Below please find daily updates pertaining to the latest in financial, business, and tax news:
IRS to Refund Tax Preparers for Canceled Certification Tests
Posted: Fri May 17 10:12:00 PDT 2013The IRS announced on May 16 that it's issuing refunds to tax return preparers who registered for certification tests that were canceled due to a court-ordered injunction in late March. Fees collected from tax preparers who tested on or after January 18, the date the tests were enjoined, are also being refunded....
Farewell, Lotus 1-2-3
Posted: Fri May 17 07:10:45 PDT 2013IBM recently announced that Lotus 1-2-3 will no longer be available for purchase. Most readers of this article will likely have one of two reactions: "What is Lotus 1-2-3?" or "Lotus 1-2-3 was still on the market?"...
Obama Names Daniel Werfel Acting IRS Commissioner
Posted: Thu May 16 14:02:14 PDT 2013The current controller of the US Office of Management and Budget has been appointed by President Obama as the new acting commissioner of the IRS, effective May 22. Daniel Werfel will take over the position vacated by Steven Miller, who resigned on May 15. ...
Are Mobile Devices Causing a Digital Divide in the Workplace?
Posted: Thu May 16 12:11:42 PDT 2013Each day when Bill Walter hops on the elevator in the building that houses his CPA firm, a majority of the people riding with him have their smartphones in hand ? checking e-mails or surfing the Internet ? before arriving at their particular floors....
Summer Construction: Rochester CPAs Ramp Up Fundraising to Build Habitat Home
Posted: Thu May 16 10:15:24 PDT 2013The CPA community in Rochester, New York, is channeling its naturally competitive spirit into a selfless cause this summer. They're trying to see who can raise the most money to break ground on a local Flower City Habitat for Humanity (FCHH) home....
California Keeps the Kings and Millions in Tax $$
Posted: Thu May 16 09:59:05 PDT 2013UPDATE: The battle with Seattle is over. For twenty-seven months, a group led by hedge fund manager Chris Hansen and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer have pursued the Sacramento Kings, hoping to move them north to become the Seattle SuperSonics. But on May 15, the NBA Board of Governors voted down the sale. ...
Crime Watch: May 16, 2013
Posted: Thu May 16 08:57:59 PDT 2013A man who perpetrated a million-dollar investment fraud from California that defrauded New Jersey victims was sentenced May 14 to forty-six months in prison for crimes related to the scheme, US Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced....
IRS Acting Commissioner Steven Miller Resigns Over Scandal
Posted: Thu May 16 05:59:46 PDT 2013Steven Miller, a twenty-five-year veteran of the IRS who has been the agency's acting commissioner since November 2012, resigned from his post on May 15, less than a week after the IRS admitted to and apologized for improperly scrutinizing the federal tax-exempt status of conservative groups....
Hewlett Packard Faces $1 Billion Lawsuit from Shareholders
Posted: Thu May 16 05:34:09 PDT 2013Hewlett Packard (HP) shareholders are suing the company for $1 billion over the "vastly overvalued" acquisition of the British software firm Autonomy. According to claims brought against the multinational, HP tried to pull out of its $11.1 billion takeover of Autonomy before the deal closed....
Tax Breaks for Film Producers Lure 'Star Wars' to United Kingdom
Posted: Wed May 15 13:50:32 PDT 2013It was recently announced that Walt Disney Company?owned Lucasfilm Ltd. is planning to shoot and produce the next Star Wars movie in the United Kingdom. Chancellor George Osborne said the announcement is "clear evidence" the country's film tax incentives are working....
