info, Author at Urish Popeck

Senior Auditor

Posted on October 2021October 2021 by info

Overview

We are looking for a Senior Auditor within the audit/assurance group at a large regional CPA firm. We are looking for candidates who have current public accounting or corporate accounting experience. This position is a hybrid remote position with some travel to client locations and firm office locations as deemed necessary. Candidate will work on attestation and consulting engagements in various industries and must have the ability to proactively interact with client management and successfully lead the planning and field work aspects of each engagement. The candidate will help the Firm maintain high quality engagements and make better strategic decisions for the Firm’s business plan.

What to expect from this role

Hands on experience with monitoring and overseeing audits/reviews/compilation processes from start to finish
Exposure to accounting processes, client servicing, etc.
Learning how to organize, multitask, and manage time
Exposure to the field of accounting, financial reporting, and its various responsibilities
Learning accounting operations, best practices, GAAP and IFRS accounting and reporting standards

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Assist managers/partners on all aspects of attestation engagements (audit planning, fieldwork, and wrap up)
Prepare and analyze financial statements
Evaluate internal controls and understand each client’s business model.
Development and review of audit documents, work papers, and preparation of client documents
Build strong relationships with clients to gather information, resolve audit-related problems, make recommendations, etc.
Help others develop professionally through coaching
Use best practices and conduct high quality audits
Works within the Firm’s policies and procedures
Work effectively with engagement managers and partners in the timely completion of each engagement

Requirements:

Bachelor Degree in Accounting or related finance degree
CPA or working towards certification
1 to 5 years of current or recent audit experience in public accounting
Keen attention to detail and dependable
Personable, ambitious and looking for a career path opportunity
Must be able to work overtime as needed to meet client needs beyond regularly scheduled work day (evenings and weekends)
Knowledge of accounting and ERP systems desired but not required

Job Type: Full-time

Location – York, PA or Central PA area, Remote

Job Type: Full-time

Q&A: Breaking Down The Chip Shortage

Posted on October 2021November 2021 by info

Whether you’re the CEO of a manufacturing firm struggling to gain access to the materials needed for your production process or a consumer unable to find that new car you’ve been planning to buy — or both — you’ve likely seen the effects of the chip shortage firsthand.

As we enter the holiday season with no end in sight for the shortage, people everywhere are asking themselves: What’s going to happen next?

Eskander Yavar, BDO’s National Manufacturing Practice Leader, sat down with Tom Stringer, BDO’s Site Selection & Incentives Practice Leader, to dig deep into the chip shortage and answer some pressing questions: What’s causing it, how long will it last and why are there outsized impacts for the automotive sector?

Eskander Yavar: What caused the chip shortage?

Tom Stringer: Believe it or not, industry reports dating back before COVID-19 warned of the risk of a pending shortage, as demand for 200mm manufacturing equipment — which is critical to manufacture chips — outpaced production. Shortly after the pandemic hit, its disruption was immediately clear, as the demand for digital products and services dramatically increased and production lines were shuttered globally. Even though manufacturers and tech companies began to stock up on semiconductors in hopes of withstanding the storm, the spike in need for chips has yet to decline.

Eskander: Speaking of the evolving digital environment, where can the average consumer expect to find chips in their day-to-day products?

Tom: You’d be amazed — there are chips in products you wouldn’t suspect, including toothbrushes, washing machines, children’s toys and more. More apparent items include laptops, cellphones, cars and smart home appliances. The list goes on. And the number of chips per product vary by the complexity of its capabilities. For example, cars today come with a slew of new digital features requiring hundreds of chips and integrated circuits per vehicle. Additionally, with the expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT), the need for chips in day-to-day items is growing exponentially.

Eskander: Can you explain why the chip shortage has affected the automotive sector so significantly and how companies have responded?

Tom: At the outbreak of COVID-19, demand for cars dropped pretty drastically — after all, we were under stay-at-home orders, and daily commutes to work and school were replaced with virtual solutions. And above all, people were concerned for their health and didn’t want to risk travel, even domestically. For the average consumer, cars were no longer as much of a necessity. This is in addition to production shutdowns that idled the industry and reduced the available supply of new product. But as restrictions eased, cases leveled and vaccines became available, consumers were ready to spend the discretionary cash they’d saved over the past year. At the same time, many were looking forward to planning road trip vacations in lieu of air travel.

But chip production still hadn’t bounced back since the pre-COVID-19 demand surges. Dealership lots emptied quickly. As a result, many automotive manufacturers significantly cut production targets, and some temporarily shut down facilities or slow-rolled production, while others are rationing their chip supply for their more expensive models to capitalize on profit margins. In some cases, consumers have had to absorb the costs, whether by waiting additional months for production or paying more for models available.

