In 2000, more than 10 percent of the population in California was over the age of 65. And that percentage is expected to grow significantly during the coming decades as Baby Boomers enter their golden years. As many seniors choose to...

Office closed: if CBA is eliminated, bureaucrats would regulate profession.(government relations)(California Board of Accountancy)
March 1, 2005... In a surprise move, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's reorganization plan No. 1 proposes to eliminate the California Board of Accountancy--along with almost 100 other boards, including all the health care licensing boards. Under this proposal,...

The new measure: the new 2005 peer review requirements are here.(PEER REVIEW)
March 1, 2005... Organizations must redefine themselves constantly to remain successful, always assessing product development and obsolescence, customer comments and the general business environment. The same premise applies to the AICPA Peer Review...

Buyers and sellers: tax strategies for buying and selling businesses.(BUSINESS STRATEGIES)
March 1, 2005... Among its many provisions, the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 reduces the tax costs of selling a business. CPAs can maximize the tax benefits for their clients through careful tax structuring of the selling entity;...

Trusty trustees: what every trustee should know about California law.(ESTATE PLANNING)
March 1, 2005... The rules governing a trustee's duties are primarily set forth in the trust instrument, but CPAs who serve as trustees for clients also should be aware that California law plays a major role in the governance of the trustee. California law...

Consumer's choice: is a health savings account plan right for you?(HEALTH INSURANCE)
March 1, 2005... As health insurance costs continue to rise, health savings accounts may help bring those rates down to earth. HSAs--tax-free savings accounts paired with high-deductible health plans--allow consumers to store money and spend it directly on...

Slam the scams: guarding your clients against trust mills and annuity scams.(estate planning)
March 1, 2005... Sales agents claiming to be "estate planning experts" are selling trusts and annuities and victimizing consumers, particularly senior citizens. While the specifics of these enterprises vary, these scams generally have two main objectives:...

Like-kind home exchanges: IRS allows both exclusion and deferral of gains.(federal tax)
March 1, 2005... Rev. Proc. 2005-4 (IRB 2005-7, Feb. 14, 2005) clarifies that homeowners, who may exclude gain from a sale or exchange of their principal residence, also may defer gain from a like-kind exchange of the same property. Background ...