| Education |
Registration is now open for all WAA 2012 Education Programs. Below is the list of programming. Click on the event link for details on registration pricing as well as the link to the online registration form.
- WAA Convention - June 21-22 at the Holiday Inn, Renton, WA
- 1041 Estates & Trusts presented by Gear Up - July 12-13 at the Holiday Inn, Seatac, WA
- Business Entities presented by Gear Up - October 22-23 at Emerald Downs, Auburn, WA
- 1040 Tax Update & Professional Ethics for EA's presented by Gear Up - November 12-13 at the Embassy Suites, Lynnwood, WA
- 1040 Tax Update & Professional Ethics for EA's presented by Gear Up - December 3-4 at Emerald Downs, Auburn, WA
- 1040 Tax Update & Professional Ethics for EA's presented by Gear Up - December 3-4 at Mirabeau Park Hotel, Spokane Valley, WA
And save the date for the 18th Annual IRS Working Together Symosium on November 1st!
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Around the State
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Chapter Events
We have four active chapters around the state. These chapter officers have been diligently working to bring relevant education to the chapter members and with creating a quality collaborative peer meeting environment. June is the month in which the new officers will be installed. You are encouraged to attend and give support to these new elected officers.
Go to www.waa.org/chapters to find out what is happening in your chapter.
For those members who are stepping up to take a Chapter officer position, all of WAA thanks you! The knowledge and skills you will learn are invaluable.
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Chapter Listservs
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All WAA members have been subscribed to their chapter listserv based on the chapter listed in their profile. Download these listserv instructions to learn how to subscribe if you do not currently have a chapter affiliation listed on your profile, to unsubscribe, or to change the email address you want subscribed to the listserv.
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| Advertising |
This newsletter is distributed to over 300 accountants in Washington State.
To advertise, please call the WAA office at [email protected].
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Editorial Content
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The principal aims of this publication are the advancement of the accounting profession and communication among our members. Opinions expressed herein are those of the individual writers and not necessarily those of WAA or Editor. Please submit articles and comments to [email protected].
The deadline for submissions is the 20th of the month preceding publication.
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Jose G Pol is seeking work for tax preparation (individual and business), in the north Seattle area.
Phone: 425-876-2685
E-mail: [email protected]
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The IRS provides a very informative annual calendar.
Small business owners find this a valuable resource throughout the year. Supplies are limited and the calendar is free.
If you would like to learn more about the IRS calendar please contact Rizwan Chaudhry at [email protected]
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For sale get it quick only available for a limited time:
The perfect gift for your favorite colleague.
Helping Clients in Difficult Times By Quickfinder/Gear Up. This is a 2010 edition from Seattle
Chapter mini-seminar. Great resource with references and website addresses. $55.00 plus shipping.
Email: [email protected]
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The mission of the Washington Association of Accountants is to promote and protect the right of every member to practice accounting and taxation; to provide the services and professional education necessary to maintain and improve professional competence.
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President's Corner
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by Astrid Arola
Greetings! This is the launch of our brand new newsletter. It has the same type of content, but a new look and a new methodology for compiling and presenting it to you. We hope you find it useful and informative!
Crucial Conversations is a book that I recently came across while at the SBI office (our new AMC – Association Management Company) in Seattle. I glanced at their book shelf and this book caught my eye. Why, did it catch my eye? I had a very important, possibly contentious, meeting later that week and was in the process of considering various approaches to the meeting. Glancing at the chapter titles and explanations I knew the book could help me! For the next several evenings I read though the book and found many of their suggestions helpful. The result of my meeting was good. I attribute some of this to the tactics that I learned in the book. Crucial Conversations can be very helpful in handling difficult situations with our clients, employees and loved ones.
Talking about SBI, they have been hard at work creating our new website. There is so much potential and all of the WAA leaders very excited about it. If you haven’t done so already, I hope you will drop in and take a look around. And while you’re logged in, be sure to update your profile. Like with any change of systems, data may not be transferred with 100% accuracy. We want to be sure we have your current information. You are in control of your profile! I hope you like the new website. Drop a note to the office at [email protected] and let them know what you think.
