CJBS Cannabis Accounting Services
Cannabis CPAs Who Care: As your partner for innovative cannabis tax and advisory solutions, we tailor our products and services to meet your unique business’s needs. Whether you’re a cannabis cultivator, processor, and/or dispensary, our expert team is here to help you grow and scale your company in an industry with great potential and challenges.
Why CJBS?
The cannabis industry continues to grow rapidly, and the use of medical and adult-use cannabis, hemp, and CBD is more popular than ever.
In 2021, legal cannabis sales in the U.S. alone topped $25 billion and are projected to grow to $42 billion by 2026, according to BDSA.
Cannabis legalization in Illinois and across the U.S. continues to drive record sales. Yet, while cannabis has gone mainstream, it’s still not legal on a federal level, and cannabis laws vary by state. What’s more, cannabis is largely a cash business, and the industry faces regulatory hurdles and a higher risk of IRS audits. All that adds up to a tricky legal and financial landscape.
CJBS’ Cannabis Practice isn’t simply an add-on service to our accounting firm. We are immersed in this space and deeply committed to helping our clients succeed within this burgeoning industry.
The CJBS team—led by Senior Partner Matt Bergman, CPA and Partner Ryan Guedel, CPA—has a proven track record of partnering with cannabis cultivators, processors, and dispensaries across the U.S. to help them grow and scale their businesses. With expertise ranging from big-picture cannabis business strategies to complex tax compliance issues, we get to know your business inside and out and help you plan for long-term success. We understand that the world isn’t black and white–we’re navigating in a world of gray. That’s why, unlike firms that offer cookie-cutter solutions or stock answers, we provide you with a custom playbook for your cannabis business.
Our Core Values Guide Everything We Do
Guided by our five core values—trust, collaboration, creativity, integrity, and transparency—we partner with our clients to provide cannabis solutions that fit your unique needs.
Trust
Trust is essential to all our work, but the stakes can be especially high for cannabis businesses, which face a higher risk of bankruptcy and IRS audits.
Collaboration
Close collaboration with our clients, matched with consistent and proactive communication, ensures that we’re always providing you with the insights, tools, and tactics for your cannabis tax and accounting needs.
Creativity
Creativity allows us to solve our cannabis clients’ unique challenges, such as having few traditional banking options and no bankruptcy protection.
Integrity
Our firm is guided by our employees’ integrity. In a burgeoning industry like cannabis, it is more important than ever to hold ourselves to high ethical standards, and follow through on what we say we’re going to do.
Transparency
We operate with transparency by communicating to our cannabis clients with unwavering candor, honesty, and respect.
Your Cannabis Accounting Experts
Matt Bergman, CPA and CJBS senior partner, has been with the firm since 1997 and has specialized in cannabis accounting and tax services since 2015, when an existing client won a license under the Illinois medical cannabis pilot program. Matt worked hand in hand with them to help grow and scale their business safely and efficiently. That business grew rapidly and was soon acquired by one of the country’s largest MSOs (multi-state operators), and they remain a CJBS client to this day. Matt works with clients from small start-ups to the country’s biggest MSOs. After growing up in Deerfield, Ill., and Boston, Mass., Matt lives in Wilmette with his wife, two children, and two dogs.
Ryan Guedel, CPA and CJBS partner, has been with the firm for 10+ years, and currently works with clients in cannabis, real estate, manufacturing, construction, and distribution. Ryan coordinates due diligence engagements, carries out audits and reviews, and works on business development and taxation for the firm. A devoted professional, Ