Tax practice reviews.Quality control for tax practices. All businesses (including CPA (Computer Press Association, Landing, NJ) An earlier membership organization founded in 1983 that promoted excellence in computer journalism. Its annual awards honored outstanding examples in print, broadcast and electronic media. The CPA disbanded in 2000. practices) need to ensure that the quality of their work meets certain standards and they can document what they do and how they do it. Generally, this process is called "quality control." For accounting firms involved in tax practice, this has taken on new significance with the recent adoption of enforceable en·force tr.v. en·forced, en·forc·ing, en·forc·es 1. To compel observance of or obedience to: enforce a law. 2. statements on standards for tax services (SSTSs) (see Official Releases, JofA, Oct.00, page 139). Now more than ever, it is important for CPAs to examine and evaluate the quality controls in their tax practices. One of the best ways to help ensure that a tax practice is of high quality and meets industry standards is through a tax practice review (TPR TPR 1. temperature, pulse, respiration. 2. total peripheral resistance. TPR 1 Temperature, pulse, respiration 2 Third-party reimbursement, see there 3. Total pulmonary resistance ). GOALS OF A TPR There is no perfect method of managing a tax practice--no way to assure correct decisions by all of a firm's practitioners all of the time. A TPR can be used to determine whether a firm's practice procedures are in accordance Accordance is Bible Study Software for Macintosh developed by OakTree Software, Inc.[] As well as a standalone program, it is the base software packaged by Zondervan in their Bible Study suites for Macintosh. with certain standards, whether the firm complies with those procedures and whether the quality of the firm's practice is sufficient (based on a sampling of its work). Quality can be measured by whether the work done by the firm responded directly to the client's needs, was substantively sub·stan·tive adj. 1. Substantial; considerable. 2. Independent in existence or function; not subordinate. 3. Not imaginary; actual; real. 4. correct, was documented in the files and was communicated to the client in understandable form. All the facets involved in operating a tax practice are examined in a TPR, including the practice's technical and managerial aspects and its pricing of services and engagements, marketing to clients (both current and potential), timeliness of service, development of new services and use of staff (both professional and support). A TPR can take any form, whether it is an internal self-assessment Self-assessment in an organisational setting, according to the EFQM definition, refers to a comprehensive, systematic and regular review of an organisation's activities and results referenced against the EFQM Excellence Model. or an external firm-on-firm review. WHAT'S NEEDED FOR A TPR? A quality control document should be developed to serve as the standard against which the work of the firm's professionals can be measured. While many firms have such documents for their accounting and auditing practices, similar benchmarks for tax practice need to be established. As part of this document, a tax procedures manual should be developed. This should include tracking procedures, checklists and return review procedures. The goal of the manual is consistency Consistency can refer to:
The best way to develop such a manual is to set down in writing the firm's tax procedures and why they were developed. BENEFITS OF A TPR In general, there are many benefits to be gained from reviewing a firm's practice: * A TPR provides a systematic approach to evaluating quality. * A review can identify issues that may be missed or not adequately addressed in normal tax engagements. * Better quality control reduces the risk of error and, thereby, exposure to malpractice malpractice, failure to provide professional services with the skill usually exhibited by responsible and careful members of the profession, resulting in injury, loss, or damage to the party contracting those services. claims. In addition, it may help a firm qualify for discounts in liability insurance and provide a possible defense in certain legal actions. * The exposure to penalty, sanction sanction, in law and ethics, any inducement to individuals or groups to follow or refrain from following a particular course of conduct. All societies impose sanctions on their members in order to encourage approved behavior. or disciplinary proceedings by the IRS An abbreviation for the Internal Revenue Service, a federal agency charged with the responsibility of administering and enforcing internal revenue laws. , the Treasury and/or and/or conj. Used to indicate that either or both of the items connected by it are involved. Usage Note: And/or is widely used in legal and business writing. state boards state boards Examinations administered by a US state board of medical examiners to license a physician in a particular state; these examinations play an ever-decreasing role in state medical licensure, as these bodies now rely on standardized national examinations of accountancy can be reduced. * A firm can evaluate its procedures and select those that establish "best practices" and ensure compliance with the SSTSs. * Procedures that are set forth in company documents and materials but are not being followed in practice are identified. For a discussion of tax practice reviews, see the Tax Practice Management column, edited ed·it tr.v. ed·it·ed, ed·it·ing, ed·its 1. a. To prepare (written material) for publication or presentation, as by correcting, revising, or adapting. b. by Steven Ste´ven n. 1. Voice; speech; language. Ye have as merry a steven As any angel hath that is in heaven. - Chaucer. 2. An outcry; a loud call; a clamor. To set steven to make an appointment. Holub, in the December December: see month. 2000 issue of The Tax Adviser. DIRECTORY OF AICPA AICPA See American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). SELECTED SERVICES To order publications, call the order department and not the issuing division All addresses and job change information should be mailed or faxed to membership records in New Jersey (the changes will be made automatically for all publications included in your membership). Also, all accounting and auditing practice questions should be directed to the Technical Information Hotline 1. (company) Hotline - Hotline Communications Ltd.. 2. (messaging) Hotline - Hotline Connect. , 888/777-7077.
