The Latest

H&R Block CFO William L. Trubeck has stepped down, the company announced.

Sage Software kicked off its annual customer conference with a welcome from top executives and a dynamic keynote given by Christopher Gardner, a formerly homeless man whose story inspired the film "The Pursuit of Happyness."

Accounting firm LarsonAllen has merged with three other firms, expanding its presence in Minnesota and Southwest Florida.

Thomson Tax & Accounting released an online tax research service, QuickFinder Tax Manager, aimed at sole practitioners and small accounting firms.

Cash flow management is the major issue facing small business, according to a newly released survey.

The continuing business boom, rising client demand and the movement of tax professionals toward other accounting niches has generated varied responses to staffing needs, as firms turn to remote technology, outsourcing, part-time former employees and retirees and college students to fill the personnel void.Meanwhile, the overall demand for accountants has dried up the available supply of tax professionals, according to industry observers.

Congressional tax writers have issued a subtle warning to charities and other nonprofit organizations: Start placing a heavier emphasis on serving diverse communities, or you may risk losing your tax-exempt status.That was the veiled threat leveled at tax-exempt organizations during a round of hearings before the House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee. In announcing the hearing, Chairman John Lewis, D-Ga., noted that while "charitable organizations play a key role in our country's ability to respond to the needs of its communities, those communities are becoming increasingly diverse."

Barry Melancon, president and chief executive of the American Institute of CPAs, and a number of other accounting profession luminaries such as Tim Flynn, chief executive at Big Four firm KPMG, have been named to the Treasury Department's new Advisory Committee on the Auditing Profession.The 21-member group will spend roughly a year examining issues facing the auditing profession, including such front-burner topics as audit firm concentration, auditor liability caps, recruiting young people to the profession, the effect of Sarbanes-Oxley and the move toward international standards.

Jackson Hewitt Tax Service has ousted chair and chief executive Michael Lister after more than 125 of the company's franchises faced charges of fraudulent tax return preparation.Michael Yerington succeeded Lister as CEO, while Margaret Richardson was elected non-executive chair of the board. Yerington joined the company in 2006. Richardson, who joined the company's board in 2004, was a former commissioner at the Internal Revenue Service.

SAGE JETTISONS NORTH AMERICAN EXECSLONDON - With performance lagging in the company's North American business, the Sage Group purged that region's C-level suite, ousting Sage Software chief executive Ron Verni, chief financial officer Jim Eckstaedt and chief technology officer Jim Foster, amid recent changes in the company's culture and divisional operations. Also gone in the housecleaning was Taylor Macdonald, Sage's chief channel and strategy officer.