Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/432767
12 December 2014 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 1 2 D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 4 • w w w C P A P r Tax Research Systems Offer Valuable Interactive Resources By Dustin Wheeler, CPA A s a young boy, I once a c c o m p a n i e d m y parents on a v isit to their CPA's ofce. I c u r i o u s l y l o o k e d around at the thick b l a c k b o o k s t h a t l i n e d t h e b o o k - shelves, not ic i ng t hat t he ta x cou r t cases and internal revenue code went bac k to t he ea rly 19 0 0 s . W it hout a doubt , a t i me-t ravel i ng accou nt a nt f rom a cent u r y ago wou ld be pret t y impressed to see that all of these books and much more ft in a smartphone in the palm of a hand. Online tax research sofware has been a rou nd for more t ha n a decade a nd continues to evolve in nearly equally stunning ways. Sofware vendors have strengthened search capabilities, enabled researchers to collaborate, and added many libraries and tools. Today's sof- ware isn't just made for tax research; it's full of interactive resources that facilitate beter decision-making. However, some practitioners' use of the tax research sofware has not evolved as quickly. They simply search for the answer to a client's question and quote the fndings in a leter or e-mail to the client, and that's all they use the sofware for. Unaware of all the tools their ta x research sofware has to ofer, they miss opportunities for tax planning with their clients or they spend hours manually creating a leter or chart that sofware can generate in seconds. Check out our reviews of the three major tax and accounting research sys- tems for fnancial professionals. • BNA Tax & Accounting Center • Tomson Reuters Checkpoint • Wolters Kluwer, CCH IntelliConnect Tax and accounting professionals can use their research sof t ware in many innovative ways to truly be a trusted advisor for their clients. For example: • Follow tax and accounting news within the research subscriptions, whether it be on a daily, weekly, or some other periodic basis. You w ill likely find updates applicable to your clients' situ- ations, and they will be impressed with your awareness of recent developments. • When preparing multi-state tax returns, create a chart as an outline for the due dates, tax rates and other issues per- taining to each state. It is quite a bit more efcient than going to each state's tax authority website and downloading booklets and instructions. • Data mine clients within tax sofware and then search for planning opportuni- ties. For example, a search for specifc zip codes may reveal obscure local tax credits and incentives. • Many accountants focus on geting a Federal tax return right, but give less atention to state and local tax issues. Efective use of research sofware can help determine nexus for both income and sales ta x pur poses, as well as apportionment planning. An example of this is Bloomberg BNA's Tax and Accounting Center's State Tax Nexus Tools, which generates reports and charts based on the answers to a ques- tionnaire about a company's activities in each state. • IRS response tools (such as Tomson Reuters Checkpoint's IRS Response Library) may be your frst stop afer a client receives a notice. Instead of writing letters from scratch, using sample response letters could save a signifcant amount of time. • Take advantage of mobile site capabili- ties and apps (such as CCH Mobile). You may be able to search your libraries and then e-mail documents to clients while in the airport waiting for a fight. T he t h re e t a x re sea rc h sof t w a re p a c k a g e s r e v i e w e d h a v e m u c h i n common. They are all web-based and contain many primary sources and helpful editorial libraries. However, they have their unique layout, search tools, mobile capabilities, charts/diagrams, and special- ized content oferings. Tose evaluating tax research sofware should test drive the trial versions, experimenting with all aspects including the mobile apps. Afer s u b s c r i bi n g , t r a i n i n g i s e x t re me l y i mpor t a nt i n helpi ng t he u ser t a ke advantage of the many tools and resources that the products of fer. W hi le I was impressed with shelves full of books as a young boy, today I admire scholarly accountants who use tax research sof- ware to its full potential. ● Dustin Wheeler Dustin Wheeler is a tax manager at Hawkins Cloward & Simister in Orem, Utah, where he provides accounting and business advisory services. He blogs about technology and accounting at www.dustinwheelercpa.com . REVIEW SECTIONS BASIC SYSTEM FUNCTIONS • General navigation/ease of use • Content delivery options: paper, CD/DVD, online, All • Organization sorted by relevance/importance • Multiple user management • Multiple browser support • Various subscription options • Search routines • Integration w/T&B; applications for billing, DMS output, etc. CONTENT • Licensing options (named users, concurrent users, site license, etc.) • Multiple providers • Publicly available • Breadth of content (Fed, State, A&A;, other compliance offerings) • Newsletters • Wizards for certain specialized research types • Templating CUSTOMIZATION • User preferences • Alerts • Saved searches/documents INTEGRATION & IMPORT/EXPORT • Integration with Word Document/ client letter integration • Integration with DMS, Portal, Browser toolbar • Saving & printing to multiple fle formats • Activity/usage reporting for management • Support for capturing info for billing back charges to clients HELP/SUPPORT/TRAINING • Built-in support features • System/content update frequency • Support website/documentation • Live support, where is support located, hours • Live chat w/other users • Multiple training options TAX RESEARCH Reviews