Practice Management

The Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Treasury announced that they have released guidance on the estimated tax penalty for citizens or residents of the United States living and working abroad.The Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005, which was enacted in May 2006, changed the maximum amount of foreign earned income and housing costs that can be excluded from gross income -- increasing the maximum amount of foreign earned income that may be excluded from gross income to $82,400 and limiting the amount of housing costs that may be excluded or deducted.

A review of the Internal Revenue Service’s response to the flooding of its national headquarters in the summer of 2007 has found that the displacement of the office’s 2,200 employees had no measurable impact on taxpayers and tax administration.The report, from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, attributed that result to the nature of the work performed at the site, as well as the contingency plans the IRS had in place -- but did note ways to cut down on more than $4 million of salary costs associated with the natural disaster.

Somewhere in my parents’ attic, there resides a copy of Vanilla Ice’s debut album, “To the Extreme.”

Most readers of my column are entering their busy season. So many might not read all my columns in the next 10 weeks, and some will not read one until April 17. So those readers won’t miss anything, I have a Cliff’s Notes-type summary -- (the title and a sentence) of 10 possible columns.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has taken over the tax practice unit of an Indian financial services firm to create the largest accounting firm in the country.

After serving as a regional managing partner with a national firm for several years, in the late 1970s Len Miller decided to find a new home for his technical expertise in accounting and consulting, as well as his firm administration skills. He co-founded his own firm in Phoenix, Miller Wagner & Co. Ltd., and ran the business for more than two decades before consolidating with CBiz Inc. in early 1999. Today, Miller serves as the president of CBiz Accounting, Tax & Advisory Services LLC.With over 40 years of experience, Miller is a recognized expert in the fields of finance, real estate, general business consulting and various litigation support matters -- but he still places an emphasis on the programs his firm has in place to retain and develop its own employees.

One of New England's largest independent CPA firms, Carlin, Charron & Rosen LLP, has announced a pending merger with UHY Advisors. Terms of the merger, which should close May 1, were not disclosed. In May 2006, UHY acquired the Boston-based accounting firm Brown & Brown LLP, absorbing the firm's 80 employees.CCR employs more than 280 professionals in its Boston and Westborough, Mass., offices, as well as locations in Glastonbury, Conn., and Providence, R.I. Founded in 1918, the firm provides assurance, tax and advisory services to a range of clients.

In a series of deals effective Jan. 1, LarsonAllen LLP acquired four firms, expanding its presence in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Arizona. Terms were not disclosed.The firms that will be joining LarsonAllen include: Wisconsin-based Tracey & Thole SC; Ahern Montag Vogler Ltd. and Peterson & Co. PA, both based in Mankato, Minn.; and Scottsdale, Ariz.-based The O'Connor Group PC.

The latest American Institute of CPAs' Statement on Standards for Tax Services has some practitioners upset that it could hurt smaller firms that are primarily engaged in tax preparation.SSTS 9, available on the AICPA Tax Center Web site, was released a year ago in proposed form and is slated to go into effect on June 30, 2007. It "sets forth the applicable standards for members concerning the obligation to have a system of quality control for their tax practice (public practice) or function (nonpublic practice)."

Liberty Tax Service announced the acquisition of eSmartTax, the income tax preparation business of San Jose, Calif.-based C&S Technologies. Financial terms of the deal, which does not include C&S's payroll-tax-related filing services, were not disclosed.The eSmartTax acquisition will allow Liberty customers to prepare and file individual tax returns on the Internet through the company's Web site, or through the Internal Revenue Service's Free File Alliance site.