John recently passed the CPA exam. He has begun the process of obtaining licensure with the New State Board of Accountancy. John is also QuickBooks Certified, which has been a value added to his client base. John’s focus has centered on attest and financial services to a variety of contractors, developers, and specialty trade entities. He has developed strong accounting and tax preparation skills at the entity level, which enables him to see the client’s entire scope of needs and concerns. He is a go-to-individual for problem solving complex corporate structures and financial statement presentation.

John is a resident of Atlantic Highlands with his wife Hunter. They enjoy traveling, hiking, snowboarding, sneaking in runs during tax season, and spending time with family and friends.

Ryan finds motivation in his family and friends as he strives for career growth. He values client relationships and is looking forward to carrying that into his role at Woolston Jensen & McNamara.

WJM (a 2025 Master Sponsor) took home the award for Best Associate Logo.

Pictured are the Flair Marketing  Group and WJM representatives:

(L to R) Brianna Shaffrey, Stephanie Shaffrey, Bill McNamara, Kevin Donovan, and Michael Henrich.

To stay informed on how this extension might affect your business and reporting obligations, read the full details here: FinCEN Extends BOI Reporting Deadline and Halts Enforcement.

This is because another judge in a separate case has also issued a nationwide injunction against the BOI reporting requirements. (Smith v. U.S. Department of Treasury (January 7, 2025) U.S. Dist. Court, Eastern Dist. of Texas, Case No. 6:24-CV-336)) To date, the Department of Justice has not filed an appeal in Smith. It is not known whether the new administration will appeal the case.

This means that, for now, businesses are not required to file BOI reports and cannot be penalized for failing to do so.

It is also important to note that two bills (HR 425 and S 100) have been introduced in Congress to repeal the Corporate Transparency Act, which created the BOI reporting mandate.

We will keep you apprised of any further developments as they occur.

Sign up for Spidell’s 2024/25 Federal Tax Update and stay on top of late-breaking news. Click here for details.

President Donald Trump targeted federal hiring, including specific rules for the Internal Revenue Service, and the United States’ participation in the global tax framework being developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development among his flurry of executive orders signed on the first day of his second term in the Oval Office.

In one order, President Trump ordered “a freeze on the hiring of Federal civilian employees, to be applied throughout the executive branch. As part of this freeze, no Federal civilian position that is vacant at noon on January 20, 2025, may be filled, and no new position may be created except as otherwise proved for in this memorandum or other applicable law.”

The order calls on the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Government Efficiency to “submit a plan to reduce the size of the Federal Government’s workforce through efficiency improvements and attrition.”

When that plan is created, the executive order will expire, with the exception of hiring for the Internal Revenue Service.

“This memorandum shall remain in effect for the IRS until the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Director of OMB and the Administrator of [DOGE], determine that it is in the national interest to lift the freeze,” the order continues.

The order also prohibits the hiring of contractors to circumvent the order.

In a separate executive order, President Trump has effectively removed the United States from the OECD global corporate tax framework, stating that it “has no force or effect in the United States.”

The order goes on to state that “any commitments made by the prior administration on behalf of the United States with respect to the Global Tax Deal have no force or effect within the United States absent any act by the Congress adopting the relevant provisions of the Global Tax Deal.”

The framework calls for a 15 percent minimum corporate income tax and has provisions that allow countries to collect a “top-up tax” from companies in countries with a lower rate, something the memo called “retaliatory.”

By Gregory Twachtman, Washington News Editor

When a closely held company sells such as this client, ownership is departing with an asset which can have ties beyond financial. For some business founders the concern of losing control and influence in direction becomes areas of potential roadblocks to a successful merger or acquisition. By directly negotiating and establishing the key conditions, such as targeted benchmarks, including tangible net asset values, payment terms, escrow balances, and fair value determinations of hard assets, the WJM team ensured their client received the value for what they had built in the company and a continued input for future direction.  The inclusion of such attributes amplified their client’s satisfaction and solidified the final deal agreement.

Mr. Woolston’s more than 35 years of experience in successful negotiation of mergers and acquisitions have led to deals up to $50 million in sales price. By leveraging that experience he skillfully traversed this latest transaction in favor of his long-time client. Many of the WJM clients involved in this area of service by the firm have been long time accounting and tax clients. However, in some cases, company founders specifically seek out the services of WJM, due to the firm’s experience and stellar reputation, and hire the team to represent their company’s interest in the due diligence process of a sale. The Woolston led WJM group deploys  careful analysis to determine a fair asking price, pinpoint the most favorable tax structures, evaluate financial and cash flow impact, and assess compatible business functions and tactics for a successful sales outcome. WJM would like to congratulate their long-time client on this successful acquisition.

Woolston, Jensen, & McNamara, LLC is one of the leading accounting and consulting firms in the mid-Atlantic region, but also serves clients throughout the United States. The growing accounting and consulting firm continues to provide quality, personalized financial guidance to individuals and businesses. Its expertise includes tax management and accounting services encompassing individual, business, and estate and trust planning and compliance, strategic business planning, exit strategies for small businesses and investment wealth management, with an affiliate company Salvus Wealth Management, LLC.

As an advocate and advisor for the family-owned business for over 35 years, McNamara and his team have fostered decades-long relationships with his continuing clients. He is a licensed certified public accountant in New Jersey and Florida and has served as the assistant treasurer for UTCA’s Board of Directors and is a longtime member of the Legislative Affairs Committee for UTCA.

The UTCA is a non-profit trade association that was founded in 1965. It represents nearly 1,000 member firms in the public and private sectors of heavy, highway, utility, and marine construction, as well as site work. The association is headquartered in Wall Township, New Jersey and strives to create a positive impact on New Jersey citizens, the health of the environment, and shared economic prosperity by leveraging its respected expertise and relations to promote a sustainable infrastructure sector.

From the moment he and his longtime associate, Kevin Donovan, joined UTCA McNamara has worked tirelessly to contribute to the success of the industry, prove his commitment, and earn his spot in belonging to the UTCA. This longtime commitment to the association and participation through committees, volunteerism, and events have all contributed to his being named the 2024 Larry Gardner Associate Member Award recipient.

Addressing the crowd at the awards presentation, McNamara expressed his gratitude for all the industry has provided, “I am truly honored and humbled to receive this prestigious award. To say we value our relationships, not just with our clients, but the UTCA Community would be an understatement.  We will continue to contribute under any of the challenging environments the industry faces because you get way more than you give, if you give to start.” In addition, McNamara credits his partners at WJM, Charles Woolston and Aimee Jensen, as well as his team, clients, and family for providing the support and trust that are critical to these achievements and his success in the industry over the years.

As is his standard method of operation, which is a willingness to help and be part of solutions, during his address to the crowd at the awards event, McNamara challenged the attendees to “’Do Good Recklessly’ in their actions here at the UTCA convention, at home, in your neighborhood and in life in general. We are surrounded by negative news and toxic rhetoric at every turn. Don’t let it win. Don’t be overwhelmed by it, fight back by doing something good, make it a habit, collectively that will fix a lot of what ails our world.” McNamara looks forward to continuing to serve clients and the UTCA for years to come.

Woolston, Jensen, & McNamara, LLC is one of the leading accounting and consulting firms in the mid-Atlantic region, but also serves clients throughout the United States. The growing accounting and consulting firm continues to provide quality, personalized financial guidance to individuals and businesses. Its expertise includes tax management and accounting services encompassing individual, business, and estate and trust planning and compliance, strategic business planning, exit strategies for small businesses and investment wealth management, with an affiliate company Salvus Wealth Management, LLC.