In The News—March 3, 2025

After a seemingly never-ending seesaw on beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting over the last few months, we have good news for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs): It's over! The Treasury has announced an indefinite suspension of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA).

On a somewhat slow news Monday, we also have a couple of tidbits on scams: The first is a warning from the IRS, the second brings into the fold another legendary Florida Man story.

Is the latter enough to become a big screen production, the way John Laroche did in Adaptation?

Probably not, and that's too bad because Hollywood needs more good original content. It's part of the reason viewership of the Academy Awards has plummeted. The numbers aren't out yet for last night's show but in 2024 there were only 19.6 million people watching, down from 46.3 million in 2000, and the occasional 50-plus million during the '90s.

That brings us to today's trivia question, revolving around Tinseltown legend Gene Hackman, who was found dead in his home last week. How many Oscar wins and nominations did Hackman have in his illustrious career? Answer at the end of the news!

IRS news

Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2025 IRS.gov

The Internal Revenue Service today announced its annual Dirty Dozen list of tax scams for 2025 with a warning for taxpayers, businesses and tax professionals to watch out for common schemes that threaten their tax and financial information.

Ranging from email schemes to misleading tax credits, many of the Dirty Dozen items peak during filing season as people prepare their tax returns. In reality, these scams can occur throughout the year as fraudsters look for ways to steal money, personal information and data. Read more...

When Will You Get Your IRS Refund? CPA Practice Advisor

Well, we’re one month into the 2025 IRS income tax filing season, and the daily news about government agencies cutting staff is making this one of the more turbulent seasons since the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Yes, there have been some delays, but most taxpayers we’ve been in contact with have reported receiving their returns within the guidelines in schedule below, or within a week after.

If you’re wondering how long it may take to get your refund when you finally submit your income tax return, you are one of many. For almost 15 years, the question we get the most often has been: “When will I get my tax refund?” Nobody can give you an exact answer, especially this far out, we can give you a pretty good estimate based on a few factors, and the 50-year collective experience of the CPA Practice Advisor team. Read more...

Technology news

Trump and TSMC Announce New $100 Billion Plan to Build Five New U.S. Factories Reuters

TSMC CEO C.C. Wei announced on Monday the Taiwanese semiconductor company plans to make an additional $100 billion investment in the United States and build five additional chips factories in the coming years.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co announced the plan in a meeting at the White House with President Donald Trump. "We must be able to build the chips and semiconductors that we need right here," Trump said. "It's a matter of national security for us."

The $100 billion outlay, which would boost domestic production and make the United States less reliant on semiconductors made in Asia, is in addition to a major prior investment announcement. TSMC agreed in April to expand its planned U.S. investment by $25 billion to $65 billion and to add a third Arizona factory by 2030. Read more...

Avalara Announces Integration for Salesforce Revenue Cloud CPA Practice Advisor

Avalara, Inc., a provider of tax compliance automation software, has released its updated connector for Salesforce’s Revenue Cloud, now available on Salesforce AppExchange, a leading enterprise cloud marketplace.

For Avalara’s partners and customers using Salesforce’s Revenue Cloud, the updated connector offers significant advantages. With Avalara’s single managed package, businesses can simplify their tax compliance needs across CPQ, Billing and Subscription Management within Revenue Cloud.

These enhancements allow customers to realize value and begin calculating taxes in hours, not weeks or months. The connector also supports powerful configuration options, allowing businesses to manage tax policies, multi-company mappings, and unique tax codes effortlessly. Read more...

Accounting news 

Treasury Suspends BOI Reporting and Corporate Transparency Act Treasury.gov

American businesses no longer need to worry about beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting requirements or the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), according to a weekend announcement from the Treasury Department.

To be specific, the Treasury announced that “not only will it not enforce any penalties or fines associated with the beneficial ownership information reporting rule under the existing regulatory deadlines, but it will further not enforce any penalties or fines against U.S. citizens or domestic reporting companies or their beneficial owners after the forthcoming rule changes take effect either.” Read more...

Woodard Welcomes Shirley Koss as Community and Member Success Manager The Woodard Report

We’re excited to share that Shirley Koss has joined the Woodard team as our new Community and Member Success Manager—a role designed to bring even greater value to our coaching and membership programs for accounting professionals.

At Woodard, we believe that strong communities drive professional growth. Whether you're a CPA, tax preparer, bookkeeper, or another accounting professional, the power of peer connection, continuous education, and a strong support network can transform your practice. Shirley’s mission is to help you maximize these opportunities. Read more... 

Mergers and acquisitions 

KPMG to Launch Law Firm Following Court Approval The Wall Street Journal

KPMG has begun to set up a law firm in the U.S. after a court decision made it the first Big Four accounting firm eligible to practice law in the country.

The Arizona Supreme Court on Thursday granted the accounting giant final approval to obtain a license to create its own firm, KPMG Law. The move allows KPMG to greatly expand its legal offerings, for example, into services such as drafting and updating contracts and reconciling legal materials in merger-and-acquisition deals.

At present, KPMG and other accounting firms offer limited legal services, such as advising clients on operations and technology for their legal teams. Read more... 

Other interesting things we found

Florida Man Guilty of Illegal Tax Shelter Wire Fraud Scam CPA Practice Advisor

A Florida man pleaded guilty today to orchestrating a nearly decade-long scheme to promote an illegal tax shelter and commit wire fraud. He also pleaded guilty to assisting in the preparation of false tax returns for tax shelter clients.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Stephen T. Mellinger III, of Delray Beach, was a financial advisor, insurance salesman, and securities broker operating in Florida, Michigan, Mississippi, and elsewhere.

Beginning in late 2013, Mellinger conspired with others to promote an illegal tax shelter whereby clients would claim false tax deductions for so-called “royalty payments” to fraudulently reduce their taxes. Read more...