Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent named Internal Revenue Service chief operating officer Melanie Krause as acting commissioner after the retirement of acting commissioner Douglas O’Donnell.

O’Donnell has been acting commissioner since January, taking over from former IRS commissioner Danny Werfel, who announced he would be resigning on Inauguration Day after President Trump named Billy Long, a former congressman from Missouri, as the next commissioner, even though Werfel’s term wasn’t scheduled to end until November 2027. O’Donnell had been deputy commissioner at the IRS at the time, and was previously acting commissioner from November 2022 to March 2023 during the transition between former IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig and Werfel. 

“The IRS has been my professional home for 38 years,” O’Donnell said in a statement Tuesday. “I care deeply about the institution and its people and am confident that Melanie will be an outstanding steward of the Service until a new Commissioner is confirmed.” 

The IRS has been going through a period of turmoil, with an estimated 6,700 IRS employees laid off last week in the middle of tax season. A group of former IRS commissioners is warning about the impact, including delayed refunds and longer telephone response times. 

Senate confirmation hearings have not yet been scheduled for Long, but he is expected to be questioned about his record of promoting the fraud-plagued Employee Retention Tax Credit after leaving Congress, as well as his sponsorship of a bill to eliminate the IRS while he was in Congress.

Until Long is confirmed, IRS COO Krause will now move into O’Donnell’s deputy commissioner role and serve as acting commissioner of the nation’s tax agency. 

“On behalf of the Treasury Department, I want to thank Doug O’Donnell for his decades of public service and dedication to the nation’s taxpayers,” Bessent said in a statement Tuesday. “He has been a remarkable public servant, and I wish him the best in retirement. At the same time, Melanie Krause and the agency’s leadership team are well positioned to serve during this critical period for the nation in advance of the April tax deadline.” 

Krause has served as IRS COO since April 2024 after acting as deputy commissioner of operations support since January of the same year. As COO, she oversees the operations including the Chief Financial Officer; Chief Risk Office; Facilities Management and Security Services; Human Capital Office; Office of Chief Procurement; Privacy, Governmental Liaison and Disclosure; Research, Applied Analytics and Statistics. 

She began her career at the IRS in October 2021 as chief data and analytics officer. In this role, in addition to leading the RAAS team, Krause also coordinated research activities including using AI and other advanced analytics. Krause also served as acting deputy commissioner for services and enforcement from November 2022 to March 2023. 

Prior to joining the IRS, Krause spent 12 years in the federal oversight community, including the Government Accountability Office and the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General. Krause also maintains an active license as a registered nurse. She holds bachelor, master and doctoral degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  

The Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs released a report Tuesday analyzing how firms can attract and retain talent amid the accountant shortage.

The report analyzes how accounting firms in Pennsylvania are structuring compensation, navigating retention and recruitment challenges, and adapting their benefits to remain competitive.

Jennifer Cryder

“Our latest findings make it clear: salary alone isn’t enough to attract and retain top talent in today’s market and firms need to be thinking differently about what matters,” said PICPA CEO Jennifer Cryder in a statement. “Holistic compensation strategies that include competitive benefits, flexible work arrangements, and clear career development pathways are critical in today’s world. Above all, we intend for this report to provide firm leaders with the insights they need to build a sustainable workforce for the future.”

The report found the firms surveyed by PICPA are experiencing inconsistencies in their ability to retain talent, with 48.3% reporting an increase in staff retention, while 24.1% of the respondents saw a decrease and 27.6% said retention remained stable. Firms reported an average salary increase of 8% in June 2024, up from 5% in July 2023, indicating slow but consistent average salary growth.

Offering comprehensive benefits remains a priority, with 88.5% of the firms surveyed providing medical insurance, 80.8% offering dental coverage, and 73.1% including vision insurance for employees.

Efforts to attract talent are changing, with 58.7% of the firms that responded to the survey increasing their hiring activity over the past year, while 37.9% maintained steady recruitment levels.

Many firms are responding to employee expectations for work-life balance, with 80% of the surveyed firms allowing flex hours outside of core hours and 76.9% offering flexible work options year-round.

With over half (54.2%) of the surveyed firms identifying hiring and talent retention as a top priority in 2025, the report stresses the need for firms to move beyond traditional compensation models. The report found a shift toward total rewards strategies — integrating salary, benefits, professional development and work-life balance — is essential to attracting and retaining top talent in an increasingly competitive market.

The Lease Accounting Institute has launched the Certified Global Lease Accountant training program and professional designation.

The demand for lease accountants has increased with the adoption of new lease accounting standards, ASC 842 and IFRS 16, while the talent pool of accountants has decreased. The CGLA program is an online, self-study format that allows graduates to earn 16 CPE credits.

andia-faith/andiafaith – stock.adobe.com

“We are in the midst of a talent crisis in the accounting profession,” Matt Waters, founder of the Lease Accounting Institute, said in a statement last week. “However, there are three positive trends in lease accounting: professionals from other fields, like real estate, are stepping up to fill the talent gap; CPAs and accountants are specializing; and the specialty of lease accounting offers engaging work for young professionals. Lease accountants track vast portfolios of real estate, fleets of airplanes, ships and more! The CGLA training program and professional designation will benefit lease accountants at all career levels by formalizing a global credential for our growing profession.”

Waters is the lead instructor for the CGLA training program, with over 20 years of experience leading lease accounting teams at Home Depot, American Tower and CoStar Real Estate Manager.