In late August, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law. As the name suggests, the legislation is designed to help counter the ill effects of inflation while creating new jobs, lowering healthcare costs, revitalizing manufacturing, and promoting clean energy investment. Key priorities in the legislation include the reduction of carbon emissions and the investment in domestic clean energy manufacturing. To facilitate the changes, several tax updates have been introduced including a 15% corporate minimum tax, a 1% stock buyback fee, and bolstered IRS tax enforcement efforts. There are also new and expanded tax incentives to promote clean energy investments. These incentives create a unique opportunity for real estate and construction companies to obtain significant tax savings.

In September 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2020-07, Not-for-Profit Entities (Topic 958): Presentation and Disclosures by Not-for-Profit Entities for Contributed Nonfinancial Assets.  The new standard is now in effect for annual periods beginning after June 15, 2021, and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after June 15, 2022.

In a memorandum released in September 2022, the IRS has confirmed that if a PPP loan was forgiven based on misrepresentations or omissions by the taxpayer, the taxpayer is not eligible to exclude the forgiven amount from income.  Any portion of the loan proceeds that were forgiven in error must be included in their gross income. 

On August 5, 2022, President Biden signed the PPP and Bank Fraud Enforcement Harmonization Act of 2022, which establishes a 10-year statute of limitations for civil enforcement and criminal charges against borrowers who engage in fraud relating to Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans.

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted many businesses throughout the country. Fortunately, a lot of assistance was offered to keep business entities afloat and help continue their day-to-day operations.  In November of 2021, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued new guidance in their release of ASU 2021-10.

Pennsylvania lawmakers finally reached an agreement this summer to reduce the state’s corporate net income tax (CNIT) rate.  With the enactment of House Bill 1342 as a component of the 2022-2023 fiscal year state budget, signed into law by Governor Wolf in early July, the nation’s second highest state corporate tax rate will see a substantial decrease.

Organizations and companies have been exposed to new and different types of risks over the past several months. Many have tested internal controls like never before, and in some cases, demonstrate the need for a more comprehensive strategy. Recognizing the need for financial statement audits to adapt to this reality, AICPA’s Auditing Standards Board has issued SAS 145.

Although the news has been filled with stories about inflation and rising interest rates, there has been a new change which is good news for many Hamilton taxpayers. In early July, the IRS has extended the timeframe by which qualifying estates can make a portability election. This is an important development for estates of married couples, as they’ll have up to five years after the first spouse’s death to combine both lifetime exclusion amounts. The result is a new opportunity to minimize federal estate and gift tax exposure.

On June 30, 2022, after passage by the State Senate, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed the Fiscal Year 2023 Appropriations Act, also known as the State’s budget for the coming fiscal year.  At $50.6 billion, it is the largest budget in the State’s history and includes a record $6.8 billion surplus.

In early June, the Philadelphia City Council passed a bill that will soon require certain local businesses to provide employees with benefits towards mass transit or bicycle commuting expenses, as more workers return to offices following COVID-19 closures.