CPA Observation Post

Poll: Small businesses want a streamlined tax code

About 56% of small businesses surveyed by the National Small Business Association said the biggest tax problem they have is the administrative work of filing. The burdens of filing outweighed even the financial burdens of taxes, the survey found. The poll also found most business owners want a simpler tax code. "The overwhelming majority of small-business owners support broad reform of the federal tax code -- not tinkering with certain taxes here and there," says Todd McCracken, NSBA president and CEO. Read More>>

PCAOB Plans Small Business Auditing Forums (via @AccountingToday)

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board plans to host forums for auditors of small businesses and smaller broker-dealers. The forums are designed to share important information about PCAOB activities with registered public accounting firms that have clients operating in the small business community. Read More>>

Pace of standards, regulation top issue for small and medium-size accounting practices, international poll shows (via @AICPA_JofA)

Forty-one percent of respondents in an international poll of small and medium-size practitioners and businesses said keeping up with new regulations and standards is the most important issue they face. Meanwhile, the burden of regulation was rated the top concern for their small and medium-size clients, while economic uncertainty ranked a close second. Read More>>

Bill seeks to stay 1099-K reporting requirements for small businesses (via @AccountingToday)

Reps. Aaron Schock, R-Ill., and Bobby Schilling, R-Ill., introduced a bill that would keep the Internal Revenue Service from activating a new tax-reporting requirement for small businesses to reconcile their 1099-K reports from outside providers with their own records. The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 put this requirement in place. Read More>>

What Advisors Should Know About the Small Business Owner Market

Many small-business owners say they should get help from financial advisers, but most haven't done so, a survey by market research firm CMI found. Women, younger business owners and those nearing retirement are the most likely to engage advisers, the survey found. Read More>>

Small-business hiring is up, November survey shows (via @NYTimes)

Small businesses plan to hire more, according to a November survey by the National Federation of Independent Business. The net share of companies in the survey planning to hire was the largest in 38 months. Also, for the first time in almost four years, the net percentage of companies that said they began hiring in the past three months was positive. Read More>>

Claims for Small Business Health Care Tax Credit Much Lower than Expected (via @AccountingToday)

The number of claims for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit, which was included in the health care reform law as a way to help small businesses provide health insurance for their employees, has been much lower than anticipated, according to a new government report. Read More>>

Small-business owners in U.S. become more pessimistic

For the fifth consecutive month, U.S. small-business owners said they are losing confidence in economic prospects, according to July data from the National Federation of Independent Business. The lobbying group said its index of small-business sentiment fell 0.9%. Read More>>

Five Best Social Media Practices for Small Businesses

When it comes to social media, the market is quickly becoming saturated. There's Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, foursquare, LinkedIn, QR codes, mobile apps, blogs – and now even, Google+ So, it's no wonder some entrepreneurs feel inundated with all of the social media platforms. Read More>>

House bill aims to simplify small-business taxes

A proposal in the House would make it easier for small businesses to pay employment taxes through their human resources contractors. The bipartisan bill would let professional employer organizations take responsibility for the taxes paid by their small-business clients. The measure would save companies time by eliminating paperwork, said the bill's sponsors, Reps. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, and Mike Thompson, D-Calif. Read More>>