WebCPA Staff

President Obama signed historic legislation reforming health care insurance, providing tax credits to individuals and small businesses to help them buy insurance through state-based exchanges.

The Senate Banking Committee voted along party lines to approve the financial regulatory reform bill introduced last week by Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said lawmakers should reject amendments designed to weaken the financial regulatory reform bill.

The IRS Criminal Investigation Division’s Los Angeles Field Office is urging taxpayers to be very careful when choosing a tax return preparer this filing season.

Jodi Hoskins, the operator of an escort service in Salt Lake City, has been found guilty of one count of tax evasion.

A woman has been charged with trying to bribe an IRS official by giving him $2,000 and a package containing promissory notes and a $100 Starbucks gift card.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., has asked the Justice Department to investigate the activities of Lehman Brothers and other companies that may have engaged in similar accounting manipulations, as well as to prosecute those who broke the law.

With average tax refunds up nearly 10 percent this year, the White House has launched an online interactive Tax Savings Tool to help taxpayers take advantage of Recovery Act tax credits.

The House has approved health care reform legislation after a tense series of negotiations that left the vote in doubt until a group of pro-life Democrats agreed to support the bill after receiving assurances that President Obama would issue an executive order prohibiting federal funding of abortions.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has entered final judgments against two CPAs accused of market manipulation and financial fraud in auditing a company that operated adult Web sites.

The Internal Revenue Service continues to have problems with the security of its computer systems, jeopardizing the confidentiality of taxpayer information, according to a new report.

The Internal Revenue Service is seeking civic-minded volunteers to serve on the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, a federal advisory committee that makes recommendations for improving the agency’s service.

California Secretary of State Deborah Bowen, the state’s top elected Democrat, has rejected Republican congressional candidate Phil Liberatore’s ballot designation, alleging that Liberatore’s description as "IRS Problem Solver," is overly broad and associated with an entity or organization.

Intuit plans to update its Intuit Payroll service to reflect the HIRE Act that President Obama signed into law on Thursday.

The Upstream Academy is introducing a business development program for new accounting firm partners and senior managers.

Houston CPA firm McConnell & Jones has appointed Edward Hlousek as leader of its SEC Audit Practice and Oil & Gas Industry Group.

The House Financial Services Committee plans to probe the regulatory failures that led up to the collapse of Lehman Brothers after a bankruptcy examiner released a damning report last week on the investment bank’s accounting manipulations.

The health care reform reconciliation bill makes a number of adjustments in the excise taxes on so-called “Cadillac” insurance plans and medical device makers, along with Medicare taxes and the fees imposed on pharmaceutical companies.

The jobs bill signed by President Obama on Thursday includes various revenue-raising provisions that would put foreign financial institutions with U.S. taxpayers under a new reporting and tax regime.

President Obama has signed legislation that provides employers with tax incentives to hire unemployed workers.