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In the Jan. 29-Feb. 11, 2007, issue of Accounting Today, there appeared an article by Abraham J. Briloff titled "Google's SOS to the SEC." That article discussed Google's July 2006 appeal to rescue it from a tsunami that was flooding its banks with billions of billions of dollars. The ill wind inducing this dilemma for Google was the Securities and Exchange Commission rule that requires a registrant with investments (excluding U.S. Treasuries) that exceed 40 percent of its total assets to follow the much-stricter rules applicable to mutual funds - a fate that Google wanted to avoid.The contingency that then confronted Google appears to have passed. In any event, we have not heard any further alarms. That article also considered in some detail Google's very special tax minimization circumstances; those circumstances still prevail and instigate this article.

I believe there are some important points that should be addressed in response to the author's perspective of the life settlement industry ("Be your own life settlement broker," Accounting Today, Aug. 4-17, 2008, page 16).A provider's No. 1 objective is to have the least amount of competition possible on any policy that they're reviewing, so they can pay the least amount for that policy. The provider is representing the institutional buyer, and their responsibility is to protect that fund's rate of return on its portfolio.

New data from the Internal Revenue Service suggests that American corporations controlled by foreigners are now responsible for a larger share of total U.S. corporate assets and earnings than ever before - despite a U.S. corporate tax rate that is among the highest in the world.The most recently released IRS Statistics of Income bulletin revealed that the total receipts of foreign-controlled domestic corporations in 2005 reached $3.5 trillion, which is $450 billion more than in 2004, twice the 1996 level and almost 90 times the level reported in 1971.

JUDGE DECLINES TO DISMISS JACKSON HEWITT SUITNew York - A federal judge has turned down Jackson Hewitt's request to have a class-action lawsuit dismissed against the company and some of its franchises.

The Internal Revenue Service has been working for a couple of years on revisions to Form 990 (Return of Organization Exempt From Tax), which has not had a major update in 30 years. With the recent release of revised draft instructions, the IRS is close to finalizing the process. The new Form 990 will generally be required for 2008 returns.Although issued as draft instructions, the IRS has indicated that the Form 990 instructions should be thought of as final instructions. They were hurried out to try to get the information in the hands of tax professionals and tax-exempt organizations as soon as possible to prepare for the new requirements. The final instructions are only expected to differ from these draft instructions if there has been a significant error or omission.

SEC APPROVES INDEPENDENCE RULEWashington, D.C. - The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board's proposed ethics and independence Rule 3526, Communication with Audit Committees Concerning Independence. The commission also approved an amendment to the interim independence standards and an amendment to Rule 3523, Tax Services for Persons in Financial Reporting Oversight Roles.

Like others, we heard loud gushing sounds following the Securities and Exchange Commission's August announcement of its timetable for converting the U.S. public financial reporting system to compliance with IFRS instead of GAAP.Unlike most commentators, we're skeptical, nay, cynical about this movement, and cannot join in the clamor with enthusiasm. Like virtually everything that comes out of Washington, we don't think this idea is as good as the press releases suggest. As much as we criticize GAAP, we are not at all ready to endorse moving to another system without really good reasons.

SURVEY: EMPLOYEES WORK HARDER WITH STOCK PLANSSome 76 percent of employees participating in a Fidelity Investments survey indicated that they work harder for a company that offers employee stock purchase programs and employer-sponsored stock plans.

While there was a minor flurry of fixed asset activity surrounding the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 and its depreciation and tax impact on businesses, the major focus in fixed asset software packages for 2008 continues to be in the areas of audit and compliance.The goal continues to be a melding of asset inventory, construction-in-process accounting and asset accounting into a cohesive and coherent application, but increasingly the demands of faster, easier and more sophisticated audit support are also garnering attention.

QUICKBOOKS OPENS TO IPHONE AND BLACKBERRYIntuit has added mobile access to its QuickBooks Online service via the Apple iPhone and RIM BlackBerry. The Web-based version of the company's small-business accounting software now has more than 130,000 small businesses as subscribers, and allows smartphone users to check their current bank and credit card balances; track accounts receivable and accounts payable; find vendor, employee and customer contact information; and run balance-sheet and profit-and-loss reports.