Tag Archives: CPA

How to Find a Qualified Tax Preparer In Your Geographic Area

As you might imagine, we get quite a few inquiries for tax preparation services, but a) we only do taxes for our small business accounting & bookkeeping clients, and b) we only work with clients in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. I’m currently in the process of interviewing qualified CPAs and bookkeepers to develop a vetted list of firms to whom I can refer potential clients, but in the meantime, I do have a solution for finding a good local tax preparer — the National Association of Tax Professionals’ Find a Tax Preparer (natptax.com) searchable directory.

NATP is one of my favorite professional organizations, and their “Find A Tax Pro” tool works great! When you use the link above, it will automatically filter for folks who are NATP members — which means these people are voluntarily taking the extra step to obtain excellent education in the field on a monthly basis (via e-newsletters, webinars, conferences, their research service, quizzes, and the regular TaxPro magazine), as tax guidance changes so frequently.

(No, I don’t earn commissions for this — I just have great respect for them, have been a member most of my career, have taken countless courses with their instructors, and have been generally impressed with their research service. I also really appreciate what a solid ratio they have of female officers, managers and instructors, which is not always the case in my field. They still need to work on DEI, but let’s be real: so does everyone in accounting and tax, to be honest. It’s an arena rife with underrepresentation issues.)

My suggestion is to use the search box on the right (after you click the button on the bottom of the landing page) and enter the following:

1) What do you need? Tax Preparer

2) Specializing in? All

3) Located in? Type in your city and see if it comes up — if not, pick a slightly larger city nearby, or even your entire state if you prefer.

The thing is, taxes don’t have to be done by a local preparer (so many of us are remote at this point) — however, you do want to work with someone who understands the specific requirements of your geographic area.

Let’s say you were in Chicago, for example — as a local accountant who specializes in small businesses, I might ask things like: whether or not you are collecting/paying sales tax, use tax, bag tax, soda tax, restaurant tax; or if you’re licensed properly with the city; or if your staff is up-to-date on requirements for sexual harassment training; or whether or not your company is in compliance with minimum wage, sick pay, and retirement requirements for employees… but someone outside of this area might not even know those requirements exist.

So even though it might be a remote relationship, it’s still best to go with someone from your area if you can. They might know something about your industry’s requirements in that area that a non-local would not.

Then lastly, scan or do an on-screen search of whatever list comes up based on your filters, and look for people who have the letters “CPA” or “EA” after their names. These are practitioners who went the extra mile (or twenty) to get a professional designation — it doesn’t mean they know everything, but they’re clearly committed to learning everything they can about tax law, so you want one of them!

And if you find a fabulous CPA in the Chicago area who is still taking on new clients, please let me know in the comments! (Bonus points for women-owned firms; extra bonus points for CPAs that offer tax, accounting, bookkeeping and advisory services.)


If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.

FREE CPE/CE Webinar: §199A and Reasonable Compensation – Jan 12 & Feb 2, 2023

Presented by Thomas Gorczynski
Partner/CEO/President
Gorczynski & Associates, LLC

One of my favorite presenters — Tom Gorczynski — is giving a free webinar in conjunction with RCReports (one of my favorite apps), and CPA Academy (one of my favorite education platforms) this Thursday, January 12 (to repeat on Thursday, February 2), on Section 199A and how it interacts with Reasonable Compensation requirements.

The course description from CPA Academy: 

§199A is a key tax deduction available to pass-through entities through tax year 2025. Reasonable compensation determinations have a substantial impact on a taxpayer’s potential §199A deduction and are an important part of tax planning. This course will describe how reasonable compensation intersects with §199A and tax planning with examples.

Learning Objectives

  • Name factors impacting S corporation’s reasonable compensation determinations
  • Describe the effects on §199A of paying less than the reasonable compensation amount
  • Identify the effects on §199A of paying more than the reasonable compensation amount

FREE – 1.0 hour CPE / 1 CE
Field of Study: Taxes

About The Speaker

Thomas A. Gorczynski, EA, USTCP is a nationally recognized speaker and educator on federal tax law matters. He is editor-in-chief of EA Journal, author of the Tom Talks Taxes newsletter, co-author of the PassKey Learning Systems EA Review Series, and co-owner of Compass Tax Educators.


