Welcome to RBF News - our quarterly summary of the important tax, business and financial news and opinion you need to see the bigger picture... and make more informed decisions.

Economic Snapshot
OVERCOMING DOUBTS, US ECONOMY FINDS A WAY FORWARD
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( via The New York Times) - The U.S. economy surged in the first quarter, allaying concern that financial-market volatility and a prolonged government shutdown would cause a slump. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of goods and services produced in the economy, rose at a 3.2 percent annual rate in the first three months of the year.

Economists expect consumer spending to strengthen in the second quarter, as December's market drop and January's government shutdown become memories. But businesses remain cautious, in part because they expect the economy to cool gradually as the effects of last year's tax cuts and spending increases fade. 


Taxes and Tax Planning
IRS ISSUES GUIDANCE ON OPPORTUNITY ZONE INVESTMENTS
( via IRS.gov) - The Internal Revenue Service has issued further details about investing in qualified opportunity zones, a provision of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act aimed at spurring real estate investment in communities.

The proposed regulations permit the deferral of all or part of a gain invested in a Qualified Opportunity Fund, or QO Fund, that would otherwise be includible in income. The gain is deferred until the investment is sold or exchanged or Dec. 31, 2026, whichever date comes earlier. 


Taxes and Tax Planning
TAX REFUNDS TO INDIVIDUALS DOWN $4.4 BILLION, IRS SAYS
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( via IRS.gov) - The Internal Revenue Service  reported a $4.4 billion decline in total tax refunds as of April 19, the first tax season under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, with the average size of tax refunds down about 2 percent.

While the total number of tax refunds increased slightly, from 95,434,000 to 95,737,000, a 0.3 percent increase, the total amount of tax refunds declined 1.7 percent, from $265.326 billion to $260.919 billion. The average amount of the refund also dipped 2.0 percent, from $2,780 to $2,725. 


Taxes and Tax Planning
TAXPAYERS CAN STILL CLAIM RESIDENTIAL ENERGY CREDITS
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( via CPA Practice Advisor) - Individuals may still claim the "residential renewable energy credit" for qualified equipment, including expenses for solar, wind, geothermal and fuel-cell technology. For 2019, this credit is equal to 30% of the cost of alternative energy equipment installed in your home - three times the percentage for the regular residential energy credit.

But the credit is being phased out over a three-year period. For 2020, it drops down to 26%, and then it declines again to 22% for 2021. Thereafter, the credit is no longer available, unless Congress reinstates it. 
  

Managing Your Business
RBF NAVIGATOR: CAPTURING THE VALUE AND POTENTIAL OF YOUR BUSINESS
Now there's a way to calculate the potential value of your company as an operating asset, or its enterprise value, and then build a prioritized plan based on best practices to achieve it. 

It's our new service offering called RBF Navigator. U sing CoreValue, a patented methodology developed at MIT, RBF Navigator utilizes a two-step process to help you better understand, manage and monitor the intangible drivers behind your business. Your enterprise value is the yardstick - and driver - of success, not simply a financial measurement at a particular point in time.

Managing Your Business
5 TIPS FOR DOING BUSINESS IN MASSACHUSETTS AS A DELAWARE CORPORATION
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( via RBF Knowledge Center) - When starting or spinning off a business, there are hundreds of decisions and a few important factors to consider - not the least of which includes how and where to establish your legal business entity. 

While seemingly simple, the filing process has its benefits and nuances that you need to know. RBF CFO Consultant Christopher Schuster offers five suggestions to make the process go more smoothly. 


Managing Your Business
THE ENVELOPE PLEASE: 10 MOST UNUSUAL EXPENSES AWARDS
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( via CFODaily.com) - One thing that all business trips have in common is turning in receipts for travel and expenses.  No doubt you and your staffers have seen some questionable expense reimbursement requests cross your desks. But employees just keep trying to slip things through.

Oversight Systems, developers of expense and billing compliance software, scoured trillions of transactions for both the corporate and government sector and chose the top 10 Unusual Expenses for special recognition. 


Around the Office
In March, RBF was well represented at (and also a sponsor of) the 55th anniversary gala for Tutoring Plus of Cambridge. Pictured from left are Gilda Nogueira, president & CEO, East Cambridge Savings Bank, RBF partner Sal Falzone and his wife Liz, RBF partners Paul Bardaro and Ron Baptista, and RBF controller consultant Cutty Thomas. Tutoring Plus advances educational equity by supporting youth in their academic, personal and social growth through free tutoring and mentoring programs.

In the publishing arena, RBF partner Vincenzo Botta's article on the tax-saving benefits to contractors of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act appeared in last month's member newsletter of the Associated Builders & Contractors/Massachusetts chapter. The article is also available in our online Knowledge Center here.  

The current issue of Russell Bedford's Business World magazine has been published featuring an article by RBF partner Bill Rucci about five countries that have come together to fight international tax crime.  The article can be accessed in digital form here. RBF is the New England-area affiliate of Russell Bedford International, a leading global network of independent accounting and business consulting firms with a combined 350 offices in 100 countries. 

In RBF client news, congratulations to RBF client James Kenney, founder and president of managed care pharmacy consulting firm JTKENNEY, LLC, who took the helm as president of the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy at the group's annual meeting last month in San Diego. AMCP is the leading professional association dedicated to increasing patient access to affordable medicines, improving health outcomes, and ensuring the wise use of health care dollars.

RBF hosted the first monthly meeting of the TipClub networking group's Woburn chapter in March.  TipClub members generate referrals and new business relationships through an integration of online and face-to-face business networking in over 30 cities nationwide. Learn more about the group here

Speaking of networking, RBF partner Jack Malley attended the Mintz/ML Strategies Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Industry Summit on May 2 in Boston. The fourth annual summit brought together stakeholders and thought leaders from across the industry to discuss legal and policy challenges facing manufacturers, benefits managers, payors, pharmacies and hospitals.
Dan Collins hoists his hard-earned trophy.
And finally,  the entire RBF team celebrated the end of tax season on April 17 with delicious food and drink at the Tulip Lounge in Stoneham. Congratulations to senior accountant Dan Collins, who won RBF's first annual End of Tax Season Push-Up Competition. Way to go, Dan!

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RBF is the  New England-area affiliate of Russell Bedford International, a leading global network of independent accounting and business consulting firms.
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