Media Releases

January 21, 2021 Our team is continuously monitoring the rapidly changing landscape in an effort to provide you with updates related to legislative relief that may affect you or your organization. With so much information coming in at once, we have developed the following BLS Important Update to discuss Delaware Relief Grants, the Second Round … Continued

January 5, 2021 The COVID-19 Relief Bill was signed by President Trump on Sunday, December 27 and BLS prepared COVID-19 Relief Bill – What we know so far, which provided highlights of significant sections of the bill. There are two key provisions within the COVID-19 Relief Bill – Second Round PPP Loans and Extension of … Continued

December 29, 2020 — Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, CPAs (BLS), a Top 300 accounting firm headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, earned the honor of being the only Delaware-based firm named on Forbes’ 2021 America’s Best Tax and Accounting Firms List. Forbes partnered with Statista, a global market research firm, to create a list of the most recommended firms … Continued

December 28, 2020 On Sunday, December 27, President Trump signed into law $900 billion in COVID-19 Relief and $1.4 trillion in government funding. The over 5,500 page bill combines financial relief for individuals, businesses, and nonprofits and includes many new provisions that are important for our clients and friends to be aware of. The full … Continued

December 10, 2020 We recently sent a communication regarding Form 1099 and W-9 Reporting Requirements. From that communication, we received questions specific to the Internal Revenue Service’s introduction of Form 1099-NEC for use beginning with tax year 2020 to report non-employee compensation. We wanted to share the following information with you regarding the new Form … Continued

Jordon N. Rosen, CPA, AEP®, Elected into the NAEPC Estate Planning Hall of Fame® and Honored as an Accredited Estate Planner® (Distinguished) Designee by the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, CPAs (BLS) announced that the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils (NAEPC) recognized Jordon N. Rosen, CPA, AEP® … Continued

December 7, 2020 Due to increased enforcement and related assessment of penalties for failing to timely and accurately file Forms 1099, we felt it was important to share the following requirement and due date information specifically associated with Forms 1099. Form 1099 – Important Due Dates February 1, 2021 Form 1099-NEC information returns, used to … Continued

  October 30, 2020    The Delaware Division of Small Business just released three important changes related to the DE Relief Grants program.   Businesses no longer need to demonstrate a revenue decline of at least 7.5 percent from 2019 to 2020. Instead, they will only need to prove they experienced a decrease in revenue, … Continued

On behalf of all of the directors at BLS, I am pleased to announce that special congratulations are in order to the following individuals for their leadership promotions: Michael Kelly and Karly Laughlin have been promoted to Principal in the firm’s Tax & Small Business Department: Michael D. Kelly, CPA celebrated his 12th anniversary with BLS … Continued

It is with great pleasure that Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, P.A. (BLS), a certified public accounting and consulting firm with offices in Delaware and Pennsylvania, announces a very special congratulations to the following individuals for their leadership promotions. Michael Kelly and Karly Laughlin have been promoted to Principal in the firm’s Tax & Small Business … Continued

  October 9, 2020  On October 8, 2020, following requests by many small businesses and lenders across the country, the Small Business Administration released a streamlined application for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) borrowers who borrowed $50,000 or less (affiliate groups are excluded). The application, Form 3508S. Although Form 3508S is a shorter form, it is not … Continued

Wilmington, DE – September 30, 2020 — For the sixth consecutive year, Delaware-based certified public accounting firm, Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, CPAs (BLS) was ranked as a Top 300 firm in North America by INSIDE Public Accounting (IPA). IPA is an award-winning publication for the accounting profession, published by The Platt Group. INSIDE Public Accounting’s Survey … Continued

September 29, 2020 In our continued effort to provide guidance to companies and nonprofits, we have outlined three important topics in this edition of our BLS Important Update. Our firm has received numerous questions on the topics below and have prepared a summary to help provide clarity. Treatment of Owners and Forgiveness of Certain Payroll … Continued

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Jenni Fleck Jones, Marketing & College Recruiting 302.573.3901 / jjones@belfint.com / @BelfintCPAs   Wilmington, DE – September 10, 2020 — It is with great pleasure that Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, P.A. (BLS), a certified public accounting and consulting firm with offices in Delaware and Pennsylvania, announces the following well-earned promotions. Jennifer Schlosberg, … Continued

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Jenni Fleck Jones, Marketing & College Recruiting 302.573.3901 / jjones@belfint.com / @BelfintCPAs Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, P.A. (BLS), a certified public accounting and consulting firm, has been awarded the 2020 Top Workplace honor by The News Journal for the 12th consecutive year. The Top Workplace list is based solely on employee feedback gathered through a … Continued

Originally Posted August 20, 2020 / Updated August 25, 2020   The State of Delaware and New Castle County are working together to provide further relief to Delaware nonprofits and small businesses who have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. They recently announced new funding through the means of “DE Relief Grants.” Funding for this … Continued

August 13, 2020 The IRS recently updated their FAQ pages related to Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) as a part of the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Impact Payments (EIP), also known as Stimulus Payments. To help simplify the details of what was added to these FAQ pages, the BLS Team outlined the highlights … Continued

August 6, 2020 In an effort to provide guidance to companies and nonprofits that received a Payroll Protection Program (PPP) Loan, the Small Business Administration published Frequently Asked Questions related to PPP Loan Forgiveness. The guidance provided is lengthy and questions still remain. To help give a summary of what you need to know now, … Continued

June 26, 2020 The IRS recently issued Notice 2020-50 which provides further guidance and rules for taxpayers who take coronavirus-related distributions (CRDs) from their IRA or employer retirement plans. Here is what you need to know now. The CARES Act passed by Congress back in March, provided taxpayers the ability to take CRDs from their … Continued

