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Big 4
EY Tells US Tax Staff to Work From Office Three Days a Week [Bloomberg]
EY has told US tax staff they need to be in the office an average of three days a week, in a tightening of the firm’s hybrid working policy. Staff in the accounting and consulting firm’s US tax business will be required to work on the premises or at a client site 12 days a month from July 1, according to people familiar with the situation.
AI
Accounting firms increasingly embrace AI tools [Virginia Business]
“Security is paramount, but accuracy is probably the biggest challenge,” Wallace says. While Microsoft Excel changed how accountants did their work beginning in the 1980s, the technology didn’t necessarily make the job any easier or simpler, says Gary Wallace, managing partner at Keiter. “That’s how we’re looking at AI: How do we best use these tools to help our team be able to work better but also help our clients reach better decisions?”
KPMG sees ’10x consultant’ potential as its tax pros start building their own tools [Business Insider]
In January and February, the company completed a six-week pilot involving about 30 tax experts working in small teams with engineers to vibe code workable software prototypes. Many of the participants, who included associates and managers, didn’t have deep technical backgrounds, Brad Brown, the company’s chief digital officer for tax, told Business Insider. “By the end of six weeks, they were vibe coding solutions,” he said. “Right before your eyes, you’re starting to see the evolution of how they were going to deliver services.”
Three out of four global leaders will prioritize AI investment despite economic uncertainty, KPMG Global AI Pulse survey finds [KPMG]
The findings show that global enthusiasm for AI is unwavering, but only a few are scaling fast enough to turn that spend into real business value. Leaders plan to invest a weighted global average of US$186 million in AI over the next 12 months, and 74 percent say AI will remain a top investment priority even in the event of a recession. While most organizations (64 percent) cite AI as already delivering meaningful business outcomes, they face growing challenges — from measuring and quantifying value, to adapting governance models at the required speed, managing data privacy and cyber risks, and addressing workforce resistance. These risks and challenges are keeping many global organizations in the experimentation and piloting stage of AI implementation, while a meaningful minority (11 percent) are gaining edge through AI agent deployment, scaling across functions and beginning to coordinate them across workflows.
Here’s where HR and finance aren’t in lockstep, according to Deloitte data [HR Executive]
Deloitte’s CFO Guide to Tech Trends 2026 describes a workforce in which agentic AI and humans work in tandem to execute finance work, and frames the core human competencies of critical thinking, curiosity and ethics as things that must be actively balanced against new technologies. Deloitte’s 2026 Global Human Capital Trends report makes the same argument in a different language, warning that most organizations are still designing work for people and technology separately, rather than designing for both together. It finds that only 14% of leaders say they are “adept” at shaping human-AI interactions.
Tax
Tax Filing Relief Granted to DHS Personnel: An Analysis for Practitioners [Current Federal Tax Developments]
On April 1, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a news release titled “Treasury and IRS Announce Tax Filing Relief to DHS Personnel”. This official Treasury guidance, issued in coordination with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), establishes formal administrative relief for a specific class of taxpayers currently impacted by a lapse in government appropriations. For CPAs and EAs representing federal employees, understanding the exact parameters of this relief is essential for proper tax planning and compliance during the current filing season.
Lawsuit Aims to Block Chicago’s New Social Media Tax. Here’s What to Know [WTTW]
NetChoice, a trade association representing the tech industry, filed a lawsuit in Cook County on March 13 to block the Social Media Amusement Tax included in Chicago’s 2026 spending plan. Crafted by Mayor Brandon Johnson, the measure forces social media companies to pay a tax of 50 cents per month for every active user after the first 100,000 users, under the city’s amusement tax authority, officials said. NetChoice in a statement said the tax violates “free speech rights, unfairly discriminates against digital publications, violates federal law and harms Chicago residents and their businesses.”
Georgia legislature passes income tax cut, increase standard deductions including on tips [WABE]
The Georgia legislature passed a bill Thursday to reduce the flat personal income tax rate to 3.99% for tax year 2028 and increase standard deductions, including on tips, sending it to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk to sign into law.
Miami-Dade tax collector’s clerk accused of secretly renewing licenses, officials say [NBC 6]
Police said Waldersee Oge would get paid to secretly renew people’s licenses. An arrest report states that his own supervisor was shocked when she noticed him scanning documents into the state’s database without any customers in front of him—which is illegal in Florida. Oge was allegedly caught using his position to get into the state’s data base to then clear people’s suspended licenses. Authorities said he would also issue temporary driving permits for customers without them being physically present.
Audit
Halifax County town at risk of losing control of finances after not submitting audits for 5 years [CBS17]
A small Halifax County town is at risk of having its finances taken over by the state after not submitting its audit for the past five years, the North Carolina Department of the State Treasurer said.
Utah State Auditor identified nearly half a billion dollars in diverted Medicaid funds [Utah Policy]
“It is deeply concerning that over half of the funds intended to support medicaid patients in skilled nursing facilities didn’t reach the intended recipients,” said State Auditor Tina M. Cannon. “These are not just numbers on a spreadsheet, this is about ensuring that this type of Medicaid funding is used for its intended purpose – to provide direct care and improve the quality of life for patients in nursing facilities.”
Wipfli extends partnership with the Philadelphia Eagles [Wipfli]
Through the renewed agreement, Wipfli will continue serving as the independent auditor for the Eagles, providing objective insight that supports transparency, accountability and long‑term organizational strength.
O Canada
CPA Canada welcomes new board under governance model driven by individual CPAs [CPA Canada]
The appointments coincide with CPA Canada’s transition to a more modern governance model—effective April 1 strengthening accountability to members and reinforcing CPA Canada’s role as a national body focused on serving and advancing the profession.
KPMG Faces Allegations of Blown Audit in Private Credit Collapse [Bloomberg]
Canada’s top securities regulator alleged that KPMG LLP, the auditor for four funds managed by collapsed private lender Bridging Finance Inc., failed to properly value the loans held within the funds, harming investors. The Ontario Securities Commission claimed in a filing on Tuesday that KPMG falsely represented the quality of the audits it conducted for the 2019 and 2020 fiscal years, and fell short by “failing to consistently challenge and validate audit evidence it gathered.” When KPMG found loans that were overstated, it wrongly assumed the findings were isolated to those loans, the regulator said.