• Nonprofits: Heed these financial danger signs

    Many not-for-profits are just starting to emerge from one of the most challenging environments in recent memory due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even if your organization is in good shape, don’t get too comfortable. Financial obstacles can appear at any time and you need to be vigilant about acting on certain warning signs. Consider the following. Budget variances Once your board has signed off on [...]

    Published On: April 2, 2021Categories: Featured, Not for Profit
  • How to ensure life insurance isn’t part of your taxable estate

    If you have a life insurance policy, you may want to ensure that the benefits your family will receive after your death won’t be included in your estate. That way, the benefits won’t be subject to federal estate tax. Current exemption amounts For 2021, the federal estate and gift tax exemption is $11.7 million ($23.4 million for married couples). That’s generous by historical standards but [...]

    Published On: April 1, 2021Categories: Featured, Individual Tax
  • 4 ways to improve the effectiveness of your audit committee

    Audit committees face many challenges in 2021. As the economy rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic, there are new dimensions to the oversight roles and responsibilities of the audit committees. Consider taking these following four steps to fortify your committee’s effectiveness. 1. Focus on fundamentals Once you’ve wrapped up the financial reporting process for fiscal year 2020, take the time to revisit goals and expectations to [...]

    Published On: March 31, 2021Categories: Business, Featured
  • Whistleblower policies protect both staffers and your nonprofit

    According to the Nonprofit Times, only 41% of not-for-profits have whistleblower policies. Perhaps nonprofit leaders believe their organizations are too small or collegial to worry about illicit activities — let alone people reporting them. Or perhaps a whistleblower policy seems like one more thing that requires time and money they don’t have. This is a mistake. Here’s why. Why you should bother No federal law [...]

    Published On: March 30, 2021Categories: Featured, Not for Profit
  • Is an S corporation the best choice of entity for your business?

    Are you thinking about launching a business with some partners and wondering what type of entity to form? An S corporation may be the most suitable form of business for your new venture. Here’s an explanation of the reasons why. The biggest advantage of an S corporation over a partnership is that as S corporation shareholders, you won’t be personally liable for corporate debts. In [...]

    Published On: March 28, 2021Categories: Featured, Small Business Tax
  • New law tax break may make child care less expensive

    The new American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) provides eligible families with an enhanced child and dependent care credit for 2021. This is the credit available for expenses a taxpayer pays for the care of qualifying children under the age of 13 so that the taxpayer can be gainfully employed. Note that a credit reduces your tax bill dollar for dollar. Who qualifies? For care to [...]

    Published On: March 27, 2021Categories: Featured, Individual Tax
  • How auditors assess cyber risks

    Data security is a critical part of the audit risk assessment. If your financial statements are audited, your audit team will tailor their procedures to answer critical questions about cyber risks and the effectiveness of your internal controls. While conducting fieldwork, they’ll assess how your practices measure up and whether your company has weaknesses that may require additional inquiry, testing and disclosure. Is cybersecurity a [...]

    Published On: March 25, 2021Categories: Business, Featured
  • Business highlights in the new American Rescue Plan Act

    President Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) on March 11. While the new law is best known for the provisions providing relief to individuals, there are also several tax breaks and financial benefits for businesses. Here are some of the tax highlights of the ARPA. The Employee Retention Credit (ERC). This valuable tax credit is extended from June 30 until December 31, 2021. [...]

    Published On: March 20, 2021Categories: Featured, Small Business Tax
  • Launching a small business? Here are some tax considerations

    While many businesses have been forced to close due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some entrepreneurs have started new small businesses. Many of these people start out operating as sole proprietors. Here are some tax rules and considerations involved in operating with that entity. The pass-through deduction To the extent your business generates qualified business income (QBI), you’re eligible to claim the pass-through or QBI deduction, [...]

    Published On: March 19, 2021Categories: Featured, Small Business Tax
  • Nonprofits: Hit your targets with benchmarking

    How committed is your not-for-profit organization to benchmarking? Perhaps you think it makes sense in the for-profit sphere, but not as much for charities and other nonprofits. If so, you’re probably missing out on benefits — including long-term sustainability. Here’s how to overcome reluctance and learn to love benchmarking. True impact Even if your staff and board believe benchmarking fails to capture the true impact [...]

    Published On: March 19, 2021Categories: Featured, Not for Profit
  • New legislation proposes to help “rescue” nonprofits

    No one needs to tell nonprofit organizations how tough the past year has been. According to the John Hopkins Center for Civil Society Studies, 7.7% of not-for-profit workers — nearly one million people — lost their jobs between February 2020 and January 2021. An even higher percentage of arts and education organizations lost jobs last year. Although the nonprofit sector received higher-than-usual donations in 2020, [...]

    Published On: March 18, 2021Categories: Featured, Not for Profit
  • New law: Parents and other eligible Americans to receive direct payments

    The American Rescue Plan Act, signed into law on March 11, provides a variety of tax and financial relief to help mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the many initiatives are direct payments that will be made to eligible individuals. And parents under certain income thresholds will also receive additional payments in the coming months through a greatly revised Child Tax Credit. Here [...]

    Published On: March 18, 2021Categories: Featured, Individual Tax
  • Making sense of your statement of cash flows

    The statement of cash flows essentially tells you about cash entering and leaving a business. It’s arguably the most misunderstood and underappreciated part of a company’s annual report. After all, a business that reports positive net income on its income statements sometimes doesn’t have enough cash in the bank to pay its bills. Reviewing the statement of cash flows can provide significant insight into a [...]

    Published On: March 17, 2021Categories: Business, Featured
  • Work Opportunity Tax Credit extended through 2025

    Are you a business owner thinking about hiring? Be aware that a recent law extended a credit for hiring individuals from one or more targeted groups. Employers can qualify for a tax credit known as the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) that’s worth as much as $2,400 for each eligible employee ($4,800, $5,600 and $9,600 for certain veterans and $9,000 for “long-term family assistance recipients”). [...]

    Published On: March 15, 2021Categories: Featured, Small Business Tax