February 2022 - Wiss & Company, LLP

Can I Raise Cash Flow for My Small Business With Government Money?

Written on February 23, 2022. Posted in Early Stage, Small Business, State & Local Tax Services, Tax.

There’s nothing worse than finding out you could’ve qualified for government funding after it’s too late, especially when your business is in its infancy and you could use all the cash you can get your hands on. Most of the founders we advise aren’t aware of the financial help that’s out there, or which programs are available for their business. We introduce two specific opportunities for government funding that are important for startups to know about: national tax credits and...

Abandoned 401(K) Accounts and the Great Resignation

Written on February 22, 2022. Posted in Employee Benefit Plan Audits.

By Cindy Sandomenico, CPA and Laura K. Zindel, CPA The trend of U.S. workers leaving their jobs and employers struggling with high levels of employee turnover continues to gain momentum. Another 4.5 million U.S. workers quit their jobs in November alone, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, the number of job openings in the United States remains elevated at 10.6 million, as companies across sectors and industries continue to have a hard time recruiting...

Build Back Better Act: the Legislative Lull That Won’t Budge

Written on February 17, 2022. Posted in State & Local Tax Services, Tax, Tax Alerts.

Last year was another busy legislative year with new administration taking office and tax laws being passed left and right. The American Rescue Plan was enacted back in March; the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) was signed into law in November and last, but certainly not least we come to the Build Back Better Act (BBBA) which was the last piece of major legislation the Biden administration sought to enact in 2021. In the face of opposition by some moderate Democratic...

SAS 136: What Plan Sponsors Need to Know About Upcoming Changes to ERISA Plan Audits

Written on February 16, 2022. Posted in Employee Benefit Plan Audits.

By Laura K. Zindel, CPA and Cindy Sandomenico, CPA Employee benefit plan sponsors and their auditing firms need to begin preparing for the adoption of Statement on Auditing Standards No. 136 (SAS 136), Forming an Opinion and Reporting on Financial Statements of Employee Benefit Plans Subject to ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974). This auditing standard was enacted by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), and was originally effective...

What did I do wrong? (Common traps small business owners can avoid)

Written on February 15, 2022. Posted in Early Stage, Small Business, Startups.

If you’re like most founders, when you first begin the process of starting a company, you’re focused on being compliant in every way. You aim to build a business people want to invest in. But even with the best of intentions, you could overlook some rules that have big implications. Taxes are an area in which new small business owners make frequent mistakes. It’s not intentional, they’re usually just unaware. Let’s talk about two specific tax-related errors many of our clients make...

Compassion During COVID: How Wiss Core Values Made a Difference

Written on February 14, 2022. Posted in Wiss Gets Personal, Wiss Gives Back.

Advocate, Impact, Care and Collaborate. These are the “four core ways” here at Wiss. These words are lived through everything we do within the walls of the office and beyond. They are how we define the culture of Wiss with our clients and our coworkers. I started my journey at Wiss in April of this past year and have seen these four core ways in action consistently. It is evident that Wiss has a unique culture that transcends the typical workplace. It is ingrained in the people here...

Real Estate in the Rear View + Outlook for 2022

Written on February 10, 2022. Posted in Construction, Real Estate.

2021 was the first full year that the global economy cycled through the pandemic. What were the predictions going into 2021 and where did we actually end up? Here we take a look at how the real estate and construction industries fared last year and where they’re headed in 2022. Economic Recovery 2021 Prediction: ?-Shaped 2021 Reality: K-Shaped 2022 Outlook: K-shape will continue As 2020 wound down and economists and prognosticators put 2021 in their sights, there were plenty...

How can I take advantage of Qualified Small Business Stock?

Written on February 8, 2022. Posted in Early Stage, Small Business, Startups, Tax.

In the early days of startup formation, it’s helpful to think years into the future — more than five years, to be exact. That’s the minimum term to which the Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) tax exemption applies. QSBS is a big incentive for structuring your U.S.-based business as a C corporation (or converting from an LLC) because it’s reasonable to assume your investors will someday want to exit. When they do, they could be looking to qualify for this huge tax break. What...

ERISA Update and Outlook for 2022

Written on February 3, 2022. Posted in Employee Benefit Plan Audits.

By Cindy Sandomenico, CPA and Laura K. Zindel, CPA Employers have spent the last two years dealing with many challenges and disruptions, and they are now looking to move forward in 2022 against a backdrop of economic and pandemic-related uncertainty and market volatility. Here are four themes that plan sponsors should be keeping a close eye on in 2022. The #1 Financial Story of the Year: Inflation You can’t go anywhere without hearing about inflation—and for a good reason. The...

How Do I Exercise the Stock Options I Was Granted?

Written on February 2, 2022. Posted in Early Stage, Startups.

If you’ve been offered stock options as part of a compensation package at a startup, it may seem like a no-brainer to accept. And that’s usually true — as long as you clearly understand how to turn the initial piece of paper that grants you those options into a tangible investment on which you don’t have to pay income tax rates. It’s common to assume you should hang onto that paper and let it grow for as long as possible. But if you do, you could be in for a rude awakening when...

Month: February 2022