It’s an extremely important topic, and one of the best presenters out there — and it’s free! (No, I’m not being paid to promote this; I simply want to make sure my readers don’t miss out on a golden opportunity.) If you struggle with entity choice calculations due to Section 199A, or if you are unsure how to calculate Reasonable Compensation, you should take this opportunity to learn more.


If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.

Happy 21st Birthday To The Dancing Accountant!

It’s true — our little CPA firm is officially old enough to drink, so let’s raise a glass to the wild ride it’s been. 🥂

To celebrate, we are planning an outdoor community event with the Logan Square Chamber of Commerce in early September — more on that in an upcoming post — but to mark the official date of first hanging out our shingle, we thought it would be fun to share a delightful interview with Mark Goldman, CPA on his podcast, “Where Accountants Go”. This episode was released just three days before our 20th anniversary.

Speaking with Mark was a truly gratifying experience — he was kind, organized, interested, and sincere, and asked great questions. As a sneak preview of a few good ones:

  • How did you end up being interested in Music from an education standpoint, and how did you end up moving towards accounting? 
  • At what point did you decide to further your education with the Masters in Financial Analysis and why that particular major?  Was it difficult to return to school?  
  • How has your practice evolved over the years?  I see you use the DBA The Dancing Accountant.  Was that always the case, or did that come later?  Is it related to a niche, or more about branding?
  • You’ve been listed on the 50 Top Women in Accounting list. Congratulations!  How does that make you feel?  Is it acknowledgement of hard work, even more responsibility, honor…?
  • What does the future look like for you if it goes exactly how you would like it to go?  When you look back on your career & life, what will you want to be able to say you accomplished?
  •  If you could go back in time and give your younger self just one piece of critical advice, what would that be?

We spoke for over half-an-hour and I felt like we could have gone on for days… his conversational style was comfortable and disarming. I enjoyed sharing personal stories, talking about the great folks I’ve studied and worked with, about how hard it was to go back to school while working, how much I love helping small businesses in my neighborhood, how much I hate saying “no”, how a client came up with my business name… and so on. Give it a listen — and raise a glass to our amazing team while you’re at it!

I would love to be remembered as someone who helped keep our communities vibrant by helping small businesses succeed. That’s the whole point of any of this, and my staff is a group of women who feel the same way. Our work really has meaning. ~Nancy McClelland, CPA


If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.

How To Apply for PPP Forgiveness (Loans $150K Or Less; No Employees) Using Biz2Credit

Screenshot from Biz2Credit forgiveness process.

Note: this is an update to an existing blog post — the instructions below are specific to the Biz2Credit PPP lending platform. If you received your loan through another platform, please see my original post.

For over a year we waited for legislation from Congress as well as guidance from both the SBA and IRS as to the interplay between the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). It appears the last of that guidance was issued on August 10, 2021 — so, at this point, as long as you have worked out the interplay between PPP and the Employee Retention Credit (ERC), then you should go ahead and apply. Which means that if you are a sole proprietor and have no employees, you are ready to apply — since ERC is only an issue if you have W-2 employees or are a W-2 employee of your own company.

For PPP draws in 2021, our firm participated in a joint program by AICPA and Biz2Credit called the “CPA Loan Portal”. We’ve prepared the following step-by-step instructions for clients of ours who were funded through this system — however, I believe the instructions are the same for small business owners who applied directly with Biz2Credit. (Let us know in the comments if this is the case or if you had to tweak the approach at all.)

