NECA is pleased to report that the U.S. Treasury Department released new guidance on April 7, 2020, clarifying that companies with under 500 employees do qualify for loans under the new Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). This change comes after association staff raised concerns with Congressional leaders and officials at the Small Business Administration and the Department of Treasury.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today announced an interim enforcement response plan for the coronavirus pandemic. The response plan provides instructions and guidance to OSHA Area Offices and compliance safety and health officers (CSHOs) for handling coronavirus-related complaints, referrals, and severe illness reports.

In light of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, OSHA understands that some employers may face difficulties complying with OSHA standards due to the ongoing health emergency. Business closures and other restrictions and limitations may also preclude employee participation in training even when trainers are available. In other situations, access to medical testing facilities may be limited or suspended.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released a new video and poster for employers and workers on how to properly wear and remove a respirator. The video and poster – in English and Spanish – demonstrate and describe seven steps every worker should follow when putting on and taking off a respirator.

The Treasury Department issued additional guidance (#43 on FAQ) on the Paycheck Protection Program. The Treasury department postponed the Safe Harbor repayment deadline to May 14, 2020, as requested by NECA.

Coming off the All-Star break, the second half of the hockey season is in full swing and fans are anxiously wondering if their team will make it to the playoffs. At this point in the season, the playoffs are still… Read More

The post Managing a Professional Sports Team Like a Business appeared first on Anders CPAs.

Most kids spend countless hours playing video games in their free time, but for some this hobby could potentially turn into a career. eSports and video game streaming have become a multibillion-dollar industry, drawing sponsorships from companies like Procter and… Read More

The post The Newest Athletes: eSports Gamers and Video Game Streamers appeared first on Anders CPAs.

Zynga reports a big loss in Q1 despite "historic" revenues, in part because it has to pay out millions in contingency payments to recent acquisitions whose games have been strong performers. ...

The long-awaited return of Smart Stuff with Justin and Roman, featuring Justin McElroy and Roman Mars.

Make your mark. Go to radiotopia.fm to donate today.

Everyone should listen to My Brother, My Brother, and Me on the Max Fun Network.

On December 19, 2019, Peter Butler of NECA’s Northern California Chapter met with Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-Calif.) in the district.

NECA's top three legislative items for the week of January 6, 2020.

On December 11, 2020, members of NECA’s Northern California Chapter met with Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Calif.)

On January 23, 2020, members of NECA’s Northern California Chapter met with Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.)

1. New Joint Employer Rule Issued by the NLRB

On February 25, 2020, the National Labor Relations Board released the details of a new joint-employer liability rule. This new rule, which began the regulatory process almost two years ago, reverts the regulatory language back to its pre-2007 form, requiring companies to exercise direct control over workers to be considered their employer. The new joint-employer rule creates a much higher threshold for the employers to be held jointly liable for violations; benefiting organizations and corporations structured around franchising and third-party hiring.

NECA’s Look Ahead: This rule takes effect April 27, 2020. NECA will continue to monitor this rule change, assessing its impacts on jobsites.

2. The Protecting Business Opportunities for Veterans Act Passes the House 

On February 25, 2020, H.R. 561, the Protecting Business Opportunities for Veterans Act, passed the House by unanimous voice vote. This legislation will aid veteran-owned small businesses by directing the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs to contract with those businesses. Veteran-owed small businesses will be required to perform a majority of the work they are awarded on these government contracts with large subcontractors and will be restricted from performing the work set aside for these types of small businesses. 

NECA’s Look Ahead: NECA applauds the House on the unanimous passage of this legislation and expects it to be received favorably in the Senate. We will continue to monitor this issue as it moves to the Senate and are confident in a positive outcome.

3. The Committee on Small Business Held Hearing to Discuss FY2021 Budget

On February 26, 2020, the House Committee on Small Business held a hearing to discuss the 2021 Budget with the Small Business Administrator. Recently appointed Administrator, Jovita Carranza, gave an overview of the administration’s budget requests and the committee was able to examine the potential opportunities and challenges that small businesses participating in the SBA’s programs will face. 

Inkbunny describes itself as a furry art community. The site has over 550,000 members are over 1.5 million submissions.

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There’s no doubt that businesses have been thrown into a “new normal”. For the past few weeks, business owners have worked to understand the aspects of the CARES Act, and the FFCRA, while trying to rework budgets, cash flow projections,… Read More

The post GAAP Financial Reporting Considerations Related to the COVID-19 Crisis appeared first on Anders CPAs.

With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting businesses across industries, this is an ideal time to look for other ways to find funds to be able to recover quickly and get business back to normal. One way to do that is through… Read More

The post Sales and Use Tax Reviews Provide Opportunity for Businesses to Recover Overpaid Taxes appeared first on Anders CPAs.

