The PCAOB Just Got an EY Guy, the IRS Is Running on Fumes, and 100 Business Groups Want BOI Dead

Happy Wednesday, Ledger Fam.

We're deep in busy season, your inbox is a war zone, and the government can't decide if it wants to stay open. Cool. Meanwhile, the PCAOB has a new boss, 100+ business groups are trying to kill BOI reporting for good, and AI is still not ready to fly solo. Let's get into it.

An EY Retiree Is Now Running the PCAOB

The SEC just appointed a retired EY partner as the new chair of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. The stated goal? To "usher in a new day at the PCAOB."

If you've been paying attention, the PCAOB has been on a tear lately - ramping up inspections, getting more aggressive on audit quality, and generally making firms sweat. A Big 4 veteran at the helm signals a potential shift in tone. Whether that means a friendlier regulator or just one who better understands the trenches depends on who you ask.

Why it matters: If you're in public accounting or audit, this appointment will shape enforcement priorities for years. A chair with deep firm experience could mean more practical, less adversarial oversight - or it could mean someone who knows exactly where the bodies are buried. Either way, pay attention. The PCAOB's next moves will ripple down to engagement teams everywhere.

The IRS Might Not Make It to April 15

Here's a fun combo: a partial government shutdown during filing season. Treasury posted a contingency plan last week promising the IRS will be "fully staffed through Friday." That's... not exactly reassuring when Tax Day is two months out.

It gets worse. Two separate federal oversight reports are now warning that the IRS may struggle to maintain service levels between now and April 15. Translation: expect delays in tax refunds and longer hold times when you call. The IRS Advisory Council's annual report didn't sugarcoat it either, saying the agency has been through "an extraordinarily difficult year" with budget cuts, staff reductions, and a pile of new tax law changes to implement. Practitioners are already reporting prolonged wait times.

Why it matters: If you're a tax preparer, you already know calling the IRS practitioner line is an exercise in patience. It's about to get worse. Start setting client expectations now - refunds may be slower, and getting answers on complex issues could take longer than usual. Document everything, file early where you can, and maybe invest in a really good hold music playlist.

100+ Business Groups Want BOI Reporting Dead and Buried

Just over 100 business associations sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent with a pretty direct ask: purge all previously submitted beneficial ownership information records and finalize a rule exempting U.S. companies from BOI reporting. Immediately.

The Corporate Transparency Act has been a rollercoaster - enforcement deadlines shifting, court challenges piling up, and small businesses caught in the middle wondering if they still need to file. This coalition wants the whole thing scrapped for domestic companies, arguing it's an unnecessary burden that was never going to catch the bad actors it was designed for.

Why it matters: If you've been advising clients on BOI filings (or fielding panicked calls about deadlines), this is the story to watch. The political winds are clearly blowing toward exempting U.S. companies, but nothing is final yet. Keep advising clients to stay ready - don't let them ignore filing requirements based on what might happen. But also don't be surprised if the whole thing quietly disappears for domestic entities by mid-year.

AI Still Can't Do Your Job (But It's Getting Closer)

A new report on AI in finance found something that will surprise exactly zero accountants: even as agentic AI tools show potential to free up time for strategic work, finance leaders still rely on their teams to validate every AI output. Accuracy concerns remain the #1 blocker.

A separate global study dropped an even spicier finding - much of the time "saved" by AI is actually being spent correcting or rewriting low-quality AI output. So that efficiency gain? It's smaller than the sales pitch suggests. That said, confidence among finance leaders is rising, and expectations for AI's impact in the coming year are climbing fast.

Why it matters: AI in accounting isn't a question of if - it's a question of when it gets good enough to trust. Right now, it's a tool that needs supervision, not a replacement. If your firm is rolling out AI tools, build in review processes from day one. And if you're not experimenting with AI yet, you're falling behind - just don't expect it to replace your brain anytime soon. The firms that figure out the right human-AI workflow first will have a massive advantage.

The Bottom Line

New PCAOB leadership, an IRS running on duct tape, BOI reporting on life support, and AI that still needs a handler. It's a lot. But that's why your clients need you - nobody's replacing the human who can navigate this mess.

Now get back to those returns. April's coming fast.

See you Friday. ✌️

- The Ledger Lowdown Team