With the coronavirus forcing thousands out of work and upending painstaking business plans and countless lives, many people are approaching this year’s May 17 tax deadline with a series of new and unfamiliar situations that have prompted questions about what is and isn’t taxable. Randy Seid, a certified public accountant (CPA) in Belmont, has been helping his clients navigate the tax changes brought on by the pandemic — relying, like many others, on video conferences and phone calls to conduct business.

We grabbed a bit of his time to get answers to some of those questions. But first, a little more about Seid.

Q: Tell me a little bit about what led you to become a CPA and the work that you do. 

Randy Seid: When I was at UCLA, a friend suggested I take an accounting course. I took the introductory course and really liked it. I continued to take more classes and decided to pursue a Master’s degree at USC with a specialization in taxation. I chose a career in public accounting because I wanted to work with a variety of entities and people. Helping businesses and individuals stay compliant, achieve cost savings on taxes, and contribute to the success and growth of my clients’ businesses have been the most rewarding parts of my career.

Q: How did you come up with the name The Bean Counter for your business? 

RS: Bean counter is a name used to make fun of accountants. When I started my practice, I also owned a coffee shop that I worked at part-time. The shop was small, so the customers were right next to me as I made their coffee. I often engaged in conversation with them. They learned I was a CPA, so I found myself giving a lot of free tax and business advice while I made their coffee. I think the name was perfect because it fit both businesses.

Q: You’re right in the middle of tax season right now. What’s different because of the pandemic this year?

RS: The tax deadline for individuals has been extended this year to May 17, 2021. There are new items on the tax return to deal with — like the treatment of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, claiming stimulus payments on your return, and unemployment income exclusion.

Q: For people who got stimulus checks, does that affect their taxes? If so, how?

RS: Stimulus checks are not taxable. I should mention, there are a lot of people that have not received their first and second stimulus payments or received less than the full amount. They can claim them under the recovery rebate credit. That means it will be treated as a credit that reduces the taxes you have to pay, or, if you get a refund, it will be added to the amount.

Q: A lot of people lost their jobs and ended up on unemployment for the first time. Are unemployment benefits taxable?

RS: At the beginning of tax season, it was taxable on your federal return. However, the American Rescue Plan released in the middle of March made a change to not tax the first $10,200 of unemployment income to individuals with incomes below $150,000.  A married couple could reduce their taxable income by $20,400.

Q: What about PPP loans or other types of assistance for business owners — do businesses have to pay taxes on those?

RS: With the PPP loan, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is not going to tax you on the portion that was forgiven. California has not made a final decision on how it will treat the PPP loans, so we are still waiting on their decision. Other loans that you have to repay are not considered income, so you do not pay taxes on those.

Q: If someone owes money but cannot pay, are there payment plans or ways to delay payment of taxes?

RS: Yes. Both the IRS and California allow you to do an installment plan to pay your taxes, but they will be subject to interest and penalties.

Q: In your work, you obviously deal with a lot of financial information and different types of clients. Which industries are you noticing have been hit especially hard by the pandemic? 

RS: I can’t speak specifically about my clients due to confidentiality, but I think any industries that do a majority of their business in-person have been hit hard. This would include the restaurant, retail, fitness, salon, entertainment and travel industries.

Q: Have people in certain income brackets been hit harder financially than others by the pandemic?

RS: I think it has to do more with their industry than income. Lower-income earners have received additional benefits during the pandemic with the stimulus payments and changes to the 2020 tax return that have lowered their taxes.

Q: What else should people know about doing their taxes this year?

RS: This year is probably a good year to work with a professional because of all the changes and incentives they might miss.

Name: Randy Seid

Position: Owner/CPA, The Bean Counter

Hometown: Cupertino

Current Residence: Sunnyvale

Education: Bachelor’s at UCLA in sociology, Master of Business Taxation from USC

Five interesting facts:

  1. Seid enjoys drinking Americanos.
  2. He is looking forward to traveling and seeing family and friends after the pandemic.
  3. Seid picked up tennis during the pandemic.
  4. He is a fan of the Golden State Warriors, the San Francisco Giants and the San Francisco 49ers, and is looking forward to attending live sporting events again.
  5. On Fridays, The Bean Counter team plays games like Pictionary and Taboo virtually.