NYSSCPA Members in the News

Lynne Fuentes (Nassau)
Ones To Watch: Accounting/Education
Long Island Business News
Over her 18-year career, Lynne Fuentes has provided accounting, audit and tax planning services to individuals and businesses, including medical practices, construction and transportation firms. She is the managing partner at Fuentes & Angel CPAs, a full-service accounting firm with locations in Bethpage and Sea Cliff. On June 1, she began her term as president of the Nassau Chapter of the New York State Society of CPAs, after serving the chapter in a variety of roles beginning in 2004.

Julie Floch (Manhattan/Bronx)
Julie Floch, Nonprofit Finance Influencer, Has Died
The NonProfit Times
Julie Floch, a leader in nonprofit accounting and finance, died on Friday after a years-long battle with cancer. Floch was the partner in charge of accounting and consulting at EisnerAmper’s Not-For-Profit-Services Group and served on the board of a wide array of local and national organizations, helping to shape nonprofit accounting and transparency. A memorial gathering in Floch’s honor is planned for 3 p.m., Friday, Sept. 30 at The Princeton Club in New York City.

Other Accounting and Financial News Stories

U.S. Companies Turn to German Training Model to Fill Jobs Gap
Wall Street Journal
American employers struggling to find enough qualified industrial workers are turning to Germany for a solution to plug the U.S. skills gap: vocational training. Two million U.S. manufacturing jobs will remain vacant over the next decade due to a shortage of trained workers, according to an analysis by the Manufacturing Institute, a nonprofit advocacy group affiliated with the National Association of Manufacturers, and professional-services firm Deloitte LLP.

A Practical Approach to CPA Firm Cyber Security
CPA Practice Advisor
The cyber-threat landscape has evolved considerably over the last 5 years into something that most small CPA firms find overwhelming. And, if they don’t find it overwhelming they aren’t paying attention. Attacks are no longer just email viruses that can cause down time. The focus of modern attacks are on financial fraud and ransom. Attacks take many forms such as fraudulent emails and phone calls, malicious web advertising, viral email attachments, fake links and network penetration.

PwC's Recruiting Never Sleeps
Going Concern
PwC loves millennials. There are countless examples to prove this. Bob Moritz sticks up for them in public. Tim Ryan has them over for Thanksgiving so they can avoid their families. They help them pay off student loans. They respect (but do not condone) stylish holes. They (allegedly!) discriminate against the olds. They do all this and save money at the same time.

Two Exchange Operators, CBOE and Bats, Agree to Merge
New York Times
Two Midwestern exchange operators have agreed to combine in a deal that would merge two of the largest trading venues in the United States. CBOE Holdings, which owns the Chicago Board Options Exchange, where the popular Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index and volatility index options trade, is paying $3.2 billion in cash and stock to acquire Kansas-based Bats Global Markets, according to a statement released by the companies on Monday.

Fed to Ease Stress Tests for Regional Banks
Wall Street Journal
The Federal Reserve proposed easing “stress-test” requirements for banks with less than $250 billion in assets, a major piece of good news for U.S. regional banks. Fed governor Daniel Tarullo, speaking at Yale University on Monday, said banks with less than $250 billion in assets that don’t conduct significant nonbank or international activity would be exempt from the “qualitative” part of the Fed’s annual stress tests.

Final Regulations Define “Real Property” for REITs: Considerations for Renewable Energy and Transmission Assets
JD Supra Business Advisor
On August 31, 2016, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and US Department of the Treasury issued final regulations (Final Regulations) under section 856 of the Internal Revenue Code to clarify the definition of “real property” for purposes of sections 856 through 859 relating to real estate investment trusts (REITs). The Final Regulations largely follow proposed regulations issued in 2014 (Proposed Regulations) by providing a safe harbor list of assets and establishing facts and circumstances tests to analyze other assets.

Treasury: IRS Spent $15 Million on Flawed FATCA System Rollout
Newsmax Finance
The Internal Revenue Service spent $15 million on a delayed implementation of an upgraded system for fully enacting the Foreign Account Tax and Compliance Act (FATCA), but the software didn’t yield the expected results, Accounting Today reported. FATCA is designed to ferret out individuals who have unreported offshore bank accounts and other assets.

IRS Set to Use Private Debt Collectors
The Hill
The IRS announced Monday that it plans to start a new private debt-collection program in the spring. The program was authorized by a transportation funding law enacted last December. Contractors will work on the government's behalf to collect debts from taxpayers who owe money but whose accounts are no longer being worked on directly by the IRS.

Value Investing Reigns in Emerging Markets
Wall Street Journal
After a long period of miserable performance, investors who seek out some of the least popular stocks in emerging markets are back on top this year. These value investors manage funds that focus on stocks that look cheap based on metrics like price-to-earnings ratios. Most investors in rapidly developing but volatile emerging markets pursue growth strategies, looking to identify companies that can deliver above-average earnings momentum.

Accountants Lean Toward Trump
Accounting Today
Accountants are divided about the upcoming presidential election, a new poll reveals, but they're leaning toward Republican candidate Donald Trump. The poll, of over 330 CPAs and accountants across the country in mid-September, showed 43 percent of respondents planning to vote for Donald Trump in November, against 27 percent planning to vote for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.

Wall St. Closes Lower, Weighed Down by Banks and Health Care
New York Times
Stocks on Wall Street slumped on Monday, and banks took the biggest losses. Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest bank, plunged as investors worried about its financial health. Pfizer pulled drug makers down after it announced it would not break up into two companies. Stocks fell for a second day in a row. And banks were hurt by a drop in bond yields.

Hedge Funds Take Another Punch to Gut
Wall Street Journal
The hedge-fund business is getting so tough that two of its biggest names are taking radical steps. Europe’s Brevan Howard Asset Management LLP plans to charge 0% fees for some investors. New York stalwart Perry Capital LLC is going further. It is shutting down.