Audit trail one of the pillars of compliance

I watch CSI at times, piecing together evidence of an event. Blood trails, angles of entry, exit and deflection are all set together to tell a story. There is nothing that is left out. It shows motive, it shows intent and it shows what actually happened. Evidence usually dose not lie, things can sometimes be covered up but even the absence of evidence is evidence.

So it is with an audit trail. It is the paperwork that supports an agreement (employer-employee). It also reflects motive and intent, especially over an extended period of time. Where money goes reflects probably the clearest intent of it owner.

I once took a survey of leaders in a specific field. I was given the mandate to find out the priorities and intent of the field as a whole. I decided to ask only one question. “If I gave you $5000 dollars what would you do with it?” The results of my survey were an in-depth reflection of the entire field. It was very successful.

How an operator manages their cash in their corporation MUST reflect their employer-employee agreement, both its intent and its ultimate results. If all an accountant does is make journal entries to a shareholder loan account at the end of the year it is GROSELY inadequate. If the operator doesn’t want to conform to the requirements then the operator should not be able to benefit from compliance. NO COMPLIANCE… NO BENEFIT… (non-taxable that its!)
If an accountant doesn’t educate their clients to provide a reasonable audit trail, one that reflects the employer-employee agreement, I suggest the accountant find another industry to serve… maybe specialize in Chiropractors!

I know I’m harsh to accountants, but I believe that they are critical to the national implementation of subsistence/per-diem for the entire trucking industry. If they don’t get it right, the potential negative publicity of a failed appeal will delay tax savings to thousands of operators…

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