Quality Assurance Manager We’re looking for a QA Manager who has a passion for shipping games and an eye for detail. Your responsibility will be to organize and track the team’s QA process, including playtesting feedback, bug tracking, localization & platform certification. We’re looking for someone who can catch and address problems quickly and effectively, can communicate with anyone on the team to get results, and has a deep understanding of our production process. Come help us build better things! Your Role   Consistently playtesting our levels and helping keep builds updated and maintained Organizing external playtests and tracking resulting bugs and feedback Working with remote QA teams and managing bug-tracking software Managing & tracking localization & platform certification tasks Communicating with project leads to address the QA task backlog Creating and managing tasks while also identifying, tracking and addressing risks Work with the publisher to ship the game on multiple platforms Requirements Experience with bug-tracking systems (such as DevTrack, JIRA or BugZilla) Experience shipping at least one game on PC and/or console Experience with localization & platform cert processes Previous QA experience on games - at least 2 years on PC or console Experience with milestone tracking Knowledge and familiarity with Agile and Scrum development framework Strong reading, writing and spelling skills Strong technical aptitude A passion for games - third person action and platformer games particularly Ample experience with current generation of gaming consoles Excellent organizational skills Independently motivated Excellent communication skills and assertive attitude Authorized to work in the US Currently local to the Los Angeles area, or willing relocate Bonus QA experience in a large team environment Any additional and related skills in games (illustration, modeling, writing, production) Experience with Unreal 4   To apply Send your application to jobs@heart-machine.com with the title "QA Manager".    Please include specific skills you would bring to a new project, as well as any links to current and/or past projects and your resume.

Airship is currently seeking a Senior VFX artist to help drive the creation and quality of VFX across the studio on multiple projects. If you have the experience and enjoy working with a focused group of talented and passionate game devs, then we're the place for you!Responsibilities Creation of stylized, hand-crafted 3D VFX for characters, action combat, and supernatural environments Implementation of, and technical setup of all work using Unreal and related tools Troubleshooting work and optimization of effects for performance on multiple platforms (PC and consoles) Collaboration with art leads to collect feedback and iterate on work Collaboration with other disciplines to ensure timelines and coverage across the game Self-regulation of time and resources to keep pace with project needs Oversight on outsource VFX resources, including direction, feedback, and integration Required Experience building 3D VFX in Unreal 5+ years of commercial game development experience At least one notable shipped title, demonstrating the ability to take a project to completion Proficiency with all tools necessary to create (from scratch) stylized, hand-painted 3D VFX assets Knowledge of modern 3D game engines and the tools required to implement VFX in-game, including the creation and use of shaders and/or scripting A demo reel that shows significant relevant work Pluses Shipped titles on PC and consoles Airship is located in sunny, thriving Austin, Texas. If you have experience making games and want to work on compelling, creative multi-platform titles, this might be the place for you.Some of the benefits we offer: Full health benefits including medical, dental and vision Profit sharing Generous PTO 401k plan Relocation packages Plus... Office movie lunches Snacks on snacks on snacks Work on a small team of experienced devs with a lively atmosphere Please note, due to a high volume of applicants we cannot reply to each individually. Only those in consideration for a position will receive a reply. Thank you!

Volition is looking for an experienced Environment Artist to help us build the world for the next Saints Row title! You will work with a tight, collaborative team of artists and designers to create environments that are both beautiful and fun to play in.  You will be making major contributions to our world using our unique approach to world building with our proprietary world editor.  Responsibilities: Create environments from initial rough layout to completed polished spaces Build urban, interior, and natural spaces using our in-house world editor Author game ready assets that work well within given technical limitations Collaborate closely with level designers to create spaces that adhere to gameplay requirements Focus on the "big picture." Understand when details matter, and when broad strokes are more important Qualifications: 3+ years of experience in game development creating environments Strong communication skills. Must be able to be a master collaborator Ability to work with a library of assets to build visually interesting, dynamic gameplay spaces Strong understanding of form, shape, structure, and silhouette in regards to scene composition A keen eye for developing a visual mood as it relates to storytelling Comfortable working within technical limitations such as vertex and object counts, materials (draw calls), streaming conditions, etc. Fluent knowledge of at least one major 3d package (3dsmax preferred) Experience building environments in a game engine (Unreal4, Unity) Well-versed in PBR workflow Pluses: Strong foundation in the traditional arts, including but not limited to figure drawing, environmental development and/or architectural illustration Familiarity with procedural content authoring tools (Substance Designer, World Machine, Houdini) Basic Level Design Knowledge Sample Work Required: Portfolio should demonstrate ability to build fully realized environments. Fully fleshed out spaces are more helpful than examples of individual assets To apply, please send your resume, portfolio/sample work, and a cover letter to jobs@dsvolition.com with “Environment Artist” in the subject line. At Deep Silver Volition we believe in fostering an open, collaborative and diverse environment, and we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We will consider all qualified applicants without attention to race, color, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, genetic information, disability, age, veteran status, or military status.

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is taking a new direction with the Medicare Shared Savings Program, established by the Affordable Care Act. The new ruling, called Pathways to Success, is meant to encourage Medicare’s Accountable Care Organizations… Read More

The post CMS Creates Pathways to Success for ACOs Starting July 1, 2019 appeared first on Anders CPAs.

Robert V. Willeford, Jr., CPA, Esq., Director + State and Local Tax at Anders, was published in the Summer 2019 edition of the St. Louis Dental ARCH magazine. Robert discusses what the consumer use tax is and how it impacts… Read More

The post Robert Willeford Writes on the Consumer Use Tax for Dentists in the Dental ARCH appeared first on Anders CPAs.

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The post Ten Ways a Startup Can Enhance Its Value appeared first on Anders CPAs.

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