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GO Virginia aims for high growth

There are millions in financial incentives on the table targeted at growing and diversifying Virginia’s economy, advocated for by GO Virginia and signed by Gov. Terry McAuliffe this year.

GO Virginia, a bipartisan, business-led coalition, was initiated by the Virginia Business Higher Education Council and the Council on Virginia’s Future. An acronym for the Virginia Initiative for Growth and Opportunity in Each Region, GO Virginia wants to foster privatesector growth and job creation through state incentives and regional cooperation. Check out how GO Virginia plans to do that in 2017 and 2018:

>> State grants of $36 million from the Virginia Growth and

Opportunity Act will inject funding into key regional economic initiatives and industry sectors. A 24-member business-led board will oversee disbursement.

>> Localities that participate in particular incentives to cooperate rather than compete can receive up to 45 percent of personal income taxes generated by eligible projects for up to six years, as mandated in the Collaborative Economic Development Jobs

Act.

>> The Virginia Investment Research Fund, among other vehicles, will support research leading to new business ventures, efforts to attract scholars to Virginia research schools, lab renovation and equipment purchases. The 2017–2018 budget includes $98 million in general funds and bonds for capital investment and research.

Check out all of GO Virginia’s initiatives at govirginia.org. n

CPA ASSEMBLY DAY: JAN. 24, 2017

2017 CPA Assembly Day will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 24. Meet and visit with your elected representatives at the Virginia General Assembly in Richmond. Your presence shows Virginia legislators that CPAs are committed to being an integral part of the legislative process. As CPAs, if we don’t advocate on behalf of the profession and our clients, who will? If you can’t attend in person, watch your email inbox that morning for virtual participation options. Visit vscpa.com/ CPAAssemblyDay to register. n

FEDERALLY SPEAKING

Top news from the Capitol and other national happenings…

NEW FEDERAL DUE DATES

Last spring, Congress enacted several due date changes that take effect for the 2017 filing season. Business entity investors’ Schedules K-1 are due before the investors’ returns are due, and foreign account information (FBAR) is due (and can be extended) when the individual returns are due. Check out a comprehensive chart of the changes from the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) at tinyurl.com/TaxDateChanges.

REDUCED FEE FOR FORM 1023-EZ

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service reduced the fee for small charitable organizations applying for tax-exempt status via the Form 1023-EZ, from $400 to $275. The reduction went into effect July 1, 2016.

FASB ISSUES NONPROFIT FINANCIAL STATEMENT CHANGES

On Aug. 18, 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued the first major update for nonprofit entities’ financial statements since 1993. The update takes effect for annual financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after Dec. 15, 2017, and for interim periods within fiscal years beginning after Dec. 15, 2018. Visit fasb.org for more information. n

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GIVE YOUR CLIENTS THE GIFT OF YEAR-END TAX PLANNING

Looking to provide your clients with

the extra client service they expect and deserve? Here are five topics you can focus on before next year’s filing season gets underway.

1. 2016 year-end tax planning: It’s a perfect time to schedule a November or December appointment with your clients for any follow-up action. Discuss any circumstances that have changed and whether any withholding adjustments might be necessary.

2. Retirement contributions for 2016: Remind clients to double check their contributions in their 401(k) plans while there is still time to make a payroll adjustment in order to maximize the contribution for 2016. Also, for self-employed clients, now is a good time to discuss retirement plan options, such as a SEP IRA,

Solo 401(k) or a SIMPLE IRA.

3. Investment opportunities: Consider collaborating with each of your clients’ investment advisers to plan for potential capital gains/losses and the tax ramifications. So, rather than relying on your client to relay the information correctly (to both sides), ask him or her to provide you their advisor’s contact information and grant you permission to disclose information. Or, schedule a meeting where all interested parties are present to discuss the what might affect the client’s financial situation.

4. Data protection: Remind clients to keep their computers secure, avoid phishing and malware, protect personal information and contact you if they suspect they are a victim of tax-related identity theft. Check out data protection resources from the

U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) at irs.gov and the American

Institute of CPAs (AICPA) at aicpa.org.

5. Health insurance and other health care costs: Ensure your clients understand which provisions of the Affordable Care

Act apply to them. If they need to obtain health insurance coverage, remind them about the open enrollment period in the marketplace from Nov. 1 to Jan. 31, 2017. Discuss their health care costs for the current and future year and ensure they spend their health flexible spending arrangement money. n

Adapted from “7 Key Communication Points for Your Client with Extended Returns” by April Walker, CPA, on the AICPA Insights blog at blog.aicpa.org. EXCELLENT EXCEL >>

Forecast sheet: Excel’s crystal ball

In the last issue, I covered how to use the Add Chart Element button under the Design toolbar to include a Linear Forecast Trendline to your graph. While this function is useful, Karen Helderman, CPA, my colleague at the Auditor of Public Accounts, shared the following function with me, which I have to admit is cooler.

Have you ever longed for a crystal ball to help you predict what the future holds? As CPAs, we have no crystal ball, but we do have the next best thing — Forecast Sheet, courtesy of Excel 2016!

Forecast Sheet allows users to take historical time-based data and forecast the future. By highlighting a table of historical data and choosing the Forecast Sheet icon on the Data toolbar, Excel will immediately return a graph of the historic data and its forecast. Below is an example chart from Forecast Sheet that predicts future university meal-plan revenue for three years:

The blue line represents the historic data while the orange center line shows the forecast. The thin orange lines located above and below the center line shows the upper and lower forecast using the 95 percent confidence interval chosen for this example. The spread between the center, upper and lower forecast increases as the forecast grows further into the future to compensate for uncertainty. n

GEORGE D. STRUDGEON, CPA, CGFM, is

an audit director at the Virginia Auditor of Public Accounts in Richmond. Email him if you have Excel topics you want him to cover.

george.strudgeon@gmail.com connect.vscpa.com/GeorgeStrudgeon