The National Public Accountant

The IRS has begun a major restructuring initiative that will lead to the replacement of its existing geographically organized structure with a system that divides the IRS into four operating divisions that can handle particular taxpayer groups. Once the restructuring is completed, the IRS will have four units: the Wage and Investment Income Operating Division in Atlanta, GA; the Small Business and Self-Employed Operating Division in Washington, DC; the Large and Mid-Size Business Operating Di...

Alternatives to business valuation rules of thumb for small businesses.

Rules of thumb techniques are traditionally used for valuing small and mid-sized businesses. These techniques, however, can be problematic in many cases since the rules may vary depending on location and time. A better alternative would be to use proprietary databases that contain information on sales and purchases. These databases can be combined with information given by owners on the competitive position of the subject business to generate a range of business values that is often more accu...

A to Z: everything you wanted to know about NSA's continuing professional education.

National Society of Accountants The National Society of Accountants (NSA) requires all active members to comply with its continuing professional education (CPE) regulations as a prerequisite for maintaining membership. Compliance is monitored annually and triannually, with members being reminded to document their participation in accredited CPE programs when they pay their annual dues. Members, however, are not required to send proof of compliance unless they are among those who are selected for a random audit. Various aspe...

Peer review: an annual process.

Peer review program of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) maintains a peer review program designed to ensure that its members uphold the high standards of the profession. The peer review program was launched in Jan 1988 and is required for all AICPA members involved with the auditing and accounting of financial statements. Accounting firms covered by the program are required to comply with all practice monitoring procedures. In the first two years, in-house inspection of quality control ...

Why should I pursue accreditation?

Accountants The Accreditation Council for Accountancy and Taxation (ACAT) is an independent, non-profit organization that confers credentials to accounting professionals involved in the provision of financial, accounting and taxation services to individuals and to small to mid-sized business enterprises. The ACAT confers three professional designations: the Accredited in Accountancy/Accredited Business Accountant (ABA) credential, the Accredited Tax Preparer (ATP) credential and the Accredited Tax Adviso...

NSA's role in growth and development.

National Society of Accountants National Society of Accountants (NSA) aims to provide quality continuing professional education (CPE) programs to its members. The NSA's programs cover both accounting and non-accounting subjects and can be accessed by members in several ways. CPE credits can be obtained through seminars and meetings as well as through the use of audio-visual training programs. Internet and CD-ROM sessions can also be used to obtain CPE units. Details of the CPE program can be obtained through the NSA's state...

Considering the risk of fraud: understanding the auditor's new requirements.

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) has released a new guideline to help CPAs who wish to detect potentially fraudulent activities. Known as SAS No 82, the new guideline can be used by CPAs in performing audits and should help them uphold the public's interests by ensuring that financial statements are free of misstatements. The application of the provisions of SAS No 82 is illustrated in the context of several fraud risk factors. Potential pitfalls that auditors mi...

The accountant as a management consultant.

Accountants are often asked to serve as management advisers to client companies. To be able to act as responsible advisers, accountants need to be thoroughly versed in matters such as profit analysis, risk assessment, performance evaluation and corporate productivity. When serving as consultants to their clients, accountants would have to be knowledgeable too about quantitative and non-quantitative measures of performance such as contribution margin analysis, break-even evaluation, revenue an...

Financial status audits under the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998.

The IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 states that the IRS cannot conduct a financial status audit unless there is a reasonable indication that a taxpayer has unreported income. To determine if there is a reasonable indication of unreported income, the IRS can utilize a variety of internal and external means. Internal means would include matters such as property sold, interest income, dividend income, gross receipts and wages. External means would include the use of information from age...

NSA's scholarship program expanding access to the accounting profession.

National Society of Accountants The National Society of Accountants (NSA) awards over 40 scholarships annually to deserving students taking up accounting at the undergraduate level. To qualify for the NSA's scholarship program, applicants must be US or Canadian citizens enrolled at an American school with a 'B' or better grade point average. Applications must be accompanied by an appraisal form completed by a professor at the applicant's school. In lieu of this, the appraisal form may be completed by the head of the school'...

Client report.

Tax return preparation The task of collating records for the purpose of preparing tax returns tends to be tedious. However, the time spent on gathering pertinent information is time spent wisely since good record-keeping will help taxpayers should audits be conducted in the future. Documents that should be properly filed include receipts, sales slips and invoices. W-2 forms for wage compensation and Forms 1099 for independent contracting work are particularly important. Records of basis in property, documents, will...