On April 28. 2021, President Biden formally unveiled the next phase in his planned economic recovery package, the $1.8T American Families Plan (AFP). Together with the American Jobs Plan, the AFP is described as a “once in a generation” investment in the diverse needs of American workers and families.

In early March, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), the fourth economic relief package passed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. It contains several provisions to help families, businesses, and local governments deal with the resulting challenges, including a $350B State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund, $10B Capital Projects Fund, $21B for emergency rental assistance, and expansion of the Employee Retention Credit.

For New Jersey and Pennsylvania-area businesses substantially affected by COVID-19, the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) has been a valuable incentive to keep employees on the payroll. Since it was introduced in March 2020 as part of the CARES Act, the ERC has undergone several modifications and extensions, including those made in the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 (Relief Act) and again in March 2021 under the American Rescue Plan Act.

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), signed into law on March 11, 2021, not only contained provisions that affected individuals, businesses, and governmental entities, but it also had implications for accountants in regards to Single Audits.  A Single Audit is an examination of an entity that spends $750,000 or more in governmental assistance per year, through funding such as grants and awards, to ensure that the funds are being spent properly and the entity complies with laws and regulations. 

On March 31, 2021, the Biden Administration released an overview of The American Jobs Plan (Plan), which broadly outlines a proposed $2T modernization investment in the nation’s transportation, environmental and digital infrastructure and spread over eight fiscal years. The Plan includes fixing highways, upgrading ports, airports, and other transit centers. It calls for the modernization of public buildings, including federal facilities, upgrades to water delivery infrastructure, and revitalization of American manufacturing and innovation.

When the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was signed into law on March 11, 2021, it included a provision that allows taxpayers that earned less than $150,000 in modified adjusted gross income to exclude up to $10,200 of unemployment compensation claimed in 2020 on their 2020 individual tax returns (up to $20,400 for married couples filing jointly if both received benefits).

In the fall of 2020, I wrote about whether one should choose to waive or not to waive part of or all of one’s requirement to take a Required Minimum Distribution (RMD).  More than likely, that will not be an option for 2021.

All organizations are required to detail the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on their organization in the financial statement notes. This disclosure requirement is for commercial entities as well as nonprofit entities.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected nearly every aspect of daily life, so preparing for your company or nonprofit organization’s audit may have some significant differences this year, considering the remote environment that many of us are working in today.

I recently attended the Princeton Mercer Regional Chamber’s 8th Annual 2021 Central NJ Real Estate Forecast. I joined nearly 300 others virtually for a very insightful discussion from some of the industry’s top experts.