CPE Catalog & Events

Surgent's The Most Critical Challenges in Governmental Accounting Today

The implementation of GASB No. 101 on compensated absences The 2025 application of GASB No. 102 regarding certain risk disclosures GASB No. 103 addressing improvements to the financial reporting model Additional recently issued GASB standards and projects

How Fraud Can Affect Smaller Organizations

The major topics included in this course include:The reasons for fraudFraudulent acts that are initiated against smaller organizationsMethods to stop fraud attempts against small businesses

A&A Update for Nonprofits and Single Audit (2025)

The major topics that will be covered in this course include:• Current impacts of accounting and financial reporting on nonprofit entities • Recently released FASB standards that impact nonprofit financial reporting the most• Current issues and challenges involving Yellow Book financial statement audits• Critical considerations when performing Single Audits under OMB Uniform Guidance for Federal Awards • Important AICPA professional standard developments related to providing audit and nonaudit services to nonprofits

Surgent's Advanced Audits of 401(k) Plans: Best Practices and Current Developments

Audit requirements for ERISA §103(a)(3)(C) audits An annual update of the changes affecting 401(k) plans Compliance issues associated with eligibility and enrollments, remittances, lack of oversight, compensation, vesting, and other topics Best practices for engagement planning, internal controls, risk assessment, and detailed testing Avoiding common mistakes while performing audit procedures Plan mergers and acquisitions Common audit reporting and disclosure issues

Surgent's Handbook for Mastering Basis, Distributions, and Loss Limitation Issues for S Corporations, LLCs, and Partnerships

Timely coverage of breaking tax legislation Applicable coverage of any basis considerations within any recent tax legislation   Passthrough basis calculations required as attachments to certain individual returns  Executor’s form for disclosing basis in certain distributed property; what about the basis of a property distribution from a trust?  How §179 limitations affect basis and how tax-benefit rule is applied  Basis implications of personal assets converted to business use  How to calculate basis of inherited qualified and joint tenancy property  Tax basis capital account reporting requirements  S corporations: Beware of final IRS regulations regarding “open debt”; determine how to calculate basis; worksheets are included; understand the effect of stock basis and debt basis and IRS’s recent focus on “at-risk basis” for shareholders; recognize how AAA applies or doesn’t apply to S corporations; learn to apply the complex basis ordering rules and special elections that can have a big tax result; discuss loss limitation rules in depth; when you can have a taxable dividend in an S corporation; understand distributions of cash and property; understand the post-termination transition rules, and temporary post-termination rules for eligible corporations, which will be important for S corps returning to C corps  LLCs and partnerships: Learn the detailed rules of §704 for preventing the shifting of tax consequences among partners or members; learn to calculate basis under §704 & for “at-risk” under §465; recognize how recourse, nonrecourse, and qualified nonrecourse debt can create significantly different tax results; learn the difference between basis and “at-risk basis”; review §754 step-up in basis rules; the economic effect equivalence test or “dumb-but-lucky” rule; learn to apply the complex rules of distribution of cash vs. property, and the basis treatment of charitable contributions and foreign taxes paid 

The 10 Must Know Excel Features

The major topics that will be covered in this class include:Excel Tables: Master the use of Excel tables for efficient data management, including sorting, filtering, and structured references, to manage  data more effectively.Custom Sorting: Get to grips with custom sorting options to organize data in a way that best suits your needs, enhancing data readability and analysis.XLOOKUP: Discover the power of XLOOKUP for advanced data retrieval, a game-changer for complex analysis, allowing you to extract specific data from extensive datasets with ease.SUBTOTAL: Gain proficiency in using the SUBTOTAL function, a versatile tool for calculating data in visible cells, ideal for analyses that require dynamic calculations.SUMIF(S): Explore the functionality of SUMIF and SUMIFS functions for conditional summing, crucial for precise budgeting, expense tracking, and financial reporting.Array Formulas: Dive into array formulas to perform multiple calculations on one or more items in an array, enhancing the efficiency of complex accounting computations.Data Validations: Learn to implement data validations to ensure data integrity and prevent errors in financial data entry, a critical skill for maintaining accurate accounting records.Slicers: Learn to use slicers for interactive data segmentation in tables and PivotTables, enabling accountants to quickly filter and analyze specific subsets of financial data.Conditional Formatting: Understand how to apply conditional formatting to highlight critical financial data points, trends, and variances, making data analysis and interpretation more intuitive.PivotTables: An introduction to PivotTables, one of the most powerful Excel features, for summarizing, analyzing, and presenting large sets of financial data in a digestible format.

Will Your Ethics Be Burned by Burnout?

