Protect Yourself Against Investment Fraud: Regularly Review Your Account Statements

John Merchant, CPA, CFE

Do you have an investment account at a bank or with a brokerage firm?  And, if so, do you carefully study the transactions in your account, either online or when you receive a paper statement?  If not, you should, regardless of how much you trust your banker or investment firm.

Unfortunately, many people simply check their balance to see if they have gained or lost value and ignore the details of transactions.  Recently, a PNC Bank investment […]

October 18, 2012 Accounting, Audit, Forensic Accounting Read more...

Don’t Provide Benefits to Ghosts – Updated Public Death Master File Disclosures

Linh Crider, CPA, CFE

For large benefit plans, ensuring that only eligible members receive benefits can be a challenge.  In order to update their records, many plans utilize the Public Death Master File, a listing of all deaths reported to the Social Security Administration (SSA) from numerous sources.  These sources include family members, funeral homes, hospitals, states, Federal agencies, postal authorities and financial institutions.

However, the SSA determined last year that it can no longer disclose protected state records.  This change […]

October 17, 2012 Accounting, Benefit Plan Accounting, Forensic Accounting Read more...

Controller Takes a Bite Out of DC Area Restaurant with Embezzlement Scheme

Alex Helfand, ENCE, Computer Forensic Specialist

Whether it is for a business lunch or a quick bite with friends, local DC restaurant Clyde’s is a popular dining option.  Unfortunately, the restaurant has become a fraud statistic as their former Controller recently pled guilty to embezzlement.

Nancy Preston, Clyde’s Controller of 30 years, recently pled guilty to embezzling $647,547 over the span of a decade.  She used these embezzled funds to pay personal credit card bills and also contracted with a Clyde’s […]

October 3, 2012 Accounting, Forensic Accounting Read more...

Preventing Fraud with Surprise Audits

Alex Helfand, ENCE, Computer Forensic Specialist

Surprise audits are an important, but often overlooked fraud prevention mechanism.  Many unscrupulous employees anticipate the regular audit and cover their tracks accordingly, but a surprise audit can expose the usually hidden graft.   Additionally, the simple threat of a potential audit can deter fraudulent employee behavior.

These audits often cover the same areas as a routine audit, but in more depth.  Areas of focus in a surprise audit can include:

Accounts Payable.  A common occupational fraud […]

September 26, 2012 Accounting, Audit, Forensic Accounting Read more...

Should it Stay or Should it Go? ERISA Record Retention Rules for Benefit Plans, Part 1 of 2

Jennifer Hohman, CPA

During the June storm that hammered the Northeast, I unfortunately had a tree fall through my house and into my bedroom. Oddly enough, this situation reminded me the importance of saving documents. When the insurance adjuster came to my house, she informed me that my claim would be processed faster and more accurately if I had the original receipts for the damaged items.   I just stared at her and thought “this woman has lost her mind if […]

September 14, 2012 Accounting Read more...

REQUIRED MINIMUM DISTRIBUTION (RMD) PLANNING FOR THOSE WHO ARE TURNING 70 1/2 IN 2012

Glenn Bailey, CPA

Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) planning for those who are turning 70 ½ in 2012.

If you have a 401(k) or traditional IRA plan and are turning 70 ½ this year you are now subject to the RMD rules. These require you to take at least a minimum distribution from your plan based on its balance. The law says the distribution must be taken by April 1st of the year after you turn 70 ½.  While sometimes it makes […]

September 12, 2012 Accounting, Tax Read more...

2012 IS WINDING DOWN. WHAT SHOULD YOU BE DOING?

Lately every time I open up my e-mail I am getting a forwarded e-mail from a friend or family member about the tax changes that are coming and how everyone is going to end up paying more money to Uncle Sam.  None of these e-mails ever address the most important question we need to ask.  What can we do to prepare for these changes?

To start with we need to know what we should not be doing.  The worst thing […]

September 11, 2012 Accounting, Tax Read more...

What to Do if You Suspect Fraud in Your Organization

Alex Helfand, ENCE, Computer Forensic Specialist

As an executive or business owner, do you know what to do if you suspect that fraud is occurring in your organization?  Perhaps you have spotted some unusual employee behavior or lifestyle habits that don’t seem quite right, or you have found irregularities on reconciliations and the explanations that your employees provide are vague and confusing.

By bringing in forensic experts and consulting with legal counsel, you can stop fraud in its tracks.  And, by […]

August 22, 2012 Accounting, Forensic Accounting Read more...

401(k) Participant Fee Disclosure Requirements: Only 10 More Days to Comply

Fabricia Edwards, CPA

Update: These regulations came into effect on August 30, 2012.  If you have compliance questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me via the information above.

New ERISA regulation, under section 404(a)(5) (otherwise known as the participant fee disclosure), requires that plan participants are provided with an increased level of investment information, including plan expenses and fees.  Under this regulation, plans must provide information in a format that will enable participants to compare the available investment […]

August 20, 2012 Accounting, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

DC REPEALS MUNICIPAL BOND INCOME TAX

Sean Urbany, CPA

On July 30, 2013, District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray signed the “Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2013.” Part of this legislation, the Out-of-State Municipal Bond Tax Repeal Emergency Act of 2013, repeals the 2011 law which required interest income from out-of-state municipal bonds acquired after January 1, 2013 to be included in determining DC taxable income for individuals, estates, and trusts.

Due to this new legislation, there will be no change from prior years […]

August 13, 2012 Accounting, Tax Read more...