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Congress introduces AICPA-backed bill to ease tax extensions

May 23, 2023

A pair of lawmakers proposed bipartisan legislation to streamline the tax filing extension process.

  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

Biden, McCarthy meeting ends with no deal on debt ceiling

May 22, 2023

President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy could not reach an agreement Monday on how to raise the U.S. government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling with just 10 days before a possible default that could sink the U.S. economy, but vowed to keep talking.

  • advocacy - federal

Coalition Including CPAs Calls Attention to New Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting Requirements

May 22, 2023

The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) joined a coalition of organizations who have come together to make taxpayers and practitioners aware of the new Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirement. BOI is an anti-money laundering initiative enacted through the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) in 2021, which mandates that BOI information is reported to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

  • business and industry
  • practice management
  • advocacy - federal

Senators want IRS to stop AI-generated tax scams

May 03, 2023

A group of senators on both sides of the aisle is asking the Internal Revenue Service's new commissioner, Daniel Werfel, to warn taxpayers and tax professionals about the emerging threat of tax scams produced by artificial intelligence programs and chatbots like ChatGPT.

  • technology and cybersecurity
  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

Time to rebalance the TCJA for small biz

April 25, 2023

With some temporary provisions in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act approaching their sunset, members of Congress are considering extending or making them permanent — but Anne Zimmerman believes that the act was disproportionately beneficial to large corporations at the expense of small businesses.

  • business and industry
  • coronavirus
  • practice management
  • advocacy - federal

NASBA Extends CPA Exam Testing Window to 30 Months

April 24, 2023

In response to feedback submitted through the exposure draft, NASBA has announced that it will adopt an increased testing window of 30 months.

  • accounting and auditing
  • business and industry
  • career resources
  • practice management
  • advocacy - state
  • advocacy - federal

Senators press IRS chief on offering free tax prep

April 19, 2023

The Internal Revenue Service is still studying the feasibility of offering its own free online tax preparation system, and its new leader is not ready to say yet what it will recommend, but he promised it would be released next month.

  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

AICPA encouraged by IRS $80 billion strategic operating plan

April 13, 2023

The AICPA likes what it has seen so far in the IRS strategic operating plan for the $80 billion that Congress appropriated over 10 years as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, P.L. 117-169, although it still recommends that use of funds congressionally allocated to enforcement also be applied to training, customer service, and modernization, as part of enforcement efforts.

  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

AICPA wants changes in IRS rules for S corps

April 05, 2023

The American Institute of CPAs sent a list of recommendations to the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service asking them to clarify and expand some of their guidance on taxpayer assistance procedures and when S corporations don't need to ask for private letter rulings to keep their status.

  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

Restoring Exam credits expired during COVID would help address CPA shortage

March 08, 2023

The accounting profession is confronted with a talent shortage, and reinstating CPA exam credits that have expired since January 1, 2020, could have an immediate impact on our CPA pipeline.

  • career resources
  • advocacy - federal

AICPA makes 61 proposals to Congress for changes to the Internal Revenue Code

February 15, 2023

The AICPA has sent a list of 61 proposals for changes to the Internal Revenue Code to Congress, starting with a proposal that the definitions of terms be standardized so that words have the same meaning throughout the Code.

  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

NASBA upholds 150-hour education requirement for CPA licensure

February 10, 2023

Across the board, stakeholders charged with promoting and protecting the accounting profession are searching for solutions to a talent acquisition issue that isn't unique to the profession.

  • career resources
  • advocacy - federal

5 ERC Mistakes Employers Can't Afford to Make

February 07, 2023

Many myths and mistakes have hampered Employee Retention Credit calculations. Here are five errors businesses can’t afford to make.

  • business and industry
  • coronavirus
  • practice management
  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

Senate Democrats reintroduce bill to provide payroll tax credit to restaurants

January 24, 2023

Three Senate Democrats have reintroduced a bill aimed at providing payroll tax relief to businesses that applied for the Small Business Administration's Restaurant Revitalization Fund, but didn't receive a grant because the program ran out of money.

  • advocacy - federal

House Republicans plan vote to abolish IRS, replace income tax with consumption tax

January 12, 2023

The new Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, R-California, agreed as part of a deal with conservatives in the Freedom Caucus to win the speakership to allow a vote on a bill that would abolish the Internal Revenue Service and substitute a "Fair Tax" that would replace federal income taxes and other taxes with a national consumption tax administered by the states.

  • advocacy - federal

Melancon looks ahead to tax season challenges

January 11, 2023

American Institute of CPAs president and CEO Barry Melancon spoke Wednesday about changes at the Internal Revenue Service and Congress, the prospects for the upcoming tax season, the evolving CPA licensing model, recruiting young people to the profession and more during a wide-ranging presentation to the Accountants Club of America.

  • accounting and auditing
  • practice management
  • state tax
  • technology and cybersecurity
  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

House votes to strip IRS funds intended to catch tax cheats

January 10, 2023

The House voted to repeal billions of dollars of Internal Revenue Service funding that Democrats approved last year, an issue that is likely to crop up repeatedly this year.

  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax

IRS refunded $14.8B for unemployment compensation exclusion

January 06, 2023

The Internal Revenue Service said Friday it recently completed making final corrections to the tax year 2020 accounts for taxpayers who overpaid their taxes on unemployment compensation they received in 2020.

  • advocacy - federal

AICPA Unveils Blueprints for Redesigned CPA Exam

January 04, 2023

The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) released the updated Uniform CPA Examination® Blueprints, the official document of content eligible for assessment on the Exam. The Blueprints are based on the knowledge and skills required of a newly licensed CPA to meet the demands of firms, employers and clients.

  • business and industry
  • career resources
  • practice management
  • advocacy - federal

Omnibus spending package passes without tax extenders

December 23, 2022

The $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill that Congress passed Friday just in time for the end of the year contains a number of accounting and tax-related provisions, though it's missing the traditional set of tax extenders and some other much desired tax breaks.

  • advocacy - federal
  • federal tax