GT Firm News Articles
New Hires at GT
By: Gardiner Thomsen CPAs | email
Gardiner Thomsen is expanding! We are very excited about our recent growth and would like to take this opportunity to introduce the newest members of our team. We know they’ll be valuable assets to the Gardiner Thomsen family and will do a superb job serving our clients.
Ben Wickum, CPA – MBA, University of St. Thomas, Saint Paul, MN. BA, Hamline University, Saint Paul, MN. Ben is an Auditor at our Des Moines office.
Toby Jeffers – BA, University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Toby is an Auditor at our Lincoln office.
Kelvin Kemp, CPA – MBA, BA, University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Kelvin is an Auditor at our Lincoln office.
Justin Williams – BA, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls. Justin is an Auditor at our Des Moines office.
Patrick Gross – BA, University of South Dakota, Vermillion. Patrick is an Auditor at our Sioux Falls office.
Tony Miller – BA, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls. Tony is an Auditor at our Charles City office.
Changes in Accounting Method For Form 3115
By: Gardiner Thomsen CPAs | email
Last year, based on IRS guidance, we changed the way that Section 199 was computed. This year we are researching the Internal Revenue Code, specifically sections 1381, 1382 and 1383, which are related to Section 199, to investigate the possibility of writing down your tax basis member grain inventory (in dollars) to zero. This would have the affect of creating a tax deduction equal to your ending member grain inventory.
While we are still in the research stages, we are aware that one of the “big four” firms is moving forward with this write-down, and is in fact, contacting our clients. We believe this to be somewhat premature as the IRS is still in the process of ruling on contingent matters. However, this strategy is worthy of our continued investigation. It is based upon filing form 3115, which asks the IRS permission to compute inventory under the auspices of section 1383. Once the IRS grants this permission, your cooperative could record a tax deduction equal to your ending member grain inventory. In plain English –an extremely large tax deduction.
As always, we are on top of this cutting edge tax issue and are researching and planning strategy so that if in fact this is a viable option for you cooperative, we will implement this calculation.
New Website Widgets!
By: Gardiner Thomsen CPAs | email
We’re always on the look out for helpful tools to add to our web site– tools that can help you make more informed decisions about managing your resources. Recently we’ve added three new items to enhance the Gardiner Thomsen web site and we want you to know about them!
1. NEW Economic Recovery Calculator– You have free access to a bunch of helpful calculators through our web site, and the latest one can help you estimate what it will take to recover from recent economic losses you may have experienced due to the economy.
2. NEWS YOU CAN USE– We’ve added a “Timely Topics” feed to our home page that includes weekly articles on current trends and concerns in business. From tips on hiring employees to avoiding IRS red flags in income tax reporting, these articles have valuable information that everyone can use.
3. ONLINE TAX UPDATES– We’ve added this new link to our home page! Online Tax Updates is updated regularly with information about the latest tax laws, regulation changes and IRS guidance. It provides strategies to help you keep more of your hard earned money in today’s tough economy.
Check out these great new features today!
Turn To GT For Your Form 990 Tax Filing
By: Gardiner Thomsen CPAs | email
PolicyWorks recently notified credit unions that the 2008 tax year would be their last year of filing a group Form 990. PolicyWorks sighted a number of reasons, one being that “due to increasing complexity, we feel credit unions are better served seeking advice from professionals with tax/accounting expertise”.
With that in mind, PolicyWorks contacted us and we agreed to offer a discounted price of $450-$650 to credit unions to prepare their individual Form 990.
Not only do we offer you the value-added benefits of our credit union focused experience, but we also offer you the peace of mind of being a firm recommended by PolicyWorks for this service. We have been preparing Form 990 for credit unions for the past several years and welcome the opportunity to extend this service to our existing credit union clients and other credit unions wanting to turn to us.
If you would like further information on this or any other service, please call us.
Bohling Joins Nebraska Football Hall of Fame
By: Dennis Gardiner, Partner | email
Congratulations are in order for Brian Bohling upon his induction into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame this past fall. The Nebraska Football Hall of Fame is sponsored by the Nebraska Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame.
Brian joins 10 other inductees into the 2008 class, including former Nebraska Cornhusker Grant Wistrom and Chadron State’s Danny Woodhead.
Brian was a four year letterman at right guard for Nebraska Wesleyan from 1996 to 1999. He was a two-time first-team all-conference selection at Wesleyan and earned NAIA All-America honors as a senior, when he was named Football Gazette’s Offensive Lineman of the Year.
Brian joined Gardiner Thomsen in January 2000 after his graduation with a degree in business administration. He resides in Lincoln with his wife Heather and two children, Tyler and Madison. Congratulations Brian!
In Loving Memory of Mary Gardiner 1932-2008
By: Gardiner Thomsen CPAs | email
We would like to thank all of you for your kind words, thoughts and prayers regarding the passing of Mary Gardiner, Dan’s wife and mother to Mark, Dennis and Darcy. We find comfort in your support and appreciate you for keeping us in your hearts.
