The Fiscal Cliff Is in Your Hands
As the election nears, the US economy is taking center stage. You may have noticed that every candidate seems to have the ability to take the same numbers and present them in such a way as to make the candidate from the other party look bad. Most candidates aren't economists, and they all seem to find ways to twist the numbers so things look good for their own platforms. But that's neither here nor there. The good news is that three-quarters of US corporate financial executives – the ones who actually work with the numbers – say economic conditions are looking up and 2013 might bring some interesting surprises.
On the down side, financial executives are most concerned with high unemployment numbers, which are expected to continue in 2013, the need for deficit reduction, which has been going in the wrong direction, and the fiscal cliff, which is in the hands of the members of Congress as they decide how to manage the expiring tax cuts, the impending tax increases relating to health care legislation, the alternative minimum tax, and the temporary payroll tax cuts. The good news, at least in relation to the fiscal cliff, is that the resolution of that particular issue is totally in the hands of the electorate. If you want tax cuts to expire, or if you want them to be extended, it's your call. Find out where the candidates stand and make your vote count.
On the down side, financial executives are most concerned with high unemployment numbers, which are expected to continue in 2013, the need for deficit reduction, which has been going in the wrong direction, and the fiscal cliff, which is in the hands of the members of Congress as they decide how to manage the expiring tax cuts, the impending tax increases relating to health care legislation, the alternative minimum tax, and the temporary payroll tax cuts. The good news, at least in relation to the fiscal cliff, is that the resolution of that particular issue is totally in the hands of the electorate. If you want tax cuts to expire, or if you want them to be extended, it's your call. Find out where the candidates stand and make your vote count.
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Gail Perry is Publisher at Sift Media US, Inc. and oversees the content on the Sift websites, AccountingWEB.com and GoingConcern.com. She has been the editor-in-chief at Sift Media US since 2007, overseeing the content on AccountingWEB.
Perry is a CPA and a former senior tax accountant with Big Four firm Deloitte. She maintains a small tax practice, she is a personal finance instructor, and the author of thirty books, including Surviving Financial Downsizing: A Practical Guide to Living Well on Less Income (Adams Media); QuickBooks on Demand (Que); Excel 2007 Macros Made Easy (McGraw Hill); The Complete Idiot's Guide to Doing Your Income Taxes (Alpha/MacMillan); and, most recently, Mint.com for Dummies (John Wiley & Sons). In addition, she is a former columnist for the Indianapolis Star and Indianapolis News daily newspapers.
Perry is a nationally recognized speaker who advises public accountants on using Internet tools to improve their accounting practices. She also taught a college-level introductory accounting class and was on staff at the Indiana CPA Society as a computer applications instructor. For five years, she was a contributing editor for Accounting Today magazine before taking over the helm at AccountingWEB.
Perry is a graduate of Indiana University where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She returned to school to study accounting at Illinois State University, passed the CPA exam (in one sitting!), and worked for Deloitte in the Chicago tax department.
Gail has been named one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Accounting by CPA Practice Advisor magazine and the American Society of Women Accountants.
Perry is a CPA and a former senior tax accountant with Big Four firm Deloitte. She maintains a small tax practice, she is a personal finance instructor, and the author of thirty books, including Surviving Financial Downsizing: A Practical Guide to Living Well on Less Income (Adams Media); QuickBooks on Demand (Que); Excel 2007 Macros Made Easy (McGraw Hill); The Complete Idiot's Guide to Doing Your Income Taxes (Alpha/MacMillan); and, most recently, Mint.com for Dummies (John Wiley & Sons). In addition, she is a former columnist for the Indianapolis Star and Indianapolis News daily newspapers.
Perry is a nationally recognized speaker who advises public accountants on using Internet tools to improve their accounting practices. She also taught a college-level introductory accounting class and was on staff at the Indiana CPA Society as a computer applications instructor. For five years, she was a contributing editor for Accounting Today magazine before taking over the helm at AccountingWEB.
Perry is a graduate of Indiana University where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She returned to school to study accounting at Illinois State University, passed the CPA exam (in one sitting!), and worked for Deloitte in the Chicago tax department.
Gail has been named one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Accounting by CPA Practice Advisor magazine and the American Society of Women Accountants.
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