Author: Tony Novak
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Three nonnegotiable points on CPA verification letters
CPAs are commonly asked to verify business information including ownership, finances and available funds. This is a useful part of business operations and often part of the bank lending process. Some banks go as far as to ask for verification of an opinion, which if course is not possible. But to the extent that a…
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An accounting niche opposite the AICPA trend
An advertisement by a top-qualify national information publishing firm joined up with a prominent AICPA event to deliver an educational program designed to prepare CPA firms for imminent change. The bullet points describing the course content are: End-to-end, automated cloud-based tax preparation AI-enhanced, highly intuitive tax research A cloud-driven, Integrated Audit Approach that focuses on…
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What to do if you didn’t get a tax cut
What if you work in “any trade or business involving the performance of services in the fields of health, law, accounting, actuarial science, performing arts, consulting, athletics, financial services, brokerage services, or any trade or business where the principal asset of such trade or business is the reputation or skill of 1 or more of…
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Introduction to tax planning for professionals
You didn’t benefit from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act? Your business and personal income taxes are still way too high? Don’t give up. Plan a new approach to build tax free income and a secure financial future. I’ve helped dozens of business and professional clients increase the portion of their earnings that they keep…
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Ten million people with tax debt can still move forward with a normal financial and personal life
Millions of Americans are saddled with tax debt that prevents them from moving financially. That financial struggle impacts other aspects of life including mental and physical health and relationships. I’ve observed that the key to resolving these problems – even when they seem insurmountable in the beginning – is to establish a supportive professional relationship…
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How to reduce small business labor costs (without paying employees less)
This blog post uses examples of real current small business clients. I’m taking this opportunity to reinforce that the stories and examples that I use in frequent public posts are never presented in a way that compromises the privacy or identity of the business or individual. Small business owners feel the financial pressure of overhead…
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Sample letter of instruction
An earlier version of this post was originally published in 2011 when I was recovering from a long term disability that left residual cognitive and memory issues. My original intent was to help myself, my family, and others be better organized for disability or death. It is republished now updated with the use of new…
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Who audits the State of New Jersey?
This blog post sprung from a discussion among members of the New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants at a meeting this week that carried over into online discussion. I present the topic with a focus on our local area of Cumberland County. New Jersey has 1,900 separate governmental units that are required to have…
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Our broken tax system
This isn’t the type of tax blog post that I normally write. But after decades of writing and over 2,000 tax-related posts, columns and other publications, I sense that our tax system is spinning out of control, pulling our nation into a death spiral. It is time to speak out. Almost three decades ago I…