First, a couple general comments for borrowers of $150k or less who are self-employed with no employees:

  • For self-employed with no employees, it’s an “owner compensation replacement” approach, which means you will have 2.5 months’ worth of your prior-year net profit (or gross profit, for those who applied for PPP funding under the last-minute changes to the rules) automatically forgiven. Your forgiveness amount should exactly equal your loan amount, presuming the original loan was calculated properly.
  • According to Biz2Credit on their July 1 webinar (from their PPP Forgiveness Required Documents Customer Guidebook), no documentation is required for sole proprietors with loans of $150k or less:

How-To Instructions for PPP Forgiveness – AICPA Biz2Credit Application – Self-Employed with No Employees

First things first, decide whether you’d like to fill out the forgiveness application yourself or whether you’d like your CPA firm to do it for you for a small fee. Once you’ve informed them that you’d like to DIY, they will need to “assign” the forgiveness application to you, which will trigger an email that looks something like this:

Once you log in to your account using the credentials you created when you signed the PPP draw application just before getting funded, you’ll be walked through a series of screens.

Click the “Apply for Loan Forgiveness” button.

Most of the information will be automatically filled in based on the initial loan application information. There is no need to enter information in any of the fields marked “(Optional)”. Click the “Confirm” button.

A pop-up should suggest you use the 3508-S application, the simplest one – click the Continue button to go to the Basic PPP Loan Information screen.

Covered Period Start Date should default to the disbursement date as the start date. The duration of the covered period can be anywhere from 8-to-24 weeks; if the applicant is self-employed with no employees, we suggest a 10-week period. The end-date will auto-fill.

Most of the information will fill in automatically, but you will have to note the number of employees at the time of the forgiveness application – for self-employed with no employees, the answer is 1.

For a self-employed person with no employees, the Amount of Loan Spent on Payroll Costs should be the full amount of the PPP loan.

Click the green “Next” button on the lower-right corner to continue.

A pop-up will come up – read and click “Accept & Continue” if you agree.

You should get a screen confirming the form was completed and letting you know they have sent an email with a link to Docusign the application. Do not click the “Continue” button until you sign the application. Open your email program in a separate tab to find the email from Biz2Credit Contract Support via Docusign, with the subject, “Biz2Credit : PPP Loan Forgiveness Application Form 3508S”. Keep in mind that it may be in the “Promotions” or “Updates” tab, or in Spam.

Click the orange “Review Document” button in the email.

The Docusign document should open in a separate tab – you may need to allow it to access your location.

Checkmark the agreement and click “Continue”.

Click the “Start” button and follow the guidelines to initial twice and then sign the form. Click the “Finish” button when you are done. Save a copy for your own records.

Go back to the Biz2Credit tab and click “Continue” (if you accidentally closed the tab, please go to the Biz2Credit site and log in again). It is essential that you click the “Continue” button to submit the application.

Click “Ok” on the pop-up. This will take you back to the dashboard – at the bottom, instead of the “Apply for Loan Forgiveness” button, you should see two links: View Submission and View Documents. There is no need to click on these at this point, but seeing them is reassurance that your application has in fact been submitted.

(If you did not download the form after Docusigning, then you can do it at this point, by clicking “View Documents”. It will then take you to a screen with a long list of possible documents – the top link (“E-signed 3508”) allows you to download a pdf of the e-signed document for your records.)

You will receive two more emails from Biz2Credit: 1) an email via Docusign allowing you to view or download the completed document (which at this point you’ve already done); and, 2) a confirmation that your loan forgiveness application is being sent to the SBA.

Now sit tight and await a confirmation email from Biz2Credit once the SBA has forgiven the loan – please make sure to forward this to your CPA firm… and congratulations!

Note: Even though no documentation for loans under $150k is required, occasionally there will be a follow-up email from Biz2Credit requesting certain items. Please forward to your CPA firm if this occurs and they will advise (and they’ll inform your Biz2Credit lending rep that this step should not be required).

For self-employed folks with no employees, the PPP Forgiveness process is very straightforward. Please let us know in the comments if you come across challenges, so others can learn from your experiences — especially for those who applied directly with Biz2Credit instead of through your CPA. Best of luck to you all!


If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.

I Was Named One Of The Top 50 Women In Accounting!

It’s taken me a month to make the announcement, because the award timing was smack-dab in the middle of tax season… but I was recently named one of the Top 50 Women in Accounting by Practice Ignition — one of only 20 women in the United States.