WAA Elections are in June! Could this be a developmental step in your career? The experience I have received being a leader of WAA has definitely enhanced my ability to handle many diverse opportunities and challenges. While it can be work, it is also very rewarding. WAA is entering a new and exciting phase of the organization. We hope you will be part of it. If interested contact Jerry Gintz at [email protected].
Did you lose touch with the outside world for the first three months of this year? Read Gary Smith’s snappy little IBA Small Business Report. You’ll have almost the whole world in seven pages!! Well the Olympia and D.C. legislatures anyway! The IBA newsletter is one outstanding benefit of the many you receive for being a member of WAA.
Are you anxious about taking the new IRS test? Go to: www.irs.gov/taxpros/article//0,,id=243833,00.html to get the up to date information. Did you know you can take a demo test? Try it out, I did. I believe doing so will relieve you of some of your fear. For all of you taking the exam I wish you all the best!
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Membership Committee
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by Sonia Smith, Chair
June is just around the corner and that is when WAA’s fiscal year ends. You have received the notice from the state association office with a reminder that your dues will be expiring on June 30, 2012.
I would like to remind our members of the advantages of renewing. One of the major benefits is the networking aspect at our local chapter levels and at WAA sponsored seminars. You are able to access the website www.waa.org to get the latest news and local chapter information. WAA is able to sponsor Gear Up seminars and other update/tax seminars and your membership entitles you to a discount off those seminars. As a member you are kept up to date with the legislative issues that affect the businesses of our clients and our own accounting profession. WAA Member Benefits team is continually working on bringing new items at great rates to our members.
Being a WAA member offers many benefits to you. Our fiscal year is July 1-June 30. The member dues help WAA in budgeting for the next fiscal year. Renewing your membership on a timely basis helps WAA continue to offer current and new benefits as well as additional resources to all our members. A member may join at any time during the year, but our renewal period stays the same. We understand we all have busy schedules and the renewal notices may get put aside. Take a few moments now to renew so you won’t be getting any reminder notices. Renewing online is a very simple process and can be completed in less than 10 minutes.
We would hate to have you lose these benefits. The value far exceeds the costs that being a member can contribute to your professional success. Thank you for being part of our professional association and I look forward to seeing you at one of our future WAA events/seminars.
Go to www.waa.org/member-benefits to view all of the WAA benefits.
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Nominations Committee
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by Jerry Gintz, Chair
Greetings! By now, most of us have reconnected to the rest of the world and are dealing with new opportunities and challenges, as we move forward within this new-year. We hope your tax season was all you planned for it to be and that the road ahead looks clear for you.
As you may be aware, WAA has gone and continues to go through significant and deliberate change, with regard to how the association best supports its members and the accounting and tax professional community, in general. It is very exciting to see the process develop and unfold. This past year, key WAA members have spent some very intense time reevaluating the association, top to bottom. We are now in the process of unpacking the strategy boxes and we are very pleased with how that work is progressing.
Currently, WAA is in its leadership acquisition and development season. All four WAA Chapters have nominations underway, as is the case for the WAA Board of Directors. We do have a couple of positions open at the state level. We have a one-year and a two-year position open. We are looking for someone whom has board of director experience already, or someone who is highly motivated to put their leadership skills to valuable use in helping WAA complete its retooling. We are positioning WAA to be able to attract the next generation of accountants and tax professionals while being able to better serve our existing membership.
If you are interested in helping us accomplish this, or would like to nominate someone whom you think would be a valuable addition to the board of directors, please contact me at:
Phone: 253-848-9241
e-mail: [email protected]
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Reset, Go! Leadership 2012
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by Jerry Gintz, Chair
We have an incredible Leadership event coming up at La Quinta Inn, Tacoma, May 18th and 19th. If you are a WAA Chapter Leader, a member of the WAA State Board of Directors, or a WAA State Committee Chair, you need to attend this event. It is not an option. AND you stand a very good chance of winning an iPad III!
We have all new Association management in place, brand new technologies in place, including a new web-site that is tied to a real-time database. All leaders, at all levels, will have access to real-time data and leadership tools. You will learn how all this works and how it will make your roll in leadership more efficient, by far!
This is a great time to be an active WAA leader. You are very likely to engage in new technologies that can also be implemented in your own practice. Everybody wins!
WAA has national recognition, within NSA (National Society of Accountants) as having one, if not the best leadership training program in the country. We hold this event each year, as a premier opportunity for new and continuing leaders to gain all the tools and learn the processes needed to successfully play their role as a leader within WAA. This is also a great career building opportunity, as all of the experience that unfolds from your WAA leadership role easily transfers directly to your leadership role/requirements within your practice or position within the firm you work for. It also allows mature practitioners an exceptional opportunity to give back and/or mentor/encourage the next generation of accountants and tax professionals.
If you qualify to attend and have not registered yet, click here to do so, now. If you are not yet in a WAA Leadership role, then put it on your things-to-get-done, next year, list. Let your interest be known to your Chapter Leaders or contact one of your State Board of Directors. You can get on the Leadership Track at any time. Do yourself/your employer and your career a big favor and get on “track” now!
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Convention 2012
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by Charlie Grass, Chair
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At the Holiday Inn in Renton, on Thursday, June 21, Camp fun and games will include the Camp Counselor’s Luncheon (a.k.a. Chapter Officers by invitation only, thanks!), Camp Council (Annual Meeting, no charge for participation in the meeting only), Campfire (firewater provided in the Hospitality Room), Vittles and Entertainment rounds out the evening (Counselors will keep the Campfire going after dinner!).
On Friday, June 22, the fun and games will continue in our CPE class (“Small Business Accounting”), as we explore issues surrounding the accrual vs. cash methods of accounting, inventory, fixed asset accounting, miss-classification of expenses and miss-statement of material amounts. This class is a review of some accounting concepts of particular interest to those preparing income tax returns, each topic is important to unraveling the information for a business income tax return.
Special attention will be given to those issues most commonly found with small businesses possessing limited accounting knowledge that keep their own books and records. Of course, practical examples, information on sources and other information will be shared as part of this class. Participants are encouraged to participate and ask questions of the instructor so come prepared to jump in! These 8 hours of Continuing Education will include lunch. Our director for this course will be Lance K. Mertz, CMA.
Your Camp Counselors look forward to seeing you at Camp Wanna-Maka-Buck in June!
More details and registration...
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Note from the NSA Director
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by Kathy Hettick
Why join a national tax & accounting organization? As an NSA member, we receive weekly updates and alerts as to what is going on in our industry and with the IRS. Here are a couple important excerpts from the April 27 edition:
Practitioners with CCE Issues Get Priority Number
A toll-free priority service phone number was unveiled on April 2 for tax practitioners handling Campus Correspondence Examination phone calls and correspondence, the Internal Revenue Service Small Business/Self-Employed Division said on its website.
Following a series of prompts, calls will be routed to either the SB/SE Examination or Wage & Investment Examination line, the tax agency said. Issues raised beyond the CCE scope will be referred or transferred to the appropriate IRS functions.
The new number is (866) 860-4259. No more than five clients will be addressed per call, SB/SE said.
IRS Seeks Public Comment on Form 1040 Series
The Internal Revenue Service is asking for public comment on all forms used by individual taxpayers, according to a notice in the April 24 Federal Register.
The specific items are:
- Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return;
- Schedules A, B, C, C-EZ, D, D-1, E, EIC, F, H, J, R, and SE;
- Form 1040A;
- Form 1040EZ;
- Form 1040NR;
- Form 1040NR-EZ;
- Form 1040X; and
- all related attachments to these forms.
IRS said comments should address: whether the collection of information has practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the paperwork burden on taxpayers; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology; and estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.
Comments are due by May 24 and should be sent to Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Room 10235, Attention: Desk Officer for Treasury, New Executive Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20503; and to the Treasury PRA Clearance Officer, Treasury Department, 1750 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Suite 11020, Washington, D.C. 20220 or www.PRAComment.gov.
Stay connected by joining NSA now and start receiving great membership value! For more information, log on to www.nsacct.org or contact me at [email protected]
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