AICPA New York 212/596-6200
Fax number 212/596-6213
AICPA New Jersey 201/938-3000
Fax number 201/938-3329
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Fax number 202/638-4512
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(dial from a fax machine) 201/938-3787
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helpline 888/777-7077
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Letter,
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SEC Practice Section
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Public file information 800/272-3476
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matters) 202/434/9205
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accounting 212/596-6157
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Journal of Accountancy (see also page 140) 201/938-3292
Jof A letters to the editor: Write to "Letters to the Editor,
Journal of Accountancy," at New Jersey address below
Library services 888/777-7077
Fax number 201/938-3955
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(for insurance programs, see affinity listings)
Membership admissions/records 888/777-7077(*)
Fax number 201/938-3108
MEMSAT
Fax 800/362/5066
Voice mail 888/999-9252
E-mail memsat@aicpaorg
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Order department 888/777-7077(*)
Fax number 800/362-5066
Credit and collections 201/938-3461/3462
PFP member section 201/938-3659
The Practicing CPA (editorial) 201/938-3798
Professional ethics 888/777-7077
Public relations and communications 212/596-6106
Peer review 201/938-3030/7476
Personal Financial Specialist Designation 200/938-3099
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State society relations 202/434-9257
Subscriptions/publications customer
service 888/777-7077(*)
Fax number 201/938-3344
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Tax section membership 202/434-9270
The Tax Adviser (editorial) 201/938-3444
Technical Information Hotline 888/777-7077
(auditing and accounting practice
inquiries)
Women and family issues 212/596-6226
(*) Phone coverage extended till 7:00 p.m. EST P.M. also p.m. or p.m. abbr. post meridiem Usage Note: By definition, 12 a.m. . New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of 1211 Avenue of the Americas A·mer·i·cas , the See America. New York, N.Y. 10036-8775 New Jersey Harborside har·bor·side n. The area adjacent to a harbor. Financial Center 201 Plaza For the hotel in New York City, see . Plaza (IPA /'plaθa/ or /'plasa/ Three Jersey City, N.J. 07311-3881 Washington Washington, town, England Washington, town (1991 pop. 48,856), Sunderland metropolitan district, NE England. Washington was designated one of the new towns in 1964 to alleviate overpopulation in the Tyneside-Wearside area. , D.C. 1455 Pennyslvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20004-1081
Affinity Programs
Insurance programs
AON Insurance Services
Life for individuals 800/223-7473
Disability 800/223-7473
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Excess major medical 800/221-3023
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Group Variable Universal Life 800/223-7473
Long-term care 800/223-7473
Medicare supplement 800/957-3195
Personal liability umbrella 800/223-7473
Professional liability 800/221-3023
National General Insurance Co
Automobile 800/847-2886
Home 800/847-7233
Retirement programs (T. Rowe Price) 800/382-4272
Car rental (Hertz) 800/654-2200
CDP # 12353
Computers
Dell Corporation 800/568-8313
IBM (Key code 5245, pin AIC98) 800/426-7235
Credit card (First USA) 800/254-0910
Paymentech 800/824-4313
Employment
Robert Half 888/744-4089
ResumeMatch 800/837-1804
Home mortgages and equity loans (Norwest) 800/272-1210
Knowledge services (KnowledgeSpace) 888/577-8778
Standard & Poor's 800/221-5277
Long-distance telephone (Sprint) 800/953-4214
Overnight delivery (Airborne Express) 800/636-2377
Postage meters and mailing systems
Francotype-Postalia 800/398-3886
Tax research material
(Research Institute of America) 800/431-9025, ext. 3
Xerox Corporation (Contract no 0706109) 800/275-9376, ext. 272
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