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Accounting News Roundup: Empty Tax Plans; Don’t Cut the Snacks; Really Big Companies | 11.10.15

Posted on by Caleb Newquist

Republican Candidates Push Bold Tax Plans [WSJ]
I've mentioned it before, but I think it's silly  to take POTUS candidates' tax plans seriously during the primary campaign. Between now and next November the eventual nominee will change his or her plan to suit their political needs. You don't even think you have to be a cynical, liberal weenie like me to believe that!

“It doesn’t seem like there’s anything constraining these guys,” said Alex Brill, a former GOP congressional tax staffer now at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. “The next guy that’s announcing his plan, he’s going to announce a plan that’s bigger and bolder and better than the last guy. And then he can win that debate.” 

I guess? Carly Fiorina supposedly won a debate or two and it's not going to catapult her into the White House. Meanwhile, I'm sure CPAs all across the country are fielding questions from clients about what they think will happen. The correct answer: probably nothing.

BDO Canada Acquires H&A Forensic Accounting [AT]
Much like the US firm, BDOC has been on a buying spree with seven "strategic mergers" in the last twelve months.

Why Getting Rid of Free Office Snacks Doesn't Come Cheap [Bloomberg]
I have no idea how many accounting firms provide free snacks, but those of them that do should heed this warning:

But the economic case for offering free snacks outweighs the relatively puny savings—and once a workplace gets hooked on snacks, it can't really go back.

It makes sense. If a company starts pulling the snacks, not only does that look cheap, employees then have to fend for themselves, which means they will probably leave the office to do so. Staples conducted a study that found that snack runs result in 2.4 billion hours of lost productivity. Plus, yanking snacks "can have a psychological effect that far outstrips the dollar amount." Matt Levine laments about the time Goldman Sachs got rid of free soda, so the pain is real. The accounting firms I worked for, including KPMG, only had free coffee, so I can't imagine the anguish associated with such a move.   

Eight Companies Are Now in the $300 Billion Club [WSJ]
Alphabet (aka Google), Amazon, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, ExxonMobil, Facebook, General Electric and Microsoft are taking immateriality to new heights.

In other news:

  • SEC whistleblowers still doing okay for themselves.
  • Another Valeant conference call. [WSJ]
  • Ex-TierOne Bank CEO Guilty of Hiding Losses [CFO]
  • Failed border fence. [NYM]
  • A movie about offshore tax havens. [TaxProf]

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Accounting News Roundup: You, Me, Everyone on the East Coast and Irene; Tax Tips for Millionaires; Groupon’s Strength | 08.26.11

~ Annnnnnnd we’re back! We’ve gotten the all clear from the Google gods so peruse as you normally would. Sorry about yesterday and we really appreciate your patience. There are various theories as to who the culprits are and we’re utilizing enhanced interrogation methods to find out. Now, then. Who’s ready for Irene?

Hurricane Irene Tracker [NYT]
The heavy stuff won’t be coming down for quite awhile.

Evacuations, Transit Shutdown Eyed in City [WSJ]
As Hurricane Irene barreled toward the East Coast, New York City officials prepared for the possibility of evacuating hundreds of thousands of residents in low-lying areas and a full shutdown of the city’s transit system. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, speaking at a news conference from City Hall Thursday evening, said he could make a decision by 8 a.m. Saturday about evacuating the public from parts of the nation’s most populous city.

Tax Tips for Harvey Golub (and Other Millionaires) [WSJ]
Step 1: Fire your accountant.

Ex-Lehman Officers Seek $90 Million to End Lawsuit [WSJ]
Former Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. Chief Executive Richard Fuld and other directors and officers are seeking the release of $90 million in insurance funds to settle a potential multibillion-dollar lawsuit brought by shareholders of the failed investment bank. The pending settlement, filed Wednesday with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, would end a class-action suit that began in June 2008—about three months before Lehman filed for Chapter 11 protection.

Groupon Has ‘Never Been Stronger,’ Mason Says [Bloomberg]
“When I read some of the press this weekend, I realized a rational person could read this stuff and wrongly conclude that we’re in trouble,” Mason wrote in a memo sent to employees yesterday and obtained by Bloomberg News. “The irony is hopefully clear: We’ve never been stronger.”

For Some in G.O.P., a Tax Cut Not Worth Embracing [NYT]
In a turning of the tax policy tables, Democrats are increasingly hammering on Republicans who oppose the president’s proposal to extend for a year a payroll tax cut passed last year with bipartisan support. That tax cut — which reduces workers’ contributions to Social Security this year to 4.2 percent of wages, from 6.2 percent — expires in December. The White House would like to extend it for another year. But Republicans in Congress are balking, arguing that such a cut adds needlessly to the nation’s budget deficit, and should be replaced with an overhaul of tax policy instead.