Mason Heads 2007-08 Slate
CalCPA's Nominations Committee has selected the following candidates for 2007-08 statewide leadership positions: Teresa Mason (San Francisco), chair; Gregory Burke (Sacramento), first vice chair; Andrea Cope (San Francisco), treasurer; Scott Hofferber (Inland Empire), vice chair; and Gregg Wind (Los Angeles), vice chair.
Marc G. Parkinson (San Jose) will serve as immediate past chair.
Council members-at-large nominees are: Mary Kay Foss (East Bay); Rick Rayson (Orange County/Long Beach); and Richard Simitian (Los Angeles).
Nominations for leadership positions also may be filed by a group of 100 or more members by close of business May 1, 2007, at CalCPA headquarters: 1235 Radio Road; Redwood City, CA 94065-1217.
For more information, consult the CalCPA bylaws at www.calcpa.org/members/committees/Bylaws.
CalCPA nominees for AICPA Council are Katherine Leonard (San Diego); John McWilliams (San Francisco); and Steven Wimmers (San Diego).
Phelan New Education Foundation Executive Director
The California CPA Education Foundation Board of Trustees has appointed Kay Phelan executive director. Phelan has more than 18 years of experience with the Foundation and has been serving as lead director since August. She replaces John Dunleavy, who retired in November 2006 after 27 years with CalCPA and the Foundation.
"I'm looking forward to leading the Foundation and working with the trustees," says Phelan. "While we will continue to focus on providing quality education to small and mid-size practitioners, look for significant changes in services targeted to on-site training programs, CPAs in business and industry, and young and emerging professionals, as well as ongoing development of alternate methods of CPE delivery."
CPA Day at the Capitol
The profession needs your help communicating with legislators in Sacramento–team up with CalCPA members to help legislators understand the issues facing California CPAs by participating in CPA Day at the Capitol Tuesday, May 29.
By attending CPA Day at the Capitol, you will make connections that will prove crucial in educating legislators–including 35 freshmen–on CPA issues before they vote, not to mention establishing meaningful relationships that ultimately will create a more favorable business environment for CPAs throughout California.
CPA Day at the Capitol begins with an issues briefing at 10 a.m. Then, armed with briefing materials and discussion points, you will be assigned to teams to meet with legislators. After a full day at the Capitol meeting with legislators, CPAs reconvene for a debriefing, finishing by 4 p.m.
Download a registration form at www.calcpa.org/ebulletinimages/legday.pdf.
New-Look CalCPA Classifieds
CalCPA.org classifieds' improved features allow you to optimize your ability to deliver your message by pinpointing location, category and other key search parameters.
What's more–we offer unlimited text at one low price. And, CalCPA members may post internship opportunities for free.
Check it out at www.calcpa.org/classifieds.
CalCPA Renewal
Renew your 2007Ð08 CalCPA membership, and you will be entered into a drawing for a FREE VP membership good through April 2008 courtesy of the California CPA Education Foundation.
Renew online today at www.calcpa.org/renew. For complete rules, go to www.calcpa.org/renewalvprules.
March 22–23: Business and Industry Conference
As a financial professional in industry, you won't want to miss this conference that covers many facets of business, including emerging trends in financial management, changes in compliance and reporting and human resource issues.
The conference will be held March 22 in Long Beach and March 23 in San Francisco.
Other conference topics include retirement benefits management, employee compensation, R&D tax credits and employee recruiting and retention.
Following the conference in San Francisco only, there will be a special session providing one hour of CPE: Unexpected Returns: Why Most Investors Will Fail Before 2010.
Find more information and register at www.educationfoundation.org/conferences/conferences.asp.
CalCPA's Freedman's Service Lauded
Mitchell Freedman, CPA/PFS, founder and president of Mitchell Freedman Accountancy Corporation and MFAC Financial Advisors, Inc., in Sherman Oaks, is the recipient of the AICPA's 2006 PFP Distinguished Service Award.
Freedman has been a member of the AICPA/CICA PrimePlus/ElderCare Task Force for the past 10 years, and also has served on the AICPA PFP Member Services Subcommittee and PFP Executive Committee. He was awarded this honor for his many years of service to the profession.
Freedman is an active CalCPA member, previously serving four terms on the CalCPA Council in addition to chairing CalCPAÕs Personal Financial Planning and Communications Advisory committees.
"Many years ago Phil Zimmerman, my mentor from New York, taught me that it is incumbent upon professionals to give back to their profession," Freedman says. "I have developed deep friendships and valuable resources as a direct result of my volunteer efforts. I truly feel that I have received more than I have given."
HR News
Amendment Provides Tax Breaks for Small Business
The Senate Finance Committee unanimously approved an amendment to H.R. 2, the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007, that creates tax breaks for small businesses that are intended to balance the cost of an increased minimum wage:
• One-year extension of increased small-business expensing under Sec. 179;
• Extension and expansion of the 15-year depreciation of leasehold improvements to include business owners that own their own stores;
• Increase the threshold (to $10 million) for businesses allowed to use the cash method of accounting; and
• Permanent extension of the work opportunity tax credit and expansion of the credit to include disabled veterans.
For more, visit www.senate.gov/~finance/sitepages/baucus.htm.
S.2, the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007, is identical to H.R. 2 and passed the Senate Feb. 1.
