Dear CCH Learning Center Subscriber,

Welcome to the November issue of Focus on Learning, the monthly newsletter for the CCH Learning Center that provides insights on how to use the Learning Center to your full advantage and updates on new courses and features available to you. In each issue we highlight a course (or series of courses) on a timely topic, and let you know about new courses released in the Learning Center. We also inform you of new useful features, provide helpful tips on existing features, and help you use the CCH Learning Center to meet your professional development and CPE needs.

Approaching CPE Deadlines...  

For many of you, your year-end CPE deadlines are fast approaching. The CCH Learning Center has more than 100 courses covering a variety of topics and new courses are continually added. Let the Learning Center help you meet your year-end CPE needs while you gain essential knowledge on the latest issues that impact your clients. Learn about meeting your CPE needs here.

BEST PRACTICE TIP: Earn your CPE credits NOW — don't wait until the last few days of the year "cram in" credits. By taking care of your CPE requirements now, you can put what you learn to work sooner; you can reduce added stress; and you can spend the upcoming Holiday Season the way it should be spent — relaxing with family and friends, instead of taking last minute CPE courses.

CCH Learning Center courses are available online 24-hours a day, seven days a week and you get immediate exam results and certification, so you can make sure you hit your CPE deadline.

With CCH You Get CPE You Can Bank On. Unlike some of our competitors, all of our CPE courses — online and in print — are approved by NASBA under its rigorous new CPE standards. You can be certain that you will get the credit you need with the CCH Learning Center. New CPE standards recently issued by the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) impact how many state boards evaluate self-study courses for credit. Some state boards have adopted these new standards and may no longer accept certain self-study courses for credit from other sources. Note, however, that CCH is an approved QAS (Quality Assurance Service) provider with NASBA, and all of our courses comply with NASBA's new standards, so you can rest assured — you will get credit for any CCH Learning Center courses you complete. Check out the Learning Center's CPE Accreditation page for more information.

Did You Know...

You can easily retrieve your username for the CCH Learning Center. Most of us have more usernames and passwords than we can remember. You may want to use the Learning Center to meet your CPE needs, but you can't remember your username or password. It's easy to retrieve both of these from the Learning Center. Learn about how to retrieve your username or password here.

Simply click on the Login tab at the top of the Learning Center. You'll be taken to the Login box. An Email Address field is at the bottom of the box under Forget your user name or password? Enter your e-mail address into this field and click the "Send Password" button. You're username will immediately appear at the bottom of the screen and your password will be e-mailed to shortly thereafter. If you have changed your e-mail address within the past year, you may need to enter your previous e-mail address in order to receive your user information.
 

Course Spotlight

Income Tax Preparation Courses. For many years, Sidney Kess and Barbara Weltman have been writing CCH self-study courses that help CPAs, enrolled agents and other tax preparers get ready for tax season. These Income Tax Refresher courses, designed to provide practitioners with a solid foundation in return preparation as well as update them on new developments impacting 2004 income tax returns, are available on the Learning Center.

There are four Income Tax Refresher series:

• Corporate Income Tax Refresher — a series of five courses reviewing Form 1120

• Individual Income Tax Refresher — a series of eight courses covering Form 1040

• Partnership and LLC Income Tax Refresher — a series of three courses covering Form 1065

• S Corporation Income Tax Refresher Course — a series of three courses reviewing Form 1120S

Each series walks you line-by-line though preparation of the appropriate tax return and related schedules, and all of the courses have been updated for the most recent tax legislation, including the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 and the Working Families Relief Act of 2004. In addition, Kess and Weltman provide practical pointers and ideas to help you maximize planning opportunities and avoid potential problems.

The new editions of Corporate, Partnership and S Corporation courses for the 2004 tax year have already been released to the Learning Center. The Individual Income Tax Refresher courses will be released to the Learning Center over the next few weeks, just in time for tax season.
 

New Learning Center Courses

CCH is committed to keeping you up-to-date and knowledgeable on the latest issues that impact your firm or corporation. Many new or updated courses have been released to the Learning Center since our last issue of Focus on Learning was issued, including several income tax preparation courses, all of which have been updated to reflect changes from recent legislation.

• Audits: Controlling the Risks

• Capitalizing Intangibles: New Rules

• Compilation and Review: Financial Statements

• Compilation and Review: Practice Issues

• Compilation and Review: The Engagement

• Corporate Distributions: Taxation Fundamentals

• Corporate Income Tax Refresher Course Part 1: Introduction for Form 1120 (2005 Edition)

• Corporate Income Tax Refresher Course Part 2: Form 1120 Income (2005 Edition)

• Corporate Income Tax Refresher Course Part 3: Form 1120 Deductions (2005 Edition)

• Corporate Income Tax Refresher Course Part 4: Form 1120 Tax and Payments (2005 Edition)

• Corporate Income Tax Refresher Course Part 5: Form 1120 Estimated Taxes and Special Topics (2005 Edition)

• Home Office: Expenses and Deductions (2004 Edition)

• Partnership and LLC Income Tax Refresher Course: Introduction to Form 1065 (2005 Edition)

• Partnership and LLC Income Tax Refresher Course: Form 1065 Schedules (2005 Edition)

• Partnership and LLC Income Tax Refresher Course: Form 1065 Completion and Other Tax Planning Issues (2005 Edition)

• S Corporation Income Tax Refresher Course: Introduction to Form 1120S (2005 Edition)

• S Corporation Income Tax Refresher Course: Business Income, Deductions and Tax Payments (2005 Edition)

• S Corporation Income Tax Refresher Course: Form 1120S Schedules (2005 Edition)

• Variable Interest Entities: Application of FASB Interpretation No. 46

Upcoming Courses

We will release many new courses in the CCH Learning Center in the weeks and months ahead to give you even more choices and more value.  Among the more than 50 new and updated courses that are in development now, look for courses in the following areas soon:

• Accounting
• AMT
• Business write-offs
• Family limited partnerships
• Impact of IRS rulings on tax planning
• Health savings plans
• Income tax preparation for individuals
• Sales and use taxation
• 2004 Tax Acts
• Tax shelters

 

Let Us Know What You Think Please let us know if this Focus on Learning issue has been helpful for you, what we could do to make it better, additional topics you'd like us to cover, etc.  We appreciate your business and we value your feedback very much. Let us know how we can help make this communication vehicle and the CCH Learning Center more valuable to you. You can always e-mail us at learningcenter@cch.com or call 800-248-3248 with your thoughts.  Sincerely,  Gwendolen Hefty  CCH, a Wolters Kluwer Business