Practice Management

Mueller & Co., a Chicago-area CPA and financial services firm, has merged with Aurora, Ill.-based Nickels, Beilman & Co. effective immediately.

The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service have issued final regulations regarding Sections 401(k) and 401(m) related to designated Roth IRA contributions.

Lois G. Lerner has been named director of the Exempt Organizations Division of the Internal Revenue Service. In this position, she will be responsible for administering and enforcing the tax laws that apply to more than 1.8 million organizations recognized by the IRS as exempt from tax.

In a strategy to boost its presence in the Philadelphia market, RSM McGladrey is in the process of acquiring the non-attest services, of King of Prussia, Pa.-based CPA firm Mantas, Ohliger, McGary & Quinn, according to documents obtained by WebCPA.

Americans avoided paying taxes on a record $1 trillion in income in 2003, according to a new federal government report.

The Internal Revenue Service announced the release of the fall 2005 issue of the Statistics of Income Bulletin.

The Congressional Budget Office recently released its long-term budget outlook. The report doesn't offer specifics in terms of a solution to the country's increasing debt burdens, but does point out a number of reasons why the current system won't be able to solve itself.

SS&G Financial Services Inc. will acquire central Columbus firm Schwartz, Adelman & Yankovich CPAs Inc., in a deal effective Jan. 1.

GAO SAYS CHALLENGES REMAIN IN IRS FINANCIAL CONTROLS: While the Internal Revenue Service has made "great strides" in addressing financial management challenges and internal control deficiencies, a report from the Government Accountability Office stated that the service still faces substantial hurdles in that area.Citing audits of the IRS's 2004 and 2005 financials, the GAO report said that the service had to rely heavily on "resource-intensive compensating processes to prepare its financials," as a result of its inability to maintain effective internal controls.

When Congress managed to agree on a budget resolution this year with $70 billion set aside for tax breaks, it seemed to assure smooth passage for extending President Bush's expiring tax breaks by avoiding risk of a Senate filibuster. In reality, however, the legislation is proving to be very difficult.First, there are more expiring provisions than the $70 billion will protect, so the tax writing committees have been struggling with what to leave in and what to leave out. Then, as deficits started swelling again following Hurricane Katrina, Congress decided that they should not use the full $70 billion, but no more than $60 billion, leaving space for even fewer provisions.