IRS News
April 17 is the New April 15
Federal and California taxpayers have two extra days to file and pay their 2006 income taxes. The extension was made because April 15 falls on a Sunday and the following day, Monday, April 16, is a legal holiday in the District of Columbia.
The April 17 deadline applies to 2006 state and federal income tax returns, whether filed electronically or on paper; 2006 balance due tax payments, whether made electronically (e-Pay, credit cards) or by check; individual estimated tax payments for the first quarter of 2007, made electronically or by check, and other provisions as detailed by the IRS in IR-2007-15.
Read more at www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=167194,00.html.
More information regarding state returns can be found at www.ftb.ca.gov.
Mistakes Abound on Telephone-Tax Refund Requests
Early tax returns show individuals are making basic mistakes when requesting the telephone excise tax refund, requesting excessive amounts, which the IRS will deny, and many are missing out altogether.
Get tips for requesting the telephone excise tax refund at www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=167425,00.html.
More information on the refund can be found at www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=164032,00.html.
Want to Make a Change to the IRS Process?
The IRS Stakeholder Liaison has established the Issue Management Resolution System to identify nationwide trends in the tax process that may call for changes to IRS processes and procedures.
Participate in the IMRS by calling (203) 781-3087 with your suggestions, or send an e-mail to Wendy.W.Campbell@irs.gov with a description of the issue.
New Distribution Provisions of the Pension Protection Act
The IRS has provided guidance on several Pension Protection Act rules relating to distributions from tax-qualified retirement plans. Among the issues addressed by the guidance:
• Interest rate assumptions for lump sum distributions;
• Hardship distributions from a 401(k) and similar plans;
• Early distributions from qualified plans to terminated public safety employees; and
• Rollovers from qualified plans to IRAs for non-spouse beneficiaries.
The notice also clarifies several issues concerning the provision permitting IRA owners age 70.5 or older to directly transfer tax-free, up to $100,000 per year to an eligible charity.
Download more info at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-07-07.pdf.
FASB News
FIN 48 Delay Rejected
FASB unanimously decided to move forward with the implementation of FIN 48, Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes, despite receiving approximately 400 requests for a one-year delay.
FIN 48 was created in June 2006 as a result of SEC concerns about the diverse practices in accounting for uncertain tax positions and the possibility of earnings management, given that taxes are part of the balance sheet and reported earnings.
Companies must comply with the accounting rule by the end of the first fiscal year beginning after Dec. 15, 2006.
For more information on FIN 48, visit http://thecaq.aicpa.org/Resources/Accounting/FASB+Interpretation+48.htm.
For more information on FASBÕs decision, visit www.fasb.org/board_meeting_minutes/board_meeting_minutes.shtml.
AICPA News
Broader GAPP Audience is Sought
To reach a broader business audience, the AICPA and the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants recently published Generally Accepted Privacy Principles (GAPP)–a Global Privacy Framework.
The resource was developed to help businesses address the challenges of managing privacy on a local, national or international level by referencing significant domestic and international privacy regulations.
The publication directly addresses marketplace trends, such as outsourcing and the growing international focus on privacy, and includes guidance on how businesses and other entities can use the document.
Download the resource at www.aicpa.org/privacy.
Find information on California privacy regulations at www.dca.ca.gov/cba/codes.htm.
Audits Performed Under Government Auditing Standards
SAS No. 112, Communicating Internal Control Related Matters Identified in an Audit, is effective for audits with years ended Dec. 31, 2006, or later.
Recently, the AICPA Audit and Attest team has been made aware that some practitioners are misunderstanding key concepts to SAS No. 112.
These misunderstandings are addressed in an Audit Risk Alert at www.cpa2biz.com/stores/sas112.
For an overview of SAS No. 112, visit www.aicpa.org/download/members/div/auditstd/AU-00325.PDF.
The AICPA has available reports on internal control that have been updated to reflect the impact of SAS No. 112 at http://gaqc.aicpa.org/. You will also find there an archived conference call on the impact of SAS 112 on Governmental Financial Audits.
PCAOB News
Auditors' Fraud Responsibilities
The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has issued a report that discusses auditors' implementation of PCAOB interim standards regarding the auditor's responsibility with respect to fraud.
The report addresses several topics, including:
• Auditor's overall approach to financial fraud detection;
• Required brainstorming sessions and fraud-related inquiries;
• Auditor's response to fraud risk factors;
• Financial statement misstatements; and
• Fraud associated with management override of controls.
Get the report at http://pcaobus.org/Inspections/Other/2007/01-22_Release_2007-001.pdf.
Technical News
Technical Implications of Daylight-saving Time Changes
Starting in 2007, daylight-saving time begins March 11 (rather than April 1) and ends Nov. 4 (rather than Oct. 28). While this is good news for those who enjoy the outdoors, it means reprogramming your computers.
Computer-system related issues that may affect individual consumers and businesses include calendar/scheduling applications, date/time calculations (current and historical), transaction logging and tariff billing applications, among others.
In many cases, making the necessary changes to accommodate the new daylight-saving time schedule will be relatively minor. Users may need to only manually adjust the time on their devices when the change occurs.
In other cases, more substantial efforts may be required, including updating systems and applications directly.
Resources to help you make any necessary adjustments can be found at www.calcpa.org/news/DST.
