Full disclosure: We never know for certain which topics will grab the attention of CFOs, controllers and other finance professionals.
Often times we know, like when withholding tables for the following year are announced. But sometimes, we’re surprised by how an off-the-beaten-track story resonates.
Regardless of how many times a story is clicked on and shared with colleagues, we appreciate you reading ResourcefulFinancePro! Without further ado, here are our top 10 most popular stories through the first half of 2024:
1. COVID Vaccines Ruled Unconstitutional
Private and public employers will want to reconsider imposing a vaccine mandate the next time a public health crisis occurs. A federal court just ruled against the constitutionality of COVID-19 vaccine mandates — and the ruling is liable to reach well beyond the 2020 coronavirus outbreak.
“The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals (one rung below the U.S. Supreme Court) ruled the Los Angeles United School District (LAUSD), which required teachers and other employees to get the COVID-19 jab or lose their jobs interfered with their fundamental right to refuse medical treatment.”
The ruling is, for all intents and purposes, the law of the land — at least for the time being. Similar cases are working their way through the courts in other regions of the U.S. No doubt the HFDF ruling will embolden groups who believe they were harmed by vaccine mandates in employers’ COVID-19 policies to keep the litigation ball rolling.
Click here to read all of the story.
2. IRS Section 174 Tax Breaks Off the Table till 2025
A last-ditch effort to restore tax write-offs for research costs — including software engineers’ salaries — appears dead on arrival in the Senate. Politics is preventing a deal from getting done, despite several GOP Senators wanting to provide more tax breaks for American companies.
Reason? Several Democrat Senators are in danger of losing their races to Republican challengers and tipping control of the chamber to the GOP in 2025. Lawmakers think they can piece together a better bill that excludes expanding child tax credits and other measures crafted by Democrats if Republicans take back the Senate and Donald Trump goes back in the White House.
Click here to read all of the story.
3. Blue State Verdicts Against Trump, Elon Musk Raising Alarms
Politics reared its ugly head in recent judicial decisions against Donald Trump and Elon Musk. The verdicts – not to mention the whopping $350 million civil fraud penalty in Trump’s case – surprised a lot of investors and business owners.
The questions many people are asking: “Is it safe to do business in blue states like New York and Delaware?” “Can we count on the courts to uphold the law?” “Or should we think about moving to greener pastures?”
Click here to read all of the story.
4. New Independent Contractor Rule Throws Spotlight On Minimum Wage, Overtime Pay
The Department of Labor (DOL) finalized a rule making independent contractor classifications tougher and throwing the spotlight on minimum wage and overtime pay. The final rule took effect March 11, 2024.
Employers will need to follow a six-factor test to determine a worker’s status as an independent contractor or employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Click here to read all of the story.
5. Important 2024 State Law Updates in CA, IL and NY that Companies Need to Know
With a new year comes new state laws with compliance challenges that could disrupt business as usual. In addition to the minimum wage hikes that we recently reported on, there are other rules in effect, or about to go into effect, that could either impact you or your partner businesses in many ways, including:
Payroll costs: Some employers will have new expenses as a result, and CFOs will need to factor them into their budgets and forecasts.
Click here to read all of the story.
Here’s the Rest of the Best
6. Deep Fake AI Scam Fleeces Firm Out of $25 Million
7. Best Practices for Mitigating Payment Fraud: Vendor Portals and A/P Automation Can Help
8. Ransomware Payouts are Plummeting: How Companies are Reducing Their Risks
9. Accounting Errors are Spiking Sky-High
10. Economist’s 2024 Outlook: Recession will be an Economic Slowdown Instead