The coveted international annual award, in the words of the sponsors, is determined as such:

Those included in the list came from all corners of the globe and ranked among the highest on our anonymised scoring system which took into account;

  • Dedication to promoting inclusivity and diversity in the workplace and beyond
  • Investment in the next generation and the future leaders of accounting
  • Advocacy of the accounting industry and support of the wider community

I was honored to be nominated, even more so to be awarded, and excited to have the opportunity to share how our firm lifts up the voices of women in our field. The award is designed to celebrate the women who are driving advocacy, change and creating opportunities in the Accounting and Bookkeeping industry.

As such, they asked us the following questions, and I wanted to share my answers, because I feel that an award is only as good as the reasons for its being given. Thank you to Practice Ignition and the greater accounting and bookkeeping community for this wonderful honor.


1) Provide an example of how you are actively promoting inclusivity and diversity in your workplace?

Our firm is focused on a hyper-local population of small businesses in my Chicago neighborhood, so most inclusivity efforts are focused here in the community. I speak Spanish, which enables me to share vital accounting information with an often-underserved population. 

I’ve done significant outreach to Spanish-speaking communities regarding PPP lending. Almost a quarter of Chicagoans are native Spanish speakers, and the pandemic has made the need for professional fiscal guidance for these small business owners more urgent. I spearheaded a pro bono event for our state representative’s office in a largely Latino neighborhood, which was then translated into Spanish, and did a radio interview on a Spanish-langage show to promote it. I also created a blog post with both my interview and the Spanish-translated version of the webinar

I do this work after-hours, for free: not to court clients or try to be a hero, but because I believe all small businesses deserve access to expert guidance, not just those who can afford it—especially during a massive economic contraction. 

I also strive to mentor, coach, and funnel new business towards bookkeepers and accountants of color. I’m privileged to have an amazing network and share with others as much as possible. 

2) Explain how you are investing in, and championing, the future of accounting and advocating for the next generation of leaders?

Because I believe in promoting food security, worker fairness and equitable economics, I’m working to mentor the next generation in the specifics of co-op accounting. I give presentations for the NCBA (National Co-op Business Association), NSAC (National Society of Accountants for Cooperatives) and CPG (Co-op Professionals Guild) on the different types of co-ops, demonstrating their sustainability as an economic structure. The pro bono work I do in these groups is an effective way to share knowledge—teaching valuable skills and modeling leadership for the next generation.

I also offer numerous free webinars and consultations to young women accountants through organizations like Bookkeeping Buds (more below). In addition, I employ three outstanding women as my staff—having introduced two of them to this career path and provided their initial training and development. They receive both monthly and annual paid training hours, and we have weekly mentorship meetings—as well as ad hoc training sessions—and I pay for their continuing education classes. This investment benefits my business in the short run, but I do it because I’m committed to their professional development long-term as women in a male-dominated industry. My first hire has even gone on to start her own bookkeeping business.

3) Provide an example of how you are promoting advocacy of the accounting industry and actively supporting the wider community.

I provide regular pro bono continuing education and mentoring for newer industry members through Bookkeeping Buds, a national community that helps women bookkeepers grow stronger practices by sharing support, resources and education. Throughout the pandemic, I’ve shared my expertise in areas such as PPP,  ERC, RRF, and local/state/industry grants—as well as the bookkeeping and tax ramifications of those programs—extensively: on a daily basis with members on Slack, and through free targeted webinars. I was honored to be awarded 2020’s “Bud of the Year” for my contributions!

My award-winning blog is the community service I offer of which I am proudest, because I use it to.provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds to hire a CPA. I earn no money from ads or commissions.

Finally, I made the decision not to charge my clients for work on COVID-19 relief resources in the first three months of the pandemic. These small businesses were already hard-hit—to ask for money they don’t have during an economic crisis simply didn’t feel right to me. Giving small businesses my time was the best way I could think of to help them—and my beloved Chicago community of Logan Square—survive.


If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.

