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Serious material weaknesses continue to plague the U.S. government's financial systems, recordkeeping and reporting, according to a newly released report.

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has disciplined two former auditors at BDO Seidman for failing to review the audit work of a junior member of the firm and then trying to cover up by backdating documents.

The Internal Revenue Service improved most of its filing season services during 2007, but there are still opportunities for better performance this coming season, according to a new report.

As more firms go paperless, their engagement documents are increasingly residing in a virtual world.

IRS is driven in its desire to close the tax gap and views tax practitioners as being an obstacle in the middle, according to Charles Rettig with the law firm of Hochman, Salkin, Toscher & Perez, P.C.,in Beverly Hills, Calif.

GRANT THORNTON DISMISSED AS MANNATECH AUDITORDietary supplement developer Mannatech has fired Grant Thornton as its auditor and appointed BDO Seidman in its place after a dispute over the company's chairman.

Financial planning isn't magic, but it is an art as much as it is a science. Different planning practices deal with different kinds of investment vehicles. But regardless of the vehicle, financial plans are rarely static.That's because clients' investment goals and resources change over time. What was right for last year's goals may not be right today, and will almost certainly change tomorrow.

FIDELITY LAUNCHES WEB-BASED FP TOOLFidelity Investments has introduced the Fidelity Retirement Income Evaluator, a Web-based planning tool designed to help advisors create and manage retirement income plans for their clients, as well as build a more efficient and profitable retirement business model.

A shortage of quality people, commoditization and increased regulation result in what Harvard economist Joseph Schumpeter referred to as a depleted industry in need of transformation.These are scary times for accounting firms that don't have a plan and path. For those that do, however, the future is exceptionally bright. Overcoming the obvious obstacles to growth should be a top priority for all firms. Ignoring them and hoping things will return to the way they were is unrealistic - and only exacerbates the problems.

Sage Software has enhanced its Accountants' Network with new incentives for members. Through a partnership with LeapFile, Accountants' Network members can sign up for a service called Sage AssuredSend, a secure file-transfer service that allows accountants to send up to one gigabyte of financial and tax information to their clients without overnight delivery costs.Network members are also eligible for a discount when using GoToMyPC for remote access to their office PCs from other Internet-connected computers. In addition, the Accountants' Network is offering free job recruitment listings on Monster.com through Jan. 31.