Business emails/irs tax responses

Learning Goal: I’m working on a accounting writing question and need guidance to help me learn.

Prepare an email response to the following emails. Assume you are a CPA working for a local public accounting firm called Allen, West and Dove, LLP. Your firm provides tax and accounting services including audit, reviews and compilations. There are three partners and a professional staff of sixteen. Financial statement reviews typically cost from $6,000 to $18,000. Individual income tax return preparation typically ranges from $1,500 to $3,500 while business returns range from $2,500 to $12,000.

1. Request for information about your CPA practice. Note: Andy Walters is an existing, long-time client.

From: William Davis

Sent: Monday, March 19, 20XX 8:27 AM

To: <your name>

Subject: CPA Services

Andy Walters gave me your name. I have a small computer service consulting business and am looking for a CPA firm that can help with accounting and tax issues. My company is an LLC and I have two partners. We have four employees. Our bank requires a financial statement review each year. We need the review and our business tax return completed by April 15th. We would also want the three partner’s individual tax returns prepared by your firm.

If you are interested in working with us can you give me some information about your firm? Can you meet the April 15th deadline? Can you provide a fee estimate?

I look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,

William Davis

Computer Technologies LLC

1. Request for technical information from a client of your firm:

From: Angela Boyd

Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 20XX 9:10 AM

To: <your name>

Subject: Question

Hi <your name>. Hope you are doing well. We purchased a commercial rental building last year and our tenant paid six months’ rent in advance in November of last year. The rent covered November and December of last year and the first four months of 20XX. I appreciated getting the cash up front but now that I have had time to think about it, will this cause a tax problem for us? How do we treat this prepaid rent for tax purposes?

Angela

1. You are the controller for a mid-range manufacturing firm located in San Diego. The annual audit has been nearly completed and you want to schedule a meeting with the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors, the audit partner, and the executive management team to discuss issues that arose during the audit and to receive final “sign-off” on management’s assertions and the audit opinion. This must be completed before the audit opinion can be released. Prepare an email inviting the parties to this meeting.

Important info:

• Today is March 21, 20XX
• Members of the Audit Committee: Richard Baxter and Penny Arthur
• Executive Management: CEO Patty Byers, CFO Emma Besler
• Audit Partner: Mary Epstein
• The deadline for the audit opinion is May 15, 20XX
• There were some contentious issues that arose during this year’s audit
• The suitable conference room in your office building is the “Walter Allen Conference Room”
• You should create any other necessary details on your own and they should be reasonable

Part 1 requirement: Write responses to each of the three emails in Word. These will be combined with your submission for Part 2 into a single document (see below).

ICW Part 2 – IRS Response Letter

Important Note: Please use the accompanying IRS Tax Notice (located In the ICW #6 Module) as the notice to which you will write your response letter.

You are a staff accountant for a local CPA firm, Meyers and Meyers, LLP. One of your clients,

Paula Evans contacted you in February of 2016 about a new partnership she formed with four

others. The partnership, Wildwood Acres Partnership, was started in the middle of 2014 and

reports on a calendar year basis (the tax year ends on December 31). Unfortunately, this was

a little late since the 2014 partnership return was due on April 15, 2015.

Paula provided the information and your office promptly prepared the return in late February,

2016. The transmittal letter to Paula included a paragraph warning her that the IRS would

probably assess penalties for late filing. Penalties for partnerships that file late are $195 per

partner, per month (or any part thereof).

On March 29, 2016, Paula called and said she received a late filing penalty notice assessing

$10,725. She faxed the notice to you for review. Based on your review, the assessed amount is

correct.

Facts regarding the partnership:

1. All five partners are individuals and US citizens.

2. All five partners timely filed their 2014 individual income tax returns in September 2015

and included their share of partnership taxable income.

3. All five partners are equal owners of the partnership

Paula wants you to respond to the IRS notice and request relief from the penalty.

Part 2 requirement: Prepare a response letter to the IRS requesting abatement of the penalties based

on Rev. Proc. 84-35. Be sure and reference any attachments you would include with the

response letter, even though you won’t be submitting the attachments on Turnitin.

Important: Combine the three email responses from Part 1 with your response letter from Part 2 Into a single document (Word or pdf) and submit via Turnitin. Your document should include each email response on a separate page (page 1 – response 1, page 2 – response 2, etc., followed by your IRS response letter on a separate page(s).