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Helping small businesses find overlooked tax breaks

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Financial advisors and tax professionals with small business owner clients should ensure they  have considered every possible break that could help the bottom line, according to one expert.

The deduction for qualified business income of pass-through entities, incentives for energy efficient renovations, opportunity-zone credits, veteran-hiring subsidies and advantageous treatment of research and development costs represent only a few areas in which entrepreneurs may find savings, according to Michael Baynes, CEO of Clarify Capital, a private credit brokerage that assists small- and medium-size business in nonbank financing. 

Baynes often suggests that small business owners speak with a certified public accountant or another professional about breaks, credits or incentives available to them in the tax code in addition to or in lieu of getting a loan after hearing “their actual pain points,” he said in an interview.

“Businesses come to us all the time because they’re looking to grow and expand,” Baynes said. “More of them than not are not aware that these types of credits exist, and they’re not asking the right questions to their financial planners, CPAs and accountants.”

READ MORE: QBI tax break — should it stay or should it go?

A package of extensions of breaks and credits for parents and business owners remains tied up in the Senate, and high-income partnerships face a higher likelihood of audits by the IRS, yet tax expenditures remain the most costly part of the federal budget, according to an analysis last month by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, a nonpartisan fiscal watchdog group. At least 35% of households with $200,000 in income or above itemize on their tax returns — a share that is likely to go higher if the hiked-up standard deduction and lower top individual rates from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire at the end of next year.

Strategies such as the qualified small business stock exemption carry some complications that require professional assistance, but the tax system encourages entrepreneurial investment. For example, simply renovating an office or store could bring tax advantages, according to a blog post earlier this year by Holyoke, Massachusetts-based Meyers Brothers Kalicka Certified Public Accountants.

“Is your small business looking to downsize to new digs now that you have more employees working remotely? Or have you returned full-time to your existing business premises?” the blog read. “In either case, you may find that some renovations are needed to bring the place up to code. If your business makes specific accommodations for disabled individuals, you may qualify for a sizable tax credit. In fact, the disabled access credit may essentially cut the costs of some renovations in half.”

Research and development tax credits, green energy incentives, employer breaks and state and local programs are a few of the “commonly overlooked” areas for many business owners, according to another analysis last month by Sharvil Sheth, a Chicago-based director with top 25 accounting and consulting firm Armanino.

“Are you leaving easy money on the table? Probably — in the form of unclaimed tax credits that would reduce the amount you owe in taxes,” Sheth wrote. “That’s money that could increase your profitability and provide a competitive edge by funding additional technology, staff and strategic initiatives. Yet fewer than 30% of eligible small businesses claim the research and development tax credit, for example, and it’s just one of many credits that business leaders often leave behind.”

READ MORE: How certain small business stock could supercharge tax savings

Small business owners speaking with a professional from any field that affects their company should be sure to “pick their brain about what’s going on currently with your business” to see what may apply to their situation, Baynes said. His “biggest advice to business owners” is that, “If you don’t ask, you won’t find out,” he said.

“You need to be inquisitive with the people that you work with and the people who specialize in these things,” Baynes said. “I’ve always thought that you don’t get things in life unless you speak up and advocate for yourself. So I think that goes for business owners as well.”

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In the blogs: To be continued?

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TikTok and taxes; future of L.A. revenues; engagement limits; and other highlights from our favorite tax bloggers.

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Carr, Riggs & Ingram merges in CapinCrouse

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Carr, Riggs & Ingram, a Top 25 Firm based in Enterprise, Alabama, has added CapinCrouse, a Regional Leader based in Indianapolis, effective Jan. 17, 2025.

The deal is CRI’s biggest merger in its history, and the first since it received outside investment last November from Centerbridge Partners and Bessemer Venture Partners. 

CapinCrouse focuses on exclusively serving nonprofits, such as faith-based  organizations and private colleges. The merger will add 40 partners, 185 professionals and 15 offices to CRI, which has 437 partners and 2,304 staff 

After the outside investment, CRI split its attest and non-attest practices, as is common when accounting firms receive private equity or venture capital funding. Carr, Riggs & Ingram, L.L.C., as an independent licensed CPA firm, is providing assurance, attest and audit services. CRI Advisors, LLC (including its subsidiary entities) operates as a separate legal entity, providing clients with tax and business consulting services.  

