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House Republicans successfully passed a multitrillion-dollar tax breaks package in a late-night session that ended early this morning, with Speaker Mike Johnson commenting: “To put it simply, this bill gets Americans back to winning again.” The bill, which narrowly passed 215-214, with one lawmaker voting present, aims to extend $4.5tn in tax breaks from President Donald Trump's first term while introducing new ones, including exemptions on tips and overtime pay. The bill includes a temporary boost in the standard deduction — a $1,000 increase for individuals, bringing it to $16,000 for individual filers, and a $2,000 boost for joint filers, bringing it to $32,000. There is also a temporary $500 increase in the child tax credit, bringing it to $2,500 for 2025 through 2028, when it will return to $2,000. The estate tax exemption rises to $15m and is adjusted for inflation going forward. Small businesses, including partnerships and S corporations, will be able to subtract 23% of their qualified business income from their taxes. Republicans are also looking to prohibit Medicaid funds from going to Planned Parenthood, which provides abortion care. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the proposed changes could lead to 8.6m fewer people having health care coverage and a $3.8tn increase in federal deficits over the next decade. Democrats criticized the bill, with House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) calling it “one big ugly bill.” The package also includes significant spending increases, particularly for defense and border security.

 

Chicago Tribune

Fox News

US News and World Report

Wall Street Journal

Finance chiefs must train to think of themselves as “executive first, and CFO second,” Rob O’Donohue, a VP and analyst at Gartner, said during the firm’s annual CFO and finance executive conference on Tuesday. This means CFOs are now expected to think beyond their primary roles and drive cross-functional initiatives, he explained. Data from annual growth surveys finds that, since 2022, every C-suite role has become increasingly responsible for enterprise-wide projects, according to Mr. O’Donohue. He offered a number of key strategies for CFOs to use to set themselves apart from their peers, including proactively supporting their peers; using artificial intelligence for creative brainstorming, accelerating early-stage work, or drafting board updates; and achieving a workflow balance between “time maximizers”—activities that add value—and “time thieves” that drain productivity.

 

Fortune

The outlook for the U.S. economy remains weak despite a temporary cooling of the U.S.-China trade war, a Reuters poll of economists showed, with a debate over the country's fiscal health hanging in the balance. Economists polled in the seven days to May 21st were unanimous the Trump administration's policies have hurt the economy, with over 55% saying "significantly hurt." But after big downgrades to their growth and upgrades to inflation forecasts in April, economists kept these broadly unchanged in May. "The bad news is the detente virtually locks in a slow-growth, sticky-inflation environment as the base case for the U.S. economy. The effective tariff rate at 13% is still substantially higher than where it was coming into the year (around 2%)...Policy uncertainty is high, and recession risks remain elevated," said Michael Gapen, chief U.S. economist at Morgan Stanley. "Another round of large tariff hikes would probably be more painful for the economy than a less expansionary fiscal package," commented Aditya Bhave, a senior U.S. economist at Bank of America.

 

Reuters

In a landscape where accounting talent is scarce, Paul Peterson, chief executive of Wiss, discusses how his firm has successfully integrated non-accountants into their workforce. "It's been something that a lot of firms have been struggling with," he notes, highlighting the shortage of CPAs and the demand for diverse services. Wiss has explored hiring individuals with quantitative backgrounds, such as physics and finance majors, as well as those returning to the workforce after raising children. This approach not only alleviates staffing shortages but also enriches the firm's service offerings. By leveraging technology and fostering collaboration between accountants and non-accountants, Wiss aims to enhance client service and operational efficiency. Mr. Peterson encourages firms to be open-minded about hiring non-accountants, suggesting they start small and focus on areas with the most significant bottlenecks.

 

Accounting Today

Reuters reports that Walmart is planning to cut around 1,500 corporate jobs in a restructuring aimed at trimming its expenses and accelerating decision-making. The company told employees Wednesday that it will reshape some of its teams in global technology operations, e-commerce fulfillment managers that support U.S. stores, and Walmart Connect, its advertising business. “Reshaping our structure allows us to accelerate how we deliver and adapt to the changing environment around us”, two senior Walmart executives reportedly wrote in a memo to staff. In addition to the job cuts, they said they were creating some new roles.

 

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) has called for the disbandment of the IRS' new unit focused on pass-through entities and partnerships, claiming it imposes excessive burdens on taxpayers. In a comment letter dated May 8th, NAM stated that the unit, operational since last October, is “contributing to the overreaching and unduly burdensome administrative state” that the Trump administration aimed to reduce. The unit, established during the Biden administration, operates within the IRS' Large Business and International Division.

 

Bloomberg Tax

The SEC is closely examining the initial set of annual financial reports from companies that have implemented updated accounting rules for segment reporting. These rules allow firms to disclose multiple profit measures, including unofficial metrics. Heather Rosenberger, chief accountant for the SEC's division of corporation finance, emphasized the importance of adhering to commission guidance for these non-standard measures during her remarks at the Practising Law Institute's SEC Speaks event. Companies began applying these new accounting standards in their annual reports earlier this year.

 

Bloomberg Tax

Former Kohl's chief executive Ashley Buchanan was dismissed after an investigation revealed he failed to disclose a conflict of interest involving his girlfriend, Chondra Holt, CEO of Incredibrew, a coffee product he sought to introduce at Kohl's. The Wall Street Journal reported that Mr. Buchanan attempted to bring Incredibrew to Kohl's shortly after his hiring. The investigation was triggered by concerns raised by a Kohl's employee regarding the vendor relationship. Ms. Holt, who launched Incredibrew in 2024, had a previous relationship with Buchanan dating back to their time at Walmart. 

 

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

New York Post

Wall Street Journal

Phillips 66 and activist investor Elliott Investment Management each won two seats on the oil refiner's board at an annual shareholders meeting on Wednesday, the culmination of one of the biggest corporate boardroom battles of the year. For Elliott, the battle at Phillips 66 marked the firm’s first activist fight in the U.S. to go all the way to a shareholder vote. The firm initially sought strategic improvements at Phillips 66 in late 2023, when it disclosed a roughly $1bn investment in the company. Elliott ultimately nominated four individuals to Phillips 66’s board: Brian Coffman, Sigmund Cornelius, Michael Heim and Stacy Nieuwoudt. After Wednesday’s vote, Cornelius and Heim are slated to join Phillips 66’s board, with Phillips 66 keeping its own Bob Pease (who was blessed by Elliott in a prior settlement) and Nigel Hearne.

 

Financial Times

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

Steven Wood, founder of U.S. firm GreenWood Investors, has failed in his bid to win a board seat at Swatch Group, after the powerful Hayek family voted against his resolution at the watch group’s annual meeting. The investor is pressing Swatch to focus more on its luxury brands such as Breguet and Blancpain in an attempt to turn around its fortunes. The board had recommended Wood's bid be rejected before the firm's annual general meeting on Wednesday, and the company said 79.2% of shareholders voted against his election.

 

Financial Times

Reuters

LVMH chair and chief executive Bernard Arnault says the European Union must adopt a softer stance toward President Trump's trade demands, and negotiate a deal that will avoid tariffs and protect European jobs. Speaking to French senators during a parliamentary hearing, Mr. Arnault said he is actively lobbying to avoid tariffs, citing his group's cognac and wine business as being particularly impacted by the trade tensions. "You see what the British have done, they have negotiated very well. Using my modest means and contacts, I hope I will manage to convince Europe to adopt a similarly constructive attitude," he added.

 

Financial Times

Reuters