Mary contributed to the success of our firm, by helping type audit reports in the evening at home and after the kids went to bed. She also provided support by attending annual meetings, board retreats and hosting hospitality rooms. Mary will be greatly missed.
What are we going to accept as service in the future?
By: Dennis Gardiner, Partner | email
If any of you have made a purchase at a big-box store lately you can probably relate to what I experienced over a recent weekend.
My wife and I went to Lowe’s to order custom blinds for our house. It took four trips to the store to accomplish this task. In our first three trips we encountered no salesperson, an inexperienced salesperson who wasn’t able to help us and computer problems. I shudder to think what we will receive when our order finally arrives.
Next, we went to Best Buy to buy an ink cartridge for a printer. Although I had the number of the cartridge I needed, when I found it, my printer was not listed on the side of the box. I asked the salesperson for assistance, and after about five minutes of surfing the web, he determined that I had the correct cartridge. One would think that Best Buy could equip their staff with more time-efficient tool than Google to answer questions.
Last, we had a special burger recipe that called for ground beef brisket. When we asked the young man behind the meat counter at Hy-Vee if he would grind some for us, he told us that it would mess up their meat grinder and encouraged us to buy regular hamburger.
Is this the level of service we have come to accept–all for a ‘better value’ or the convenience of a one-stop shop?
Although I like to think I am not that old, I remember when we went to lumberyards, hardware stores and meat markets for our specific needs, and we received personal service from individuals who knew their merchandise. It’s unfortunate that we don’t have many shops like that anymore. I feel bad for my kids because a ‘lack of personal service’ is what they are going to experience as a norm as they mature– all because it has been run out of town by the big box stores.
It’s time to raise our standards.
Over forty years ago, Dan Gardiner started the tradition of client service that you have come to expect. It is a tradition we strive to cultivate. Gardiner Thomsen has continued to focus on what we know: farmer cooperatives, credit unions, municipal audits and tax services. We are not trying to be all things to all people. Our firm has tried to stay true to the service levels of the past, while embracing today’s technology. It is our desire to exceed your expectation every time we provide service to you, and preach that level of service to our younger professionals.
Do you wonder where this is going? We will be sending out surveys to the General Managers, CEOs and Auditors of our clients over the coming weeks. We want to hear from you! It is important to us to hear if our service delivery efforts are hitting the mark. So please take a few minutes to complete the surveys, we will use your feedback to continue to improve our client service. We also intend to send a survey out to your Board Chairman. Since, in most cases, we are hired by our client’s board of directors, audit committee or board of supervisors, we want their feedback as well. It is equally important to ensure we are meeting the expectation of these board members.
We hope you know that you don’t have to wait to receive a survey to let us know how we are doing. We have long standing relationship with most of you and obviously want to see that continue. So if you feel we aren’t living up to your expectation, give us a call. Feel free to call myself, Dan or Mark Gardiner in Des Moines, IA, or Dave Thomsen in Lincoln, NE. Nothing will make us happier than to be compared to your memories of the local butcher or the service station attendant who used to check your oil and wash your windshield while they were filling your gas tank!
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We want to hear from you! It is important to us to hear if our service delivery efforts are hitting the mark. |
Phishing Scams Using the IRS
By: Charles L. Telk Jr., CPA, Senior Tax Advisor | email
Recently there have been reports of taxpayers receiving emails from what appears to be the Internal Revenue Service. They look very official and appear to be authentic. The email indicates that the recipient is owed back taxes and will receive a nominal refund, usually around $100, after the IRS processes the refund request in 3 to 5 days. Sensitive confidential banking information is requested.
One should never send confidential information via email unless absolutely sure of whom the recipient is. The IRS never initiates contact with a taxpayer via email. In 21 years of being a CPA, I have never received nor sent an email to any representative of the IRS. If the IRS requires confidential information, there are forms to provide them that documentation– that is, unless you have established a relationship with an IRS employee regarding a specific tax issue.
I would recommend that telephone, regular mail and fax be used to communicate with the IRS.
Mark Reeter Joins Gardiner Thomsen
By: Dennis Gardiner, Partner | email
 Mark Reeter |
We would like to take this opportunity to welcome Mark Reeter to the Gardiner Thomsen team. Mark joined the firm in mid-November 2007 as a staff accountant in the tax department.
Mark comes to us from the firm of J. M. Abbott & Associates, Ltd., in Lincoln, Illinois, where he was a staff accountant for just over 3 years. He brings experience in federal and state tax return preparation and accounting for individuals, trusts, estates, corporate and partnership entities. His audit experience includes governmental engagements, school districts and grain elevators.
A 2004 graduate of Blackburn College in Carlinville, Illinois, Mark decided to make the move to Des Moines to be with his girlfriend who is attending college here.
We’re glad to add Mark as another valuable member to our team!