CW Associates, CPAs, provides accounting, auditing, tax, and general business consulting services to businesses and their owners and nonprofit entities in a variety of industries as well as to employee benefit plans. Our largest clientele are significant players in Hawaii in the wholesale, retail, manufacturing, and real estate industries. We also provide services to automobile dealerships, associations, franchisees, restaurants, hospitality, private and charter schools and other commercial ventures. In addition, our firm has substantial experience and provides services to businesses in the following specialized industries:

 

Accounting, auditing, tax, and general business consulting services to the construction industry are a significant part of our professional practice. The partners of our firm are actively involved in the General Contractors Association of Hawaii, the Hawaii Chapter of the Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA), and the Associated Builders and Contractors – Honolulu Chapter (ABC). They have presented CFMA’s Basics of Construction Accounting class to a variety of groups over the past ten years and have participated in a number of other construction presentations. In addition, each of our professional staff are trained annually in the unique accounting, reporting, and tax consequences of construction contracts. We pride ourselves on our relationships with local sureties and their expectations of your accountants.

 

 

Accounting, auditing, tax, and general business consulting services to nonprofit organizations and governmental entities also is a substantial part of our professional practice. The professional staff of CW Associates, CPAs, are in compliance with the continuing professional education requirements required by Government Auditing Standards. Carleton L. Williams, our managing partner, has been performing compliance audits since 1979, when they were known as Attachment P audits (prior to the Single Audit Act of 1984). Each of our professional staff are trained annually on the Yellow Book and OMB A-133 accounting, auditing, reporting, and compliance requirements. Services to our nonprofit clients have included: applications for exempt status, preparation of indirect cost allocation plans, clarification of allowable and unallowable costs for federally funded programs, addressing pension plan termination, post-retirement benefits and other accounting issues, analysis of split-interest agreements and joint activity (fundraising) costs, and timely updates for new IRS reporting requirements.

 

 

Accounting, auditing, tax, and consulting services to healthcare organizations is a growing part of our professional practice with the addition of Terri Fujii as an audit partner. We provide services to community health clinics, medical and dental groups, and providers of long term care services. Services to our healthcare clients include preparing the Form 990, preparing cost reports, financial analysis, and assistance with regulatory compliance and operational improvements.

 

 

CW Associates, CPAs, was Hawaii’s first member of the Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center of the AICPA, which requires that all ERISA employee benefit plan audit engagement personnel possess current knowledge of applicable professional standards and the rules and regulations for ERISA (accomplished through employee benefit plan-specific continuing professional education). It also requires member firms to establish policies and procedures specific to the firm’s ERISA employee benefit plan audit practice to comply with the applicable professional standards and the Center’s other membership requirements, and to make publicly available information about its most recently accepted peer review. (Our firm and its predecessor received unqualified opinions without letters of comment in each of its peer reviews since inception in 1989.) Employee benefit plan audits also comprise a substantial part of our professional practice. Our firm provides limited and full-scope audit services of defined benefit pension plans, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Internal Revenue Code Section 401(k) plans, Internal Revenue Code Section 403(b) plans, single-employer pension plans, and multi-employer pension plans.

The approach of CW Associates is tailored in order to guarantee that the firm is a catalyst for a prepared and available service throughout the year. They could also accomplish their job in an efficient and opportune manner. The firm promises to continue providing excellent services in the future with the same knowledgeable staff.

The staff of CW Associates performs their accounting and auditing activities on their laptop computers with professional computer software. They also subscribe to and use several publications of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Commerce Clearing House (CCH), and the Practitioners Publishing Corporation, including the electronic versions that are always available to the staff on their laptop computers.

Those publications mentioned above contain programs and checklists designed specifically for use by practicing certified public accountants (CPAs) on accounting and auditing activities in general and specialized industries. CW Associates approach is to use those programs and checklists on each of its activities, and to make them part of the documentation that supports their work.

CW Associates is positive that they are providing the best and latest professional care and attention to their clients because those publications are updated regularly and used by thousands of practicing CPAs across the country.

CW Associates is also a dynamic member of the Private Companies Practice Section of the AICPA, along with the AICPA Government Audit Quality Center and the AICPA Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center.

The mentioned memberships provide CW Associates with technical support on commercial, government and nonprofit activities. They also require the firm to make public results of their peer review. Since its inception, CW Associates and its predecessor firm received unmodified peer review reports without letters of comments in each of their peer reviews.

The firm also provides tax planning and compliance services for businesses and their owners, and nonprofit entities. Their tax professionals work significantly with individuals and business owners, C corporations, S corporations, limited liability companies and limited liability partnerships, general and limited partnerships, nonprofit entities with for-profit subsidiaries, and trusts and estates.

CW Associates is experienced with companies doing business in more than one state and have access to tax professionals in others states. The firm often analyzes tax planning opportunities and transactions in progress for tax planning purposes. They have extensive experience in tax issues for nonprofit organizations.

Their tax professionals also have worked extensively in resolving audit issues with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and state office of the Department of Taxation in Hawaii general excise tax and other local tax issues unique to the country.

CW Associates method is to add the expertise of a qualified local CPA firm to their client’s available resources. They ask for frequent contact to encourage questions from their clients in order to resolve issues as they arise during the year, rather than waiting until after the end of the year. The firm’s focus is on assisting their clients comply with regulatory requirements and improving financial and operational performance.

CW Associates were conducting peer reviews in order to help enhance the quality of the CPA profession even before peer reviews were required of CPAs providing audit services in Hawaii. Their peer reviews are certified by the AICPA to conduct such peer review services.

CW Associates has been providing great accounting and tax expertise to its clients in Hawaii since 1989. Even if it’s a local firm, its services are similar to what big firms could offer. The firm was ranked as the 9th largest CPA firm in Hawaii in the 2014 Pacific Business News “Book of Lists” since it has a professional staff of 30 accountants, including six partners.

Each of their partner and professional staff is licensed certified public accountants (CPAs) with master’s degrees in business administration or accounting that has experience with an international accounting firm. Their hands-on approach and low partner-to-staff ratio assure you that you will have direct contact with experienced certified public accountants (CPAs).

CW Associates, CPAs is indeed one of the leading firms in and throughout Hawaii. They assure that every client receives the close analysis and attention they deserve by combining the firm’s expertise, experience and the team mentality of their staff. Their dedication to high standards, hiring of seasoned tax professionals, and work ethic is the reason their client base returns every year.

CW Associates has been serving Hawaii for several years now, but because of its continuous success, it might also have possible expansion in Tokyo, Japan in the upcoming years.