The major topics covered in this class include:Explore the effects of crisis and burnout on ethical decision-makingDefine the stressors, pressures, and biases that can lead good people to make less than optimal choicesDiscuss ways to offset the pressures, ways to reduce stress on ourselves and on our team, and ways to support our teamsLearn how to recognize when an individual or an organization is heading in the wrong direction and how to stop sliding down the slippery slope

Leverage PowerBI.com to Create Data Analysis for Others

The major topics that will be covered in this class include:Tour of the PowerBI.com Interface: An in-depth walkthrough of the PowerBI.com environment, focusing on user interface elements, navigation, and customization.PowerBI.com Concepts: Fundamental concepts of PowerBI.com, including its architecture, data handling capabilities, and integration features.Connecting to Data: Techniques for connecting various data sources to PowerBI.com, ensuring seamless data integration and synchronization.Visualizations and Dashboards: Creating impactful visualizations and assembling informative dashboards to present data compellingly.Q&A Feature: Explore the interactive Q&A feature to derive insights through natural language queries.Sharing Datasets, Reports, Dashboards: Best practices for sharing datasets, reports, and dashboards with different audiences so they can leverage your data analysis work.Creating Apps: Learn how to package reports and dashboards into apps for easy distribution and consumption.

Surgent's Ethics for Tax Professionals

What does practicing before the IRS mean? Who may practice before the IRS? What should a tax preparer do if he or she has knowledge of a client's omission of income from a tax return? May a tax preparer rely on the work of other tax return preparers? May a tax preparer rely on and use client-provided information? Standards associated with giving advice to clients Abolition of the disclaimer requirement When must a tax preparer examine a client’s books and records?

Surgent's Taking Advantage of Installment Sales

How does the IRC define an installment sale under IRC Sec 453? When can a taxpayer utilize the provisions of IRC Sec 453? When should a taxpayer utilize the provisions of an installment sale and when should it be avoided? How does the issue of a “dealer” vs. a “non-dealer” impact the use of the installment sale method? Reporting an installment sale when related parties are involved Calculating an installment sale How has the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act impacted the use of the installment sale method?

CFO Solutions to IRS Problems

The major topics that will be covered in this course include:The authority of IRS in assessing and collecting taxes.The common misconceptions when dealing with IRS.Common questionable actions by business owners.How to prepare for an IRS audit.The seven options in IRS collections.Possible criminal tax violations by CFOs and small business owners.

Ethics: Giving Thanks - How to Master the Art of Gratitude

We'll explore what gratitude is and how expressions of it can vary from culture to culture. We'll also unpack several ways you can regularly say "thank you" to valued clients and colleagues, and we'll examine methods for evaluating gratitude in prospective and current employees.

Fundamentals of Form 1040 -- Business

The major topics that will be covered in this course include:Self-employment and business income taxation (Schedule C, self-employment tax, business deductions)Reporting income from pass-through entities (Schedule E, Schedule K-1, Shareholder stock and debt basis on Form 7203)Application of Form 7217 for capital construction fundsBest practices for self-employed clients and small business ownersKey deductions and credits for business ownersAvoiding common IRS audit triggers related to business income reportingLegislative updates impacting business income taxation in the current year

AI Lessons Learned for Accountants

The major topics that will be covered in this course include:Introduction to AI R&D in Accounting: Why internal AI research is essential for modern firms.Theory to Practice: Moving quickly from speculative AI concepts to actionable strategies.Managing Exponential Change: Understanding the urgency of adapting to AI’s rapid evolution.Proactive AI Engagement: Conducting in-house AI benchmarks, research, and hackathons.The Dual Role in AI Development: Balancing innovation with data security and ethical responsibilities.Internal AI Tools Creation: Encouraging accountants to develop AI solutions tailored to their needs.Data Security and Cyber Threats: Addressing AI-enabled cybercrime and protecting against internal risks.Mitigating AI Misuse: Recognizing abuse patterns and implementing safe practices.Challenges in AI Integration: Handling resistance, management concerns, and rapid technological shifts.Continuous Learning and Adaptation: Building a resilient, R&D-focused AI culture in accounting.

Schedule K-2 and K-3: Filing Requirements

IRS goals in requiring these schedules Detailed discussion of the domestic filing exception for 2023 tax year Filing requirements and exceptions for every part of Schedules K-2 and K-3 Examples based on client situations encountered in practice.

Small Firms Roundtable - Billings

Erase the Mark: Best Practices in Penalty Abatement

The major topics covered in this course include:The authority of the IRS in assessing tax penalties.The types of penalties that can be removed.The process the IRS uses to evaluate penalty abatements.How to request penalty abatements.Best practices in asking for penalty abatement, including using appeals.

AI for CPAs - How it Works and How to Apply it

The major topics that will be covered in this course include:Fundamentals of machine learning and AI algorithmsHow generative AI models like ChatGPT functionPractical examples of generative AI in accounting, finance and taxKey terminologies and concepts simplifiedAI Agents for process automation

International Tax Lunch Series October 2025

Various tax topics from a legal perspective International, Federal and State tax matters

Fraud & Embezzlement: Case Studies from the Trenches

The major topics that will be covered in this class include:How organizations can find themselves defrauded due to lax oversight and weak internal controls.How the existence of the "trusted advisor" creates situations where CPAs can drop their professional skepticism.Illustrations of the issues companies should look for in preventing fraud and embezzlement.