IRS. (Washington Insider).

The IRS announced a change allowing simplified tax filing for up to one-half million additional small businesses beginning in tax year 2001. Certain small businesses with gross receipts of $10 million or less are now permitted to use the cash method of accounting for income and expenses instead

Until now, cash accounting was limited to firms with under $1 million in receipts.

Most small service businesses with average receipts of $10 million or less are eligible for cash accounting, according to SBA's Office of Advocacy. So are service providers who also sell related products, such as a plumber who also sells plumbing supplies. The new rules generally exclude manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers, miners, certain publishers, and sound recorders unless they are principally a service business or perform certain kinds of custom manufacturing.

A listing of the kinds of businesses that will be able to take advantage of the change can be found on the Ohio Small Business Development Center's website, www.ohiosbdc.org/fincash.shtml.