#bookkeeping
Bookkeeping
Modern bookkeeping techniques using plain-text and automated workflows
Suspense Accounts: How to Park Unidentified Transactions and Still Close on Time
A suspense account is a temporary ledger account that holds an unidentified transaction or an unexplained trial-balance difference so the month-end close can finish on time. This guide covers when to use one, how to record and clear the entries, and how it differs from a clearing account.
Texas Franchise Tax 2026: Filing the Public Information Report and Avoiding Forfeiture
Texas raised the franchise tax no-tax-due threshold to $2.65 million for 2026 and 2027 reports, but LLCs and corporations still owe a Public Information Report by May 15. Missing it triggers forfeiture, personal liability for officers, and loss of access to Texas courts.
Surviving the Workers' Comp Premium Audit: A Small Employer's Field Guide to NCCI Class Codes, Officer Elections, Overtime Carve-Outs, and Subcontractor Traps
Workers' compensation premium is recalculated every year using your actual payroll, and unprepared small employers routinely owe five-figure true-ups. This guide walks through the NCCI premium formula, the standard exception rules, the overtime carve-out math, owner and officer exclusion forms, the subcontractor COI rules that trigger the largest audit hits, and how to dispute a Final Audit Statement.
Circular 230 for Tax Professionals: Conflicts, Section 10.34 Standards, and Avoiding OPR Suspension
A practitioner's walkthrough of Circular 230—Sections 10.22, 10.29, 10.34, 10.36, 10.37, and 10.51—covering conflicts of interest, return-position standards, written-advice hygiene, and how OPR investigations actually proceed.
Economic Nexus and Sales Tax: A 2026 Guide for Online Sellers
Economic nexus requires out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax once they cross a state's threshold — commonly $100,000 in sales. As of January 1, 2026, 16 states have dropped the 200-transaction trigger, and this guide explains the thresholds, marketplace facilitator traps, and a quarterly compliance routine.
Section 174 R&D Expensing in 2026: How Software Startups Recover From the TCJA Capitalization Trap
OBBBA's new Section 174A restores immediate expensing for domestic R&D in tax years after December 31, 2024, and qualifying small businesses can amend 2022–2024 returns by July 6, 2026 to recover overpaid tax. A guide to the three coexisting Section 174 regimes, the Section 41 credit add-back, foreign 15-year amortization, and the statement in lieu of Form 3115.
Section 274(n) Meals and Entertainment After TCJA: 100, 50, and Zero-Percent Categories, and the 2026 Section 274(o) Cliff
A working guide to Section 274's four meal deduction rates—100%, 80%, 50%, and zero—and the 2026 Section 274(o) cliff that ended the employer deduction for breakroom snacks, catered office lunches, and convenience-of-employer meals.
Section 471(c) Inventory Exception: The $32M Rule That Lets Small Businesses Skip UNICAP
For tax year 2026, businesses with a three-year average of gross receipts at or below $32 million can elect Section 471(c) to skip UNICAP, treat inventory as non-incidental materials and supplies, and file Form 3115 — often producing a one-time Section 481(a) deduction in the year of change.
Segregation of Duties With Three Employees: Preventing Embezzlement at Small Businesses
The median fraud at a company with fewer than 100 employees costs $141,000. This guide explains how to apply segregation of duties — separating authorization, custody, recordkeeping, and reconciliation — and use compensating controls when you have only three employees.
Subchapter T Patronage Dividends Explained: How Co-ops Avoid Double Tax, Issue Qualified and Nonqualified Written Notices of Allocation, and Report Member Distributions on Form 1099-PATR
How Subchapter T lets U.S. cooperatives deduct patronage dividends and avoid corporate double tax — covering the 20% cash floor for qualified written notices of allocation, the post-2017 shift toward nonqualified treatment, per-unit retains, Form 1099-PATR box-by-box reporting, Section 199A(g) for specified ag co-ops, and the recordkeeping that turns a deduction into a defensible one.
The 13-Week Cash Flow Forecast: A Survival Guide for Small Business Liquidity
A 13-week cash flow forecast uses the direct method to project weekly cash movement across one quarter, surfacing the exact day a profitable business could still bounce payroll. Here is how to build, read, and roll one forward.
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts: Keep Accounts Receivable Honest
The allowance for doubtful accounts estimates how much of your receivables won't be collected. This guide covers the percentage-of-sales and aging methods, the three journal entries, and the mistakes that distort financial statements.