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Displaying: Surgent Tax & Accounting Blog

Staffing Cutbacks Lead to Unpaid Taxes by Millionaires

With tax season coming to a close, millions of dollars are going unpaid in Texas. Taxpayers owing $100,000-$999,000 in unpaid taxes are going unnoticed due to the short-staffing in revenue agents, revenue officers and criminal investigators. Five thousand fewer positions that go after the millionaire tax cheats have been dissolved in the state, leaving 1,000 […]

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Last Minute Tax Season Considerations

President Obama’s 2015 budget proposal includes several items that would affect how individuals are taxed. As you’re preparing last minute taxes for individuals and families this season, take just two minutes out of your day to get ready for questions from your clients about these proposed changes.   Under the proposed budget, the following changes […]

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Who Are You?

“Who are you?” said the Caterpillar.                       — Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland   “Who are you?” is an often-asked question.  We may hear it from philosophers, psychiatrists, psychologists, social scientists, Homeland Security, the FBI, the CIA, the NSA, and practitioners.  But we will let them tend their gardens while we tend ours.  A related question […]

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5 April CPE Courses You Can’t Miss

This year, we’re offering hundreds of webinars and self study CPE courses to help you fulfill all your continuing education requirements. Check out a few of our most popular courses being offered in April. Surgent’s Ethical Considerations for the CPA (ETHC) Date: April 2 from 1:30p.m.-5:00 p.m. EDT  Credits: 4 Presenter: Jay Glannantonio, MBA, MS, […]

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Five Tips to Get the Most Out of Your CPE Courses

Studying may be one of your least favorite tasks, but having effective study habits is the key to getting the most out of your continuing professional education courses. Check out these five tips to help you effectively retain important information from your CPE classes.   Nix multitasking   As much as we all would like […]

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Four Tips to Fit CPE Into Your Busy Schedule

Fitting continuing professional education requirements into your already jam-packed schedule with clients can be a challenge. Luckily, there are a few easy ways you can fit your CPE courses in your already busy schedule without bogging down your day. Spread it out  Avoid the last-minute crunch to meet your CPE deadlines and schedule them out […]

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The Vocabulary Lesson

Written by Guy Schmitz J.D., LL.M.   The Code is comprised of over 3.8 million words.  A sequence of some of these words gives us bright line tests:  a 3-year statute of limitations (generally) for income tax returns; a 90-day letter from the IRS, which is the ticket to the Tax Court—if that ticket is […]

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Tag! You’re It: Transferee Liability under the Internal Revenue Code

Written by Guy Schmitz J.D., LL.M. Clients know little or nothing about transferee liability.  If the need arises, it’s your job to give them advice about transferee liability, assumedly not the kind of advice the taxpayers got in Feldman, et al. v. Comm., 115 AFTR 2d 2015-xxxx (7th Cir. 2015).   Feldman The Facts:  William […]

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Why Going Concern Disclosures Matter Now

Even though the new FASB rule ASU 2014-15 isn’t effective until December 15, 2016, some types of going concern disclosures are relevant now. Even if financial statements are not audited, the basic fair presentation principles require complete and informative disclosures–including any significant uncertainties. Providing useful information to enable financial statement users to make informed economic […]

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