Returning Value Blog

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act was signed into law on March 27. Among other economic relief measures, the new law allows large public banks to temporarily postpone the controversial current expected credit loss (CECL) standard. Here are the details.

Even though your employees are working from home, they still need good, open communication channels between you and them. As a manager, keep the flow of information transparent and available for everyone to see.

Thanks to the Internet and social media, we’re bombarded daily with all kinds of information. As a result, most people prefer clear, concise snippets of data over lengthy text. Have your financial statements kept up with today’s data-consumption trends?

Businesses across the country are being affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19). Fortunately, Congress recently passed a law that provides at least some relief. In a separate development, the IRS has issued guidance allowing taxpayers to defer any amount of federal income tax payments due on April 15, 2020, until July 15, 2020, without penalties or interest. 

Now present on every continent except Antarctica, COVID-19 has infected more than 125,000 people and is responsible for more than 4,600 deaths. With the number of cases in the U.S. continuing to climb, individuals and companies alike are taking steps to prepare for a pandemic. From a shortage of masks and hand sanitizer to CDC-imposed travel restrictions and the cancellation of conferences and other large events across the globe, this public health emergency is rapidly evolving and all sectors are having to navigate its impact and uncertainty around what the future holds.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak — officially a pandemic as of March 11 — has prompted global health concerns. But you also may be worried about how it will affect your business and its financial statements for 2019 and beyond.

If you’re the owner of an incorporated business, you probably know that there’s a tax advantage to taking money out of a C corporation as compensation rather than as dividends. The reason is simple. A corporation can deduct the salaries and bonuses that it pays executives, but not its dividend payments. Therefore, if funds are withdrawn as dividends, they’re taxed twice, once to the corporation and once to the recipient. Money paid out as compensation is taxed only once, to the employee who receives it.

The rules for reporting leasing transactions are changing. Though these changes have been delayed until 2021 for private companies (and nonprofits), it’s important to know the possible effects on your financial statements as you renew leases or enter into new lease contracts. In some cases, you might decide to modify lease terms to avoid having to report leasing liabilities on your balance sheet. Or you might opt to buy (rather than lease) property to sidestep being subject to the complex disclosure requirements.

Alabama is one of several states that does require employers to use a federal program designed to stop them from hiring people in the U.S. illegally.  The Alabama legislature passed in both houses legislation prohibiting employers from knowingly employing unauthorized aliens. The law is known as the Beason-Hammon Alabama Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act. The law requires all employers to enroll in and utilize E-Verify. 

If you’re self-employed and work out of an office in your home, you may be entitled to home office deductions. However, you must satisfy strict rules.