MSCPA Centennial Celebration!

The entire calendar year of 2009 serves as the Missouri Society of CPAs celebration of its 100th anniversary!

In addition to special advertising opportunities and giveaways, the centennial celebration will culminate with a number of special events, including a one-time-only MSCPA Membership Retreat in Key West, Florida this November.

The July issue of the ASSET will be completely dedicated to the centennial and include reflections on our profession's past, pictures, timelines, and much more.

MSCPA has an new website dedicated to the centennial, check it out at:
www.mocpa100.org.

St. Louis Serves As Site of Big-Studio Film

The St. Louis Business Journal reports that shooting the new $30 million movie, “Up in the Air,” will bring more than George Clooney to St. Louis. It will generate 500 jobs, book 6,000 hotel room nights and create an economic impact of at least $50 million for the region.

http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2009/01/05/story4.html

2009's Top Challenges for Financial Executives

As difficult as 2008 has been, 2009 already has the earmarks of being even more challenging as finance chiefs bear the brunt of the global economic crisis.

FEI lists the top challenges for CPAs running businesses:
http://www.financialexecutives.org/eweb/upload/FEI/FE0209_FinRep_14_16.pdf

Tips for a Tougher Tax Season

Unique economic times, late tax legislation, and uncertainty make preparation more difficult, reports WebCPA.

Year-end tax planning with clients these troubled days, however, is also rife with such issues as the AMT, stock options, expiring tax provisions, gift-giving, income and deduction shifting, and investment impacts. About the only certainty is change.

http://www.webcpa.com/article.cfm?articleid=29904

Accountants Rank Below Funeral Directors in Ethics

WebCPA reported recently on the public perceptions of the honesty and ethics of various professions and found that accountants rank below funeral directors, but above journalists.

The top-rated professions, in order, were nurses, followed by pharmacists, high school teachers and medical doctors, with close to two-thirds of respondents rating all those professions highly. Just over half of the survey respondents consider the honesty and ethics of clergy members and police to be either high or very high.

http://www.webcpa.com/article.cfm?articleid=29996

Despite Down Economy, St. Louis CPA Firms See Business Growth

The St. Louis Business Journal reports that although the economy is suffering, several accounting firms in St. Louis have experienced growth--including MPPW, RubinBrown, Brown Smith Wallace, RSM McGladrey, and BKD.

Read more here:
http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2008/11/24/story8.html?b=1227502800^1736692&brthrs=1

Video on SEC Proposed IFRS Roadmap Available

On November 14, the SEC released for comment its proposed roadmap with milestones and a timeline for IFRS adoption for U.S. public companies in 2014.

Eligible early adopters could use IFRS for filings of financial statements for periods ending on or after December 15, 2009.

The 90-day comment period begins with the roadmap's publication in the Federal Register.

Arleen Thomas, AICPA Senior Vice President, Member Competency & Development, addresses the announcement in a 2-minute downloadable video.