FREE Webinar Series For Small Biz Owners – Making Sense of Financial Relief Programs

My trusted colleagues over at Wegner CPAs are putting on a two-week series of FREE webinars geared toward small business owners. They will go through each of the following current Federal relief programs designed to help small businesses make it through to a brighter day:

  1. Employee Retention Credit 2021
  2. Employee Retention Credit 2020
  3. Shuttered Venue Operator Grants
  4. Paycheck Protection Program
  5. Restaurant Revitalization Fund
  6. Economic Injury Disaster Loans

All of these programs have been changed over the past month to make them more useful to small business owners — often with the effect that multiple programs are available simultaneously. The resulting complexity is a real challenge, but the amount of financial relief available makes it worth learning what you can (and potentially working with a professional to make it happen).

We have been reaching out directly to clients who we believe qualify for each of these programs — but if you work with us and think you are eligible, yet haven’t been contacted, please let me know.

Webinar Series: Making Cent$$ of Stimulus Money

You can view Wegner CPAs’ Covid-19 Resources and click “webinars”, or see a calendar of all their upcoming webinars and view a selection of previously recorded webinars.

Employee Retention Credit 2021
Tuesday, March 30, 2021
10:00 am – 10:30 am CDT (8:00 am PT / 11:00 pm ET)
ERC in 2021 can result in big dollars for your organization. We will discuss how to determine if you’re eligible and how to be sure you file for the credit timely.
Register

Employee Retention Credit 2020
Wednesday, March 31, 2021
10:00 am – 10:30 am CDT (8:00 am PT / 11:00 pm ET)
Were you eligible for ERC in 2020? Find out as we take a deeper dive into the credit eligibility requirements and rules for last year. We’ll also review what you need to do to claim the credit for 2020.
Register

Shuttered Venue Operator Grants
Thursday, April 1, 2021
10:00 am – 10:30 am CDT (8:00 am PT / 11:00 pm ET)
The SVOG portal opens on April 8th. Are you eligible and ready to apply? Join us to learn more about the program and what you need to be doing now to prepare.
Register

Paycheck Protection Program
Tuesday, April 6, 2021
10:00 am – 10:30 am CDT (8:00 am PT / 11:00 pm ET)
Updates continue to roll out for PPP. We’ll discuss what the soon to be signed extension means for applicants and tips on getting through the application process. We’ll also review the updated loan calculation for Schedule C filers. Don’t forget about PPP loan forgiveness!
Register

Restaurant Revitalization Fund
Wednesday, April 7, 2021
10:00 am – 10:30 am CDT (8:00 am PT / 11:00 pm ET)
The SBA announced that they hope to have RRF up and running by early April. We will review timely released guidance and how to prepare for applying to the program.
Register

Economic Injury Disaster Loans
Thursday, April 8, 2021
10:00 am – 10:30 am CDT (8:00 am PT / 11:00 pm ET)
The EIDL program has continued to evolve over this last year. There are EIDL loans and EIDL grant advances. Are you eligible for either? Learn more about this program and the changes that have come from the last two stimulus bills.
Register

If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.

What The ARPA, ERC, PPP And Other Laws Mean For Your 2020 Taxes

Recent new legislation from Congress and the White House, as well as guidance from the IRS and DOL, has caused sweeping changes for small business owners and individuals, and we tax preparers are still trying to wrap our heads around it — during what was already the most complex and demanding tax season on record.

Specifically, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) included a few provisions that are retroactive to 2020 — and the IRS, various state Departments of Revenue, Department of Labor, and tax software programs are trying to figure out how best to implement these changes as efficiently as possible. (For a breakdown of key provisions in the Act, see this excellent summary.)

These changes include:

1) The first $10,200 per person of 2020 unemployment benefits will no longer be taxable at the federal level, though certain states will continue to tax the full amount (Illinois has asked all taxpayers with unemployment income to hold off on filing returns until the Dept of Revenue has addressed the situation). The IRS will be releasing a worksheet that the tax software companies then need to incorporate into the 1040 returns.

