Practice Management

The American Institute of CPAs has updated its Total Tax Insights calculator with information from 2013 to help taxpayers gauge the impact of more than 20 different federal, state and local taxes, including a new Medicare surtax that took effect last year, on their own taxes for this year.

Brock, Schechter & Polakoff LLP has added Gould & Swanson PC and John P. Whitty PC to its firm.

National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson urged the Internal Revenue Service to adopt a comprehensive Taxpayer Bill of Rights in her annual report to Congress Thursday, saying it would increase trust in the agency and, more generally, strengthen the IRS’s ability to serve taxpayers and collect tax. She also recommended allowing voluntary certification of unenrolled tax preparers if the IRS fails to win a court appeal of a ruling invalidating its testing requirements for tax preparers.

GBH CPAs PC and Prather Kalman have merged their practices under the GBH name. The combined firm will have about 40 employees.

Accounting Today is issuing a Final Call for speakers for its second annual Accounting Technology Forum.

H. Ty Warner, the billionaire creator of Beanie Babies plush toys, should go to prison for tax evasion, U.S. prosecutors told a federal judge.

The Internal Revenue Service started 1,492 criminal investigations into the use of tax returns to commit identity theft in the year that ended Sept. 30, a 66 percent increase, the agency said Tuesday.

The Internal Revenue Service audited 0.96 percent of individual tax returns in fiscal 2013, declining for the second straight year and reaching the lowest rate since 2005.

Small businesses, generally those organized as S corporations or partnerships, can run afoul of IRS guidelines governing “reasonable compensation” for individuals who are both owners/shareholders and employees of these companies.

Tostevin Accountancy Inc. has merged with PMB Helin Donovan, Consultants & CPAs.