News Updates

KPMG’s statement cited the time of and cost of the 150-hour rule as one of the top barriers that lead students to opt against becoming accounting majors, noting that they are already seeing the related shortage of accountants impact businesses and smaller firms.

Calling all CPAs — if you have been licensed for at least three years and have supervised newly licensed CPAs during the past year, you can volunteer to participate in an online survey and virtual focus group to provide feedback on the CPA Competency-Based Experience Pathway.

Mark Koziel, CPA, CGMA, has been named as the next CEO for the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. Koziel will begin the role in January 2025. He currently leads Allinial Global, an association of independent accounting and advisory firms with $6 billion in collective revenue.

The Nebraska Department of Revenue, Property Assessment Division, has posted the 2024 Legislative Changes.

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration estimated that a change in policy for pre-refund examinations resulted in $2 billion being paid for erroneous employee retention credit claims.

Wire transfer fraud, typically perpetrated via business email compromise, is a known risk to all types of businesses, including CPA firms. When a CPA firm handles client money, additional risk ensues.

The special per diem rates that a taxpayer uses in travel and business expenses will be higher starting Oct. 1, as provided by the IRS.

During the recent Special Session, the Nebraska Legislature passed LB34, which adopts the Property Tax Growth Limitation Act and the School District Property Tax Relief Act and changes provisions relating to revenue and taxation. The bill was signed by Gov. Jim Pillen on August 20, 2024.

The Mercatus Center of George Mason University has released its 2024 edition of “Snapshots of State Regulations.” As with most rating systems, this allows states to compare themselves to other states and examine particular strengths and weaknesses in their systems. These strengths and weaknesses explain good and bad rankings and provide focus areas for continued work or improvement.

The Court held that the APA requires courts to exercise their independent judgment in deciding whether an agency has acted within its statutory authority and not to defer to an agency’s interpretation of the law simply because a statute is ambiguous.

EY just released an updated U.S. Employment Tax Rates and Limits for 2024. Download the document for future reference.

Calls for reform have been growing louder as the number of US students taking accounting courses and going on to sit professional exams has fallen, leaving some accounting firms struggling to hire replacements for the Baby Boomers who are retiring.

The plan calls for more support for CPA exam candidates, retooling introductory university accounting courses to attract more students, and building awareness of accounting careers among underrepresented groups. It also urges accountants to take a “pipeline pledge,” committing to lend their time to encourage students and tell new accountants about how they’ve built fulfilling careers.

Now is the time to talk with high-net-worth clients about using the temporarily doubled estate and gift tax exclusion before its sunset in 2026.

No New Taxes Nebraska, a coalition of more than 40 businesses and organizations, has developed a webpage to provide information on the proposed EPIC tax. EPIC tax is a proposed ballot initiative that would eliminate property and individual and corporate income taxes and implement a proposed statewide consumption tax of 7.5%. However, a recent study found that the plan could require a much higher rate of tax of 20% or more to sustainably fund the state’s government services. Additionally, the initiative will take local budget and spending control away from local political subdivisions and place it into the hands of the Nebraska Legislature.

Explore GenAI and the specific opportunities and risks that accounting and finance professionals should consider when building an AI strategy in this toolkit that was recognized by Accounting Today as a 2024 Top New Product.

In 2017, Congress passed a permanent reduction to the corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21% as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. To ensure that pass-through businesses like sole proprietorships, partnerships, and S corporations (i.e., the overwhelming majority of small businesses) weren’t put at a tax disadvantage relative to C corporations, Congress created a new 20% deduction for qualified business income. This deduction is codified at section 199A of the Internal Revenue Code. Unlike the permanent reduction for C corporations, however, the 20% deduction for pass-through businesses is scheduled to expire at the end of 2025.

Instead of relying on tax shifts and promises of a quick fix, local property tax relief is best solved by the disciplined actions of locally elected officials under the informed and watchful eye of the local taxpayer and property owner, says former State Senator Jim Smith of the Platte Institute.

The new comprehensive digital booklet provides students and CPA candidates with the latest guidance on the CPA Exam and licensure requirements, career pathways, study options, and in-depth information they need to start their journey toward becoming a CPA.

The artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT has become so popular that its free service is sometimes at capacity. Here is a closer look at ChatGPT and a list of alternative AI chatbots, as well as their strengths and weaknesses.