02/21/2025

Well, hi there! Sit back, enjoy, and relax as you’re currently on the Daily Accrual.

Every day, I sift through the accounting noise so you don’t have to. I share to you the most relevant, juicy accounting insights that really matter – nothing phony, just some good, accounting testimony! 

📝 Journaling Insider

The IRS is laying off 6,000 to 7,000 employees - 7% of its workforce—during tax season, with around 5,000 cuts in enforcement and collections. This includes over 3,500 probationary hires from the Small Business/Self-Employed division and additional layoffs in the Large Business and International division. IRS facilities in Ogden, Utah, and Kansas City, Missouri, saw abrupt firings, with reports of employees being escorted out. The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) said the cuts were “arbitrary and unlawful,” resulting into an economic disruption. 

Critics, including Democratic lawmakers, argue the layoffs favor wealthy tax evaders while risking small businesses and working families. Rep. Richard Neal accused the Trump-Musk administration of orchestrating a “billionaire bailout” after IRS improvements under Democrats recovered over $1 billion from tax cheats. Small business and financial watchdog groups echoed concerns, saying the layoffs will undermine tax compliance and disrupt local economies. 

Source: Journal of Accountancy

💰 Making Cents of Accounting

#TaxesUnpaidButIDGAF💸📄

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💸 Profit & Loss Report

AustralianSuper, Australia's largest pension fund, has been fined $27 million AUD ($17.3 million USD) after court rulings of merging duplicate accounts failure to around 90,700 members between July 2013 and March 2023. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) discovered lacking necessary procedures to consolidate identical accounts, incurring approximately $69 million AUD in unnecessary fees and insurance premiums. 

With $365 billion AUD in assets and over 3.5 million members, AustralianSuper acknowledged the issue, reported it to authorities, apologized to impacted members, and established corrective measures to prevent recurrence. Provisions were set aside for the penalty in its 2023-2024 financial year accounts, ensuring that member administration fees remain unaffected. ASIC initiated legal action against AustralianSuper after their compliance failure in December 2021.

Source: Reuters

💎 Rare Accounting Oddities

In 1799, British Prime Minister William Pitt had a smart idea: introduce a “temporary” income tax in funding Britain’s war against Napoleon. The plan? Citizens would chip in a little to help cover war costs, and once things settled down - poof! - the tax would be gone. Sounds reasonable, right?  

Fast forward 225 years, and guess what? That “temporary” tax is still very much alive, breathing down our paychecks like a greedy, jealous auditor. Pitt’s original tax started at 10% for income over £60 (£5,000 in today’s money), but instead of fading into history, contrastingly, it built modern taxation instead.

So next time you sigh at your tax bill, just remember: it all started with a war, a promise, and the most classic government move ever - turning “temporary” into “forever”. Oh well.