Blogging Beyond the Numbers

If you own an interest in a family-owned or other closely held business, a buy-sell agreement is a valuable document to have in place. These agreements specify whether — and under what circumstances — owners’ interests may be transferred. Buy-sell agreements should be planned and drafted carefully to ensure that they meet your expectations and don’t trigger unwanted tax consequences or conflicts wit...

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) liberalized the eligibility rules for using the cash method of accounting, making this method — which is simpler than the accrual method — available to more businesses. Now the IRS has provided procedures a small business taxpayer can use to obtain automatic consent to change its method of accounting under the TCJA. If you have the option to use either accounting method,...

For those of you keeping up with this landmark sales and use tax case, changes are happening fast and furious across the country.  Since the end of June when the Wayfair decision was handed down by the Supreme Court (confirming South Dakota is right to require out of state online retailers who have no physical presence in South Dakota to register and collect South Dakota sales and use taxes) at least 12 o...

There continues to be much uncertainty about the Affordable Care Act and how such uncertainty will impact health care costs. So it’s critical to leverage all tax-advantaged ways to fund these expenses, including HSAs, FSAs and HRAs. Here’s how to make sense of this alphabet soup of health care accounts. HSAs If you’re covered by a qualified high-deductible health plan (HDHP), you can contribute pre...

Here are some of the key tax-related deadlines affecting businesses and other employers during the third quarter of 2018. Keep in mind that this list isn’t all-inclusive, so there may be additional deadlines that apply to you. Contact us to ensure you’re meeting all applicable deadlines and to learn more about the filing requirements. July 31 Report income tax withholding and FICA taxes for second...

Question: What is the new Family and Medical Leave tax credit and how does it benefit my business? Answer: The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act recently introduced a new credit for employers who provide paid family and medical leave to their employees. Eligible employers can claim a general business credit equal to 12.5% to 25% of the wages paid to qualifying employees on paid leave. The credit is available for ...

It’s not uncommon for businesses to sometimes generate tax losses. But the losses that can be deducted are limited by tax law in some situations. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) further restricts the amount of losses that sole proprietors, partners, S corporation shareholders and, typically, limited liability company (LLC) members can currently deduct — beginning in 2018. This could negatively...

The Wisconsin Legislature recently passed a sales tax holiday for August 2018. What does this mean for the general consumer? A sales and use tax exemption is created for sales of certain items during a five-day period in August 2018. The temporary exemption period, referred to as a sales tax holiday, will begin at 12:01 AM on August 1, 2018, and continue through 11:59 PM on Sunday, August 5, 201...

In May 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606). Since then, there have also been several amendments to the ASU that provide clarification to the original guidance. The update will be effective for all nonpublic entities for reporting periods beginning January 1, 2019.  The core principle is that an entity should recognize revenue ba...

You may have breathed a sigh of relief after filing your 2017 income tax return (or requesting an extension). But if your office is strewn with reams of paper consisting of years’ worth of tax returns, receipts, canceled checks and other financial records (or your computer desktop is filled with a multitude of digital tax-related files), you probably want to get rid of what you can. Follow these re...