Eskander: It’s important to note that although this disruption is severe, the automotive sector only makes up a portion of chip manufacturers’ customer base. Consumer electronics, some of which you previously listed, and tech companies are facing similar challenges. When can we expect the chip shortage to subside?

Tom: Unfortunately, we’ll likely continue to see its disruption for the next four to five years until production capacity returns. And in the second half of the decade, manufacturers will need to prioritize quality control and verify the legitimacy of their chip supply. Any time there’s heightened demand, there’s fraud right behind it. We’ll likely see counterfeit chips enter the market and our supply chains, which will cause cascading issues until verifiable and certified manufacturing capacity catches up to demand.

But the good news is there are solutions on the horizon. There’s legislation called the CHIPS for America Act, which is a Trump-era policy that the Biden administration has doubled down on. Its goal is to bring as much chip manufacturing technology to the U.S. as possible, because so much of its production and sourcing comes from international suppliers.

U.S. chip manufacturers have an opportunity to capture federal financial incentives by building new production capacity in the U.S. or repatriating existing capacity. Some have already made substantial investments in chip facilities and new 200mm equipment, but they’ll need to assess location criteria and capitalize on incentive savings to maximize value.

Eskander: It sounds like solutions will require considerable funding. In the meantime, chip manufacturers can consider refurbishing existing equipment to improve capacity. Nevertheless, it’s good to know there’s optimism.

The bottom line

The chip shortage isn’t going away, and its effects will ripple through global supply chains for years to come. Manufacturers must respond to the current impacts while also building chip shortage considerations into their business plan for the years ahead.

Consider these key steps to help preserve business continuity and respond to the ongoing impacts of the chip shortage:

Stay up to date on changing legislation and incentives related to the chip shortage to ensure you’re taking advantage of all possible opportunities to protect and strengthen your business.
Build additional security measures into your supply chain now to reduce vulnerability to fraud in the future.
Proactively communicate with your investors so they understand the impact of the chip shortage on your business and what that will mean for your business outlook over the coming months.
If you haven’t already, invest now in expanding your manufacturing capacity.
Incorporate considerations related to the chip shortage in your business continuity planning.

SALT Deduction Cap, States Have No Constitutional Claims To Challenge

Posted on October 2021October 2021 by info

Salt Deduction Cap

On October 5, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit affirmed a New York federal district court and rejected four states’ constitutional challenges to the $10,000 limitation on the federal income tax deduction for state and local taxes paid by individuals. This was enacted as part of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the SALT deduction cap).

Four states – Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey and New York – argued that the SALT deduction cap is unconstitutional. This is because because the SALT deduction is constitutionally mandated by the 16th Amendment, and alternatively. Secondly, the cap violates the 10th Amendment because it coerces states to abandon their preferred fiscal policies. While the District Court and 2nd Circuit agreed the states had standing to sue the federal government, the District Court’s dismissal of the case for failure to state a claim on the merits was upheld and affirmed by the 2nd Circuit.

The 2nd Circuit agreed with the District Court that an unlimited or “significant” SALT deduction is not constitutionally mandated by the 16th Amendment. After a lengthy discussion on the history of income taxation in the United States, as well as the history of SALT deduction, the court determined that nothing in the text of the Constitution (specifically under the 16th Amendment) or the history of the SALT deduction mandates a full deduction.

Further, the 2nd Circuit concluded that the SALT deduction cap does not unconstitutionally infringe on state sovereignty. The states argued the cap coerces them to abandon their preferred fiscal policies. The 2nd Circuit responded that it “agree[s] with the District Court that ‘the bare fact that an otherwise valid federal law necessarily affects the decisional landscape within which states must choose how to exercise their own sovereign authority hardly renders the law an unconstitutional infringement of state power.’” States failed to prove that their taxpayers’ total federal tax burden is so high that states cannot fund themselves.

Finally, the 2nd Circuit dismissed the states’ claim that the SALT deduction cap violates the independent constitutional principle of equal sovereignty. The 2nd Circuit reasoned the cap had no effect on state sovereignty. This is because the SALT deduction cap applies to all states, and the plaintiff states benefitted most from the pre-TCJA SALT deduction.

Insights

It is unknown whether the four states will petition for a writ of certiorari to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to accept an appeal of their case. Many states have enacted elective pass-through entity tax workarounds. This is to mitigate the SALT deduction cap’s impact on partners and shareholders of closely-held businesses.
The SALT deduction cap is also being negotiated in Congress as part of the $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill. It is uncertain whether a provision related to the cap will be included in the final bill.