“This merger represents an exciting milestone in our firm’s history and a significant  advancement for both CRI and CapinCrouse,” said CRI Advisors LLC chairman Bill Carr in a statement Tuesday. “We have previously invested in firms that specialize in serving faith-based  organizations and private colleges. With the addition of CapinCrouse, CRI is now  positioned to become the leading national provider in these vital markets. By combining  our strengths, we will enhance the value we offer and greatly expand our national  geographical presence. We are proud to welcome CapinCrouse to the CRI family.” 

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. CRI ranked No. 24 on Accounting Today‘s 2024 list of the Top 100 Firms, with $455.36 million in annual revenue. CapinCrouse ranked No. 27 on Accounting Today‘s Regional Leaders list of the Top Firms in the Great Lakes region, with $35.51 million in annual revenue.

“We are very pleased to join CRI,” said Fran Brown, Managing Partner of CapinCrouse. “For  over 50 years, our focus has been on providing innovative service to nonprofit  organizations whose outcomes are measured in lives changed. CRI’s commitment to client service, respect, and integrity is an excellent fit with our mission and firm culture. We will  continue to operate under the CapinCrouse brand and are excited to now have access to  more offerings and resources to further drive exceptional client service.” 

Koltin Consulting Group CEO Allan Koltin advised both firms on the merger. “It is interesting to note that this is CRI’s biggest M&A deal in its history, and it comes on the heels of their private equity deal with Centerbridge Partners and Bessemer Venture Partners,” he said in a statement. “CapinCrouse, a top 125 firm nationally, is viewed by many as the preeminent firm in the country when it comes to the audit and related advisory  services of nonprofits and religious organizations. My intuition suggests that going forward, we will see CRI expanding its geographic reach nationally by combining with more top 200 firms.” 

Last August, CRI added ProSport CPA, a firm in New Kent County, Virginia, offering tax and accounting services within the sports and entertainment niche. In 2023, CRI expanded into Oklahoma by adding Stanfield + O’Dell PC, a firm in Tulsa. CRI expanded to South Carolina in 2022 by adding Lanning Group LLC, a firm based in Mount Pleasant in the Charleston suburbs, and expanded in Florida by adding Alonso & Garcia, a firm in Miami. It expanded that year in Florida by adding Travani & Richter in Jupiter, and in Texas by adding Pharr Bounds LLP in Austin.

In 2022, CapinCrouse acquired the Global Center for Nonprofit Excellence.

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Trump names Mark Uyeda acting chair of SEC

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SEC commissioner Mark Uyeda, speaking at the AICPA & CIMA Conference on Current SEC and PCAOB Developments

President Donald Trump named Mark Uyeda, a Republican member of the Securities and Exchange Commission, as acting chairman of the SEC, while confirmation hearings await for Trump’s official pick as chairman, Paul Atkins.

Uyeda has been an SEC commissioner since 2022 and a member of the staff since 2006. Last month, he discussed at an AICPA & CIMA conference in Washington how the SEC is likely to pursue a more deregulatory approach during the Trump administration. The previous SEC chair, Gary Gensler, has pursued an active approach to enforcement and rulemaking, provoking opposition and a wave of lawsuits from the financial industry. A few weeks after the election, Gensler announced plans to step down on Jan. 20, Inauguration Day. 

“I am honored to serve in this capacity after serving as a Commissioner since 2022, and a member of the staff since 2006,” Uyeda said in a statement Monday. “I have great respect for the knowledge, expertise and experience of the agency and its people. The SEC has a vital mission—protecting investors, maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and facilitating capital formation—that plays a key role in promoting innovation, jobs creation, and the American Dream.”

Last month, Trump named Paul Atkins, a former SEC commissioner, as a replacement for Gensler. Atkins has been a proponent of cryptocurrency, while Gensler had imposed steep penalties on companies in the crypto industry. Confirmation hearings have not yet begun for Atkinds, but he has been meeting with lawmakers privately and is expected to be confirmed.

As acting chairman, Uyeda announced Monday that he would be launching a crypto task force dedicated to developing a comprehensive and clear regulatory framework for crypto assets. The task force will be led by another Republican commissioner, Hester Peirce. 

The task force plans to collaborate with SEC staff and the public to set the SEC on a regulatory path as opposed to pursuing enforcement actions to regulate crypto “retroactively and reactively,” according to a news release.

“This undertaking will take time, patience and much hard work,” Peirce said in a statement. “It will succeed only if the Task Force has input from a wide range of investors, industry participants, academics and other interested parties. We look forward to working hand-in-hand with the public to foster a regulatory environment that protects investors, facilitates capital formation, fosters market integrity, and supports innovation.”

The task force plans to hold roundtables in the future, but in the meantime is asking for public input at [email protected].  

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