News

Half of surveyed organizations don’t know how often they’re hit by fraudulent payment schemes or what the cost is.

The Internal Revenue Service has posted an early draft of the updated Form 1099-DA, the form for brokers to report certain sale and exchange transactions of digital assets that take place beginning in 2025.

Governor Ned Lamont and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen today announced that, beginning in the 2025 filing season, Connecticut will join IRS Direct File – a newly launched option to file federal tax returns online that is provided to users at no cost, empowering residents to file with ease and without having to pay the fees associated with for-profit tax software companies.

“We are thrilled to announce the advancement of Josh and Beth to partnership in our firm,” said Todd Shelansky, CPA, managing partner of HarperWhitfield, P.C. “Their expertise, dedication, and leadership has been instrumental in providing exceptional service to our clients. We are confident that their continued contributions will drive our success and growth even further,” he added.

The IRS will start processing some employee retention credit (ERC) claims that have been subject to its claim processing moratorium, it announced on Thursday. The Service also said it has recently sent out 28,000 disallowance letters to businesses and plans to begin paying 50,000 valid claims for the pandemic-era credit.

Governor Ned Lamont today joined state agency leaders and law enforcement officials at a news conference to highlight steps Connecticut is taking to combat a rise in credit, debit, and EBT card skimmers targeting consumers. This includes the launch of an education campaign to help people learn the signs of skimmers and fraud, police investigations, and increased efforts by the Connecticut Food Association to train frontline staff in stores and place security tape over point-of sale devices to make skimmers easier to recognize.

The Internal Revenue Service and the Security Summit partners remind tax professionals that using multi-factor authentication is now more than an important protection for their businesses and their clients – it’s now a federal requirement.

The Innovative CPA Group (ICG) is proud to announce that the Immaculate High School Alumni Association has recognized Sal Chieffalo, CPA, as the 2024 Golden Tee Award recipient. This prestigious honor celebrates Sal’s unwavering commitment to the Immaculate community. A proud member of the Class of ‘81, Sal has been actively involved in organizing class reunions and has dedicated his time and expertise to the school board, various committees, and the annual golf outing.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has amped up its outreach efforts to update businesses on the requirements for beneficial ownership information (BOI), which requires reports from over 32 million businesses this year.

On August 6, KPMG LLP celebrated its nationwide Community Impact Day. In Stamford, KPMG hosted a Book Explore event through KPMG Family for Literacy (KFFL), with the Boys and Girls Club of Stamford (Yerwood Center). KPMG employees guided elementary-aged students through an interactive book reading with printed boards of book pages and fun activities to bring book themes to life. Volunteers helped read the story with the students and handed out donated new books.

CTCPA Executive Director and CEO Bonnie Stewart was appointed to the 2024-2025 Board of Directors of the New England Society of Association Executives (NE/SAE).

Connecticut is holding a primary election on Aug. 13 to decide which candidates will compete for a U.S. Senate seat, a U.S. House seat, and several General Assembly seats — but voters can cast their ballots in-person beginning Monday, now that the state has adopted early voting.

A tax practitioner, frustrated by a six-week wait for a Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) response about a tax refund, complained to a federal watchdog. That complaint, related to a client facing financial hardship, led to a review that found the phone service provided by TAS offices across the nation was slow and inconsistent.

In a case that will likely end up in the Supreme Court, the Fifth Circuit has held that the "universal service" tax that appears on cell phone bills violates Article 1, Section 1, of the U.S. Constitution.

Nonprofit alliance releases poll calling for more funding; Candelora says state spending priorities are the problem rather than fiscal guardrails.

The purpose of this publication is to provide guidance as to the scope and application of the credit against the income tax that is set forth in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-704c(d). More specifically, given the various legislative amendments surrounding this credit, this publication is intended to both clarify that taxpayers are eligible to claim the credit set forth in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-704c(d) in taxable year 2023 and to explain how eligible taxpayers are to claim said credit on income tax returns due for said taxable year.

Two recent Supreme Court decisions involving the power of government agencies are a "big deal" for the accounting profession because they introduce a level of uncertainty that makes some tax practitioners uncomfortable, AICPA & CIMA's CEO said recently.

NPAG’s Accounting Talent Strategy Report explores the latest pipeline data, root causes of the profession’s attrition, potential solutions, and next steps.

The Connecticut Department of Revenue Services will be hosting a virtual webinar on Wednesday, Sept 4, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. to provide a Connecticut Real Estate Conveyance Tax Return (myCTREC – Form OP-236) Tax Overview. Representatives from the Department will give a presentation about Connecticut’s myCTREC and answer frequently asked questions. Please submit any myCTREC questions with the registration form by Wednesday August 28, 2024.

Accounting firm Marcum, which has multiple offices in Connecticut, is being acquired by a publicly traded financial services advisory firm in a deal worth $2.3 billion, the company announced.