Originally Posted June 24, 2020 Updated June 29, 2020 On June 23, the IRS issued Notice 2020-51 which provides additional guidance for those who otherwise needed to take required minimum distributions (RMDs) from IRAs and certain employer retirement plans during 2020 and now wish to roll those funds back into a qualified plan under the … Continued

June 23, 2020 It is a great pleasure to share that Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, P.A. (BLS), a certified public accounting and consulting firm with offices in Delaware and Pennsylvania, received notification that the AICPA National Peer Review Committee has positively accepted their peer review report. The Peer Review report had a peer review rating … Continued

June 11, 2020   Late last night, the Treasury released an interim final rule with additional guidance regarding H.R. 7010 (Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020). Updated application forms for borrowers and lenders were also released. Below is an outline of highlighted changes from the guidance:   Extends eligibility for the program from June … Continued

Eileen T. Conner In Remembrance 1943 – 2020 It is with great sadness that we pay tribute to Eileen T. Conner, a valued colleague, true friend, and community force. Eileen joined Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, P.A. (BLS) in 1974 where she worked her way up to becoming the first female shareholder of the firm in … Continued

June 4, 2020 Yesterday, the Senate approved H.R. 7010 (Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020), a bill that amends several provisions of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The bill, which passed the House last week and now heads to the President’s desk for signature, will provide relief for borrowers as they seek forgiveness of … Continued

May 18, 2020   Late on Friday, the SBA released the PPP Loan Forgiveness Application. Along with the Application came instructions and answers to some questions related to the calculation. Although some questions still remain and we expect additional guidance from the SBA, below are important highlights to consider when conducting the calculations. Changes were … Continued

May 5, 2020 Important guidance related to Paycheck Protection Loans was recently shared by the United States Treasury via their Frequently Asked Questions. Out of the 42 questions listed, there are two ‘hot topic’ questions that we would like to draw your attention to in this particular BLS Important Update. Question 31: Do businesses owned … Continued

April 30, 2020 Many of our clients and friends have been impacted by COVID-19 and are asking similar questions related to the relief available. The BLS Team developed the two overview documents below to be used as a tool in understanding beneficial highlights of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the Coronavirus Aid, … Continued

April 22, 2020 Yesterday, the Senate passed amendments to the Payroll Protection Program (PPP), economic disaster loans, and emergency grants section of the CARES Act. It is expected to be passed by the House and signed by the President later this week. Although he bill does not contain provisions for additional stimulus checks or tax … Continued

For the second consecutive year, Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, CPAs (BLS), a Top 300 accounting firm headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, announced that they have earned ClearlyRated’s Best of Accounting™ Award for providing superior service. Best of Accounting Award winners have proven themselves as industry leaders in service quality based entirely on ratings provided by their clients. … Continued

April 10, 2020  Yesterday, April 9, the IRS released two new Notices and one Procedure update to help give additional relief to taxpayers. One Notice vastly broadens the scope of the extended filing and payment deadlines. These changes will help individuals, trusts, estates (including gift tax returns), Americans living or working abroad, corporations, nonprofits, and other … Continued

April 4, 2020 Late Thursday evening, April 2, the SBA posted revised provisions regarding the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). These provisions changed the PPP application form, the calculation for payroll costs used to determine the PPP loan amount, and provided additional guidance on the process. Banks have been challenged to upgrade systems for these last … Continued

March 30, 2020 – As a way to help advise our clients and friends, we have put together a COVID-19 Resource Center on the firm’s website. This COVID-19 Resource Center is a one-stop location where we have aggregated all of the information we have been sharing via email, our blog, and through discussions. The resource center contains … Continued

March 26, 2020 Our team is continuously monitoring the rapidly changing landscape in an effort to provide you with updates related tax deadlines or any further legislative relief that may affect you or your business. Last night, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the CARES Act) passed the U.S. Senate and is expected … Continued

March 24, 2020 Because of the services we provide to our clients, BLS has been deemed an “essential business” under Delaware Governor John Carney’s recent order closing several other businesses in our State. While we feel for the sacrifice of those many businesses and their employees, we are grateful that we can continue providing the … Continued

March 20, 2020 With non-essential type businesses shutting down (either voluntarily or state-ordered), business owners are worried and wondering whether they will be able to pay their bills and if they need (and how they can afford) to continue paying their employees. Similarly, workers who are not working because of business closure, having to take … Continued

March 20, 2020 The BLS Team is actively monitoring the rapidly developing changes related to COVID-19 and will continue to provide updates as they apply to our clients, employees, vendors and the community. Not surprisingly, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced this morning that the traditional Tax Filing Day of April 15 is being moved to … Continued

March 19, 2020   As hoped, we now have definitive news from the IRS regarding how we will be filing our 2019 income tax returns and pay the taxes normally due on April 15. Yesterday, the IRS issued Notice 2020-17 which allows us to defer Federal income tax payments until July 15, 2020. Here is … Continued

March 16, 2020 With the currently unchartered waters of COVID-19, we want to reassure you that BLS has a plan in place to continue meeting your needs where possible. Considering the upcoming tax deadlines, maintaining operations is a top priority along with the health and safety of our employees, clients, and vendors. BLS remains open … Continued

It is with great pleasure that Belfint, Lyons & Shuman, P.A. (BLS), a certified public accounting and consulting firm with offices in Delaware and Pennsylvania, announces that special congratulations are in order to the following individuals for their leadership promotions. Valerie C. Middlebrooks, CPA was elected as Shareholder with the firm and as a Director … Continued