SED Issues Proposed Quality Review Regulations
The New York State Education Department has issued the proposed regulations that, if approved, will implement the quality review provisions of the accounting reform law, and would go into effect Jan. 1, 2012. These regulations are now open to public comment. The public has until Sept. 11, 2010 to respond to these proposed regulations.
SEC Exempts Self from Public Records Requests
The passage of the new Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act has given the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) an expanded role in the regulation of the nation’s financial sector, with new powers and abilities that include overseeing the creation of 95 new rulemaking procedures, more than any other federal agency.
SEC Seeks Public Comments on Rules
In accordance with the requirements of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that was recently signed into law, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it is making it easier for the public to provide comments as the agency sets out to make rules and amendments.
Governor Paterson Hints at Job Cuts
Despite promising state workers last year that there would be no layoffs, Governor David A. Paterson stated on Monday that times have changed since then and that New York may have to cut jobs anyway, buttressing earlier statements made by state budget director Robert Megna last week on the same topic.
Form 990 Deadline Extended
Small non-profits at risk of losing their tax-exempt status because they failed to file required returns for 2007, 2008 and 2009 by May 17 have gotten a reprieve from the IRS.
NYSSCPA Website is Back After Daylong Network Outage
The NYSSCPA website is back online after its servers were downed by a daylong network outage. Tecommunications company Verizon told the Wall Street Journal that the outage was a result of equipment failure caused by recent storms. AT&T service in a limited area in east midtown was also affected.
As of approximately 4:30 p.m., the issue appears to have been resolved.
Report: Near All of NY Tax Dept. Contracts Went to IT or Banking
A recently released report from New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli shows that the majority of the contracts made by state Department of Taxation and Finance went towards banking or information technology services. Auditors examining the department’s 81 contracts for personal and miscellaneous services found that more than 98 percent of them were devoted to either banking or information technology needs. The contracts, put together, totaled about $563 million.
IRS Proposes Application Fees for Preparer Tax Identification Numbers
The IRS today released proposed regulations for establishing a fee of $50 for individuals who apply for a preparer tax identification number (PTIN). Certain tax preparers would be required to obtain a PTIN, according to the IRS.
NYT: House Panel Finds Rangel Violated Ethics Rules
A House investigative panel has concluded that Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.) violated a range of ethics rules, after a two-year investigation, according to the New York Times.
The investigative panel did not disclose to the Times any details about the nature of the violations that it found, but one House official who has been briefed on the findings told the paper that they included some of the most serious allegations that had been examined.
Ratings Agencies: Please Don’t Cite Us
Selling some bonds and need a rating to go with them? In the past, organizations like Moody’s, Fitch and Standard and Poor’s would have said “no problem!” Now that the financial reform law has been signed into law, however, these three agencies, the biggest in the country, are telling sellers to look somewhere else, at least for the time being.


