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Interest Rates Could Sap Bond Profits You can lose money in the safest of bonds, even U.S. Treasury bonds and general obligation municipal bonds. CPE of the Week: Documenting and Diagramming Techniques in Accounting Information Systems This course presents a basic overview of documenting and diagramming techniques that are used in representing the mechanics and flow of an accounting information system. Detailed discussions of data flow diagramming, document and systems flowcharting, and entity-relationship modeling are provided, and supportive illustrations of these diagram, flowcharts, and models are presented. The course concludes with a review of the REA Model (an extension of ER modeling) and some of its key aspects and features. Take this course     SmartPros:  Second Quarter 2010 Financial Results SmartPros in the News Investor Relations Weekly Newsletter News Archives Online CPE Twitter: SmartProsEditor Last Week's Top Reads: 1. Ketz: Operating Lease Obligations to be Capitalized 2. Mortgage Summit Brainstorms Ways to Revamp Financing   3. OP/ED: $8.7B in Tax Money MIA, Yet We Stay Silent?   4. SEC Accuses New Jersey of Bond Fraud   5. IRS Seeking Health Care Comments from Businesses Tools to Move Your Career Forward - Read the August issue of SmartPros' Careers News & Insights Newsletter now.

News & Insights

This Week in the SmartPros News & Insights Newsletter U.S. Economic Stimulus Adds Up to 3.3M Jobs in Second Quarter ... Technology Users Believe Human Error is the Leading Cause of Data Loss ... CPE: Documenting and Diagramming Techniques in Accounting Information Systems ... Book: Privacy Means Profit: Prevent Identity Theft and Secure You and Your Bottom Line U.S. Economic Stimulus Adds Up to 3.3M Jobs in Second Quarter The Obama administration's economic stimulus package has added as many as 3.3 million jobs in the second quarter of this year, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reported on Tuesday. Op/Ed: Spend the Stimulus The U.S. economy clearly needs more stimulus. The recovery is stumbling, and government fiscal policy remains a traditional and reliable tool to recharge the economy. AICPA Tax Vice President to Testify at IRS Hearing on Proposed Tax Preparer Regulations AICPA Vice President of Taxation Edward Karl to testify at Internal Revenue Service hearing, Aug. 24, 10 a.m. EDT on the IRS's plan to regulate an estimated 1.2 million paid U.S. tax preparers. CalPERS Loan Just Latest Budget-balancing Gimmick In the ongoing budget stalemate, Democrats refuse to accept devastating cuts while Republicans reject new taxes. Nobody is budging. SEC Suspends Trading in More Stocks This Year Regulators are stepping up efforts to weed out some of the smallest and most questionable publicly traded companies. SEC: Ex-Countrywide Chief Approved Special Loans The government says former Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo personally approved mortgages for favored borrowers that violated the company's policies and lending standards. SEC Makes Proxy Ballot Access Easier The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved, on a divided vote, changes making it easier for shareholders to nominate directors of public companies. The changes were long sought by investor advocates and opposed by business interests. FASB Chairman Herz Retiring The head of the rule-setting board for corporate accounting is retiring after a tenure that included a momentous encounter with Congress in the wake of the financial crisis. Investors Need the Full Story on Target Date Retirement Funds' Risks Target date funds' advertising and marketing materials need to have better disclosure, provide more specific information about their glide path and asset allocation, and include greater descriptions of asset classes, according to recommendations Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) made to the Securities and Exchange Commission on their proposed rules governing target date funds. Technology Users Believe Human Error is the Leading Cause of Data Loss Kroll Ontrack releases results of global data loss causes survey that reveals gaps between data loss cause perceptions and realities. Report Raises Concerns Regarding the IRS's Oversight of Recovery Act Funding Procurements that are both awarded and planned by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) may be at risk due to inadequate oversight, according to a report publicly released today by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). Nearly 50 Percent Leave Obama Mortgage-aid Program Nearly half of the 1.3 million homeowners who enrolled in the Obama administration's flagship mortgage-relief program have fallen out. Ruling Sets Up IRS as Overseer of Groups' Gifts to Campaigns The Supreme Court's decision this year in Citizens United, which lifted campaign spending restrictions for companies and interest groups, has indirectly thrust the Internal Revenue Service into the more prominent role of overseeing those expenditures.

Spotlight

FMN Video DVD Series FMN Video, designed specifically for corporate finance and accounting professionals and used by more than half of the Fortune 500, is a powerful video update program that delivers the experts and hottest topics directly to your office via DVD each month. CPA Report Online Subscribe to the top online CPE program for public accountants. CPA Report Online covers the latest events impacting public practice. SmartPros Price: Courses: $59.98 - Subscriptions: $409 FMN Online Subscribe to the program that more than half of the Fortune 500 trust for CPE. Stay up to date on Sarbanes-Oxley and other key events impacting corporate finance. SmartPros Price: Courses: $59.98 - Subscriptions: $409

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Introducing SmartPros Legal Professional Education SmartPros Legal features the Cognistar CLE library highlighting over 150 course titles in areas such as litigation, IP, corporate/securities law, tax, labor/employment law, bankruptcy, ethics, professionalism, substance abuse, bias, and many more.