July 2009
US, Switzerland Hammer Out Deal on Secret Bank Accounts
Swiss banking giant UBS has reached a tentative agreement with the U.S. government regarding a tax dispute that, until now, had the pair locked into a legal and diplomatic brouhaha since early this year. The deal, the finer details of which are not yet public, could hold significant tax implications for the more than 52,000 Americans who hold accounts with the secretive Swiss bank.
Save Money with the Lottery!
It’s said by some that the lottery (no, not that lottery) is a tax on people who never took statistics, as the odds of winning anything reasonably close to a jackpot are slim enough to be measured in picometers (seriously – see for yourself).
N.Y. State CPA Licensing Registration Web Site to Be Offline This Weekend
Due to Web site maintanence, CPAs looking to comply with the new state accountancy reform law will not be able to register or re-register online at the State Education Department's Office of the Professions (OP) this weekend, starting 3 p.m. Friday, July 31. At 5 p.m., the entire OP site will be offline.
The site should be up and running again 6 a.m. Monday morning, according to an announcement on the OP's Web site.
Here is the announcement from the OP:
Site Update
Special Notice
Political Consultant Arrested in Corruption Probe Found Dead
One of the 44 arrested in last week's massive corruption probe has been found dead in Jersey City, most likely a victim of either natural causes or his own hand.
Banks Back in the Black?
Recent news stories may make it seem that the banking industry is rebounding from the crisis that brought it to its knees. But is this a true recovery? An article in today's Wall Street Journal says changes to fair value may be distorting reality.
The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) relaxed mark-to-market accounting rules in April, giving banks new flexibility regarding impairment charges. The changes to fair value help banks avoid reductions to earnings when taking other-than-temporary impairment (OTTI) charges, which can now be moved into "other comprehensive income" on a bank's balance sheet if the bank intends to keep the troubled securities.
UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Evasion
A New York businessman who last year was reportedly talked out of coming clean with the IRS pleaded guilty Tuesday to tax charges stemming from a wide-ranging investigation into secret accounts at Swiss bank UBS AG, according to the Associated Press.
Another Record Breaker for Accounting Degrees
The number of accounting graduates continues to rise, according to an AICPA report. More than 66,000 people obtained bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting during 2007-08, the most since the AICPA began tracking the data in 1972, representing a 3.5 percent rise over 2006-07.
Will there be jobs waiting for the recent graduates? The study reports that hiring has declined overall as a result of the economy, but midsize to large regional firms (50-200) reported an increase in hiring new accountants. Hiring started off strong, but tailed off by 2007-08 as the economy worsened, according to the report.
SEC Appoints Acting Chair of PCAOB
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) appointed Daniel L. Goelzer, a current Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and founding member, as the board's acting chairman.
Accounting Reform: Here at Last
New York state’s accountancy reform law is now in effect.
Internat'l Business Times: 'NY CPAs Warned of New Law in Effect Sunday'
The New York State accountancy reform law kicks in today. Among the recent press coverage the law is garnering is this July 24 piece by the International Business Times.
And if you're a New York state-licensed CPA and you use the skills and competencies of a CPA, as defined by State Education Department regulations, you MUST be registered today. Read the regulations and more on the NYSSCPA Web site.