Tax Preparation
The Tax Division at Branch, Richards & Co. performs over 750 individual and 100 business income tax returns each year. Don Busch, CPA, and Chi-Hung Lee, CPA, are in charge of all tax services and are very experienced in all tax laws that enable us to prepare tax returns for our clients that result in the lowest possible tax liability. We have tax clients in a wide variety of industries and therefore have experience in dealing with nearly any type of client. We are available year-round to answer our client's tax questions as they arise, in addition to preparing their returns.
We also consult with existing and new clients on entity formation (i.e., Corporation vs. LLC) and other issues pertaining to their businesses. Many of our business clients also request us to prepare local State excise returns and payroll tax returns.
We strive to prepare tax returns at the lowest possible cost to our clients. In doing this, we generally have first-year accountants perform much of the initial input of data into our software so that our senior professionals who have higher billing rates can focus only on the final review of the returns plus any tax-saving research. This results in tax returns that have been reviewed by our most experienced personnel.
We prepare the following types of federal tax returns:
- Form 1040
- Form 1120
- Form 1120S
- Form 1065
- Form 1041 (estates, trusts)
- Form 706 (estates)
- Form 990 (tax exempt entities)
Small Business
Our Accounting Division works with numerous small and medium-sized businesses in a variety of industries. Our main area of service is in the preparation of standard financial statements, which include Balance Sheets, Income Statements, and Statements of Cash Flows. Many businesses need us to certify these statements whereby we issue an Accountant’s Compilation Report, which can be used for a variety of purposes, including presenting to a bank for the obtaining of a loan.
We also prepare payroll services for a number of clients and prepare quarterly payroll tax and business tax returns for the IRS and various State of Washington divisions. Additionally, many of our small business clients request training or assistance in operating their accounting software. Accordingly, we perform an extensive amount of consulting and training on Quickbooks accounting software.
The firm also offers several of its experienced accounting staff to small and mid-size companies as a “controller for hire” engagement for those companies without the resources to employ a full time, experienced accountant to maintain accurate financial records. This saves our clients money, yet they still have access to accurate financial statements for which to run their businesses, and we are always available to consult with ownership on all financial matters.
Audit Services
Since 1978, the Firm’s Audit Division has provided public accounting and auditing services to a variety of not-for-profit organizations and government entities. We also perform federal grant audits for various state agencies and provide audit services for many local agencies, including the Washington State Public Stadium Authority, the Port of Seattle, King County, Pike Place Market, City of Seattle, and Seattle School District. Based on this experience, we are extremely knowledgeable in accounting issues relating to the use of public funds and are able to provide this expertise to our clients. In addition to our nonprofit Clientele, the Firm’s Audit Division provides governmental auditing as a subcontractor with large regional and national accounting firms and financial and management service companies.
Our audit practice consists almost entirely of nonprofit organizations and government agencies, enabling us to focus our experience and continuing education on these organizations, which directly benefits our nonprofit clients. The Firm has four professionals who work in our auditing division, and we strive to assign the same auditors to each year’s audit, which provides the greatest level of service and efficiency to our clients.
The Firm is licensed to practice in the State of Washington and has complied with all applicable Washington State Board of Accountancy requirements. In addition, Firm employees have met all State and AICPA Continuing Education requirements, including the annual 40 hours of government and not-for-profit continuing education, as required by Government Auditing Standards for performing audits of government-funded programs in accordance with OMB Circular A-133. We place great importance on remaining updated on the latest requirements, as the standards change frequently.
The Firm is a member of the Washington State Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), complies with the rules and regulations of both organizations, and is currently a member in good standing with these accounting associations. In addition, the Firm has never been sanctioned or disciplined by either of these organizations and has not had any federal or state desk reviews of its audits. We are governed by the peer review and quality control requirements of the State Board of Accountancy in the State of Washington and the AICPA. We have had all required peer reviews, which involve CPA’s from another firm reviewing our system of quality control. As our audit practice consists entirely of governmental and nonprofit audit services, the reviewers inspected our work papers and audit reports for various nonprofit clients for compliance with professional standards; the results of our peer reviews have always been unqualified “clean” opinions, which indicates our Firm adheres to the rigorous criteria of our profession.
As evidenced above, Branch, Richards & Co. has the relevant experience to efficiently perform your annual audit. Our small firm philosophy of taking a personal approach to satisfying our client’s needs, combined with our experience, which is commensurate with much larger firms, makes Branch, Richards & Co. a superior choice when selecting your CPA firm.
Key Benefits
- Accurate Financial Reporting
- State and Federal Compliance Requirements
- Maintain Overall Fiscal Responsibility
- Safeguarding of Assets