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Plain-text accounting insights, tutorials, and updates from the Beancount.io team.

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9 min read

Cotton Gin Bookkeeping: Costing the Per-Bale Ginning Fee, Cottonseed Byproduct Revenue, and Module Truck Hauling

USDA's latest survey put average ginning cost at $49.31 per bale in 2022, up 106% in three years. This guide shows how a cotton gin should structure its books — unbundling the per-bale ginning fee into receiving, drying, pressing, and bagging cost centers, booking cottonseed (15–20% of per-bale gross revenue) as a separate product line, and breaking module truck hauling out as its own transportation charge.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingfarmingseasonal-business
9 min read

Connecticut's New R&D Tax Credit for LLCs and S Corps: What Public Act 26-68 Means for Small Businesses

Connecticut's Public Act 26-68, signed May 26, 2026, gives pass-through entities — LLCs, S corps, and partnerships with gross income under $70 million — a 6% R&D tax credit for the first time, refundable at 65% (90% for biotech), capped at $1.5 million per business and $25 million statewide, and claimed through a DECD voucher within 90 days of year-end.

Mike Thrift

tax-creditssmall-businesstax-planning
8 min read

Commuter Benefits in 2026: The IRS Raised Pre-Tax Transit and Parking Limits to $340/Month

The IRS raised the 2026 qualified transportation fringe benefit limit to $340/month each for transit and parking (up from $325), an $8,160 combined annual pre-tax ceiling. Here's how the benefit works, the 7.65% employer FICA savings, where 20-employee mandates in NYC, San Francisco, Seattle, and New Jersey make it legally required, and how to keep the bookkeeping clean.

Mike Thrift

payrollsmall-businesstax-planning
7 min read

Community Property Trusts: How Business Owners in Any State Can Get a Full Basis Step-Up

Alaska, Tennessee, Kentucky, Florida, and South Dakota let married couples in any state opt into community property treatment through a trust, so the entire asset — not just half — gets an IRC Section 1014(b)(6) basis step-up at the first spouse's death. What business owners should know about Section 754 elections, the one-year gift trap under Section 1014(e), and the unresolved IRS guidance.

Mike Thrift

estate-planningtax-planningcapital-gains
9 min read

Your Next Business Loan Might Get Approved by an AI Agent — Here's What That Actually Means

ConnectOne Bank cut policy lookups from 20 minutes to 30 seconds and grew banker adoption 41% in 10 weeks after deploying AI agents built on nCino's platform across commercial lending. Here's what agentic underwriting means for small-business borrowers — why DSCR math, standard-format financial statements, and clean, auditable books now decide whether approval takes days or weeks.

Mike Thrift

aibankingfintech
8 min read

Colorado's Psilocybin Healing Centers Just Watched Cannabis Get a Tax Break They Didn't

Cannabis got Section 280E relief when medical marijuana moved to Schedule III in April 2026, but Colorado's 34 licensed psilocybin healing centers are still fully subject to it. Here is how 280E limits deductions to COGS, why facilitator session labor is the contested cost category, and how to structure a chart of accounts, deferred revenue, and cash controls for a Schedule I business.

Mike Thrift

tax-compliancecost-of-goods-soldbookkeeping
7 min read

Colorado HB26-1289: Worldwide Combined Reporting Becomes the C Corp Default in 2027

Starting with tax years beginning January 1, 2027, Colorado's HB26-1289 makes worldwide combined reporting the default for unitary C corporation groups — foreign subsidiaries included. The water's-edge election that avoids it binds for ten consecutive years, and a tax-haven blacklist (Hong Kong, Ireland, the Netherlands, Singapore) pulls listed entities back in regardless. Here's who is affected and what records you need.

Mike Thrift

taxtax-compliancetax-planning
7 min read

The CLARITY Act Senate Showdown: What Crypto Market-Structure Rules Could Mean for Your Business's Digital Assets

The CLARITY Act cleared the House 294-134, but as of mid-July 2026 markets give it roughly 43% odds of passing the Senate before the August recess. Here's what the crypto market-structure bill means for businesses holding digital assets — and why FASB's ASU 2023-08 fair-value accounting rules already apply regardless of the vote.

Mike Thrift

cryptocurrencydigital-assetscrypto-compliance
8 min read

California's SB 343 'Truth in Recycling' Law Is Blocked — What the Injunction Means for Your Recyclable Labels

A federal judge blocked California's SB 343 "Truth in Recycling" law on July 14, 2026, pausing its October 4 recyclable-labeling deadline. Here's what the preliminary injunction does and doesn't change — the FTC Green Guides, SB 54, and UCL false-advertising risk still apply — and how small brands should handle compliance spending now.

Mike Thrift

small-businesscompliancelegal
8 min read

Buy Here, Pay Here Used Car Lot Accounting: What Independent Dealers Get Wrong About the Books

How buy-here-pay-here dealers should book installment notes receivable, separate unearned finance charges from vehicle-sale revenue, reserve for repossessions on portfolios where ~78% of loan volume is subprime, and structure a Related Finance Company that survives an IRS audit — plus why accrual accounting and year-of-sale gain recognition are mandatory for dealer inventory.

Mike Thrift

accountingbookkeepingsmall-business
9 min read

Boat Detailing Business Bookkeeping: Per-Foot Pricing, Seasonal Cash Flow, and Marina Contracts

How to set up the books for a boat detailing business — separate income accounts for each service tier (wash, polish, ceramic coating, oxidation restoration priced $10–$200 per foot), a 12-month cash flow forecast for a season that concentrates 80% of revenue into six months, and distinct tracking for recurring marina and yacht club contracts.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingsmall-businessseasonal-business
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