2) A 2020 “Repayment Holiday” for the Marketplace Health Insurance Advance Premium Tax Credit was issued, but implementation questions remain; IRS guidance is expected soon.

3) Another economic impact payment (stimulus check) is on its way. You do not need to file your 2020 tax return right now to claim your check, as the law allows for an additional payment in a few months if your 2020 tax return shows you are entitled to more (vs your 2019 tax return). Conversely, if your income went up in 2020 and you are now ineligible for the full benefit, you’ll want to wait to file your 2020 taxes until after your payment arrives, since you won’t have to pay back the overage on your 2021 tax return.

In addition to the above legislative shifts, the IRS recently released guidance concerning the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) that changed our expectation of how it would be handled on business tax returns for cash-basis business tax filers. Previously we had expected that those who received PPP funds in 2020 and can now (as of the Dec 21 Consolidated Appropriations Act) retroactively claim ERC would adjust for the related deductions on their 2021 tax returns. Not so. These adjustments will have to be made on the 2020 tax returns. As a result, we have had to put approximately 75% of our client business returns on extension.

(Technical note: keep in mind if you are doing tax returns for a client that claimed ERC, not only do you have to reduce deductible wages by the amount of the credit, but also recognize this reduction may impact Section 199A eligible wages for purposes of the 20% qualified business income deduction.)

And yet we are still awaiting essential guidance on whether or not the Employee Retention Credit can be taken on wages paid to >50% owners of a company. Interpretations by tax analysts so far are pretty much split evenly between whether the law as [sloppily] written provides reasonable basis in this area.

I’m guessing you see the challenge here: we don’t yet know the rules for claiming the ERC, and yet we have to report related adjustments (as a direct result of the credit calculation) on the 2020 business tax returns. Most of these returns have a flow-through relationship with the business owners’ personal tax returns — so those may have to be placed on extension as well if we do not get guidance soon.

(Related blog post: please call your representatives and ask for all taxes — estimated quarterly as well as corporate — to be extended; not just the Form 1040.)

We are also expecting guidance about how the IRS wants business owners to treat basis reporting for owners where PPP forgiveness causes issues.

Yet another example of a forced need to wait on certain returns: using tax filing software, we can e-file a return today, but set the payment direct-debit date to a future date — not later than the return due-date. This date has not yet been updated in most tax prep systems to go beyond April 15th to the new due date of May 17th.

It’s particularly frustrating for us as small business advocates, because filing a tax return is the only way to get a refund if you’re owed one, and many of our clients may be more in need this year than usual. And yet, for a large number of taxpayers right now, holding off on filing is the recommended approach.

All the while we are trying to help our small business clients respond to 2021 changes, such as important employment law updates; alterations to COBRA and Marketplace subsidies; major modifications to the current round of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP); new relief programs such as the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) and the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF); the aforementioned ERC/PPP maximization… and so much more.

The provisions noted above — and others — may affect your return. Tax professionals everywhere need some time and space to learn about these changes, analyze their impact, and develop personalized recommendations to maximize your COVID-19 tax benefits. Please be patient with us during this extremely stressful time.


If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.

PLEASE Ask Congress To Extend Key Tax Filing Dates

As I outlined in a recent post, the IRS extended the individual tax date for filing, but not business and estimated tax dates, which are the ones that small business owners and their tax preparers truly need.

We are asking everyone to please take a moment to contact their Representatives and Senators in Congress to request these types of taxes be included in the recent extension announced by the IRS.

You can share this great article from Money Magazine with them, outlining the issues, or just ask them to google “AICPA tax deadline small business” — there are a ton of great articles that explain why the need for them to act is so great.

From the American Institute of CPAs:

For reference, here’s a copy of my personal message to them — I called and emailed both of my senators as well as my representative.

We in the small business accounting and tax world would immensely appreciate your taking a few moments of your time to help us and our small business clients out — it has been a tax season like no other and we need your assistance to make it to the other side.


If this or any other posts on the website were useful to you, and your financial situation permits it, please consider contributing to my tip jar. Ths allows me to continue to provide free accounting resources to small businesses who do not have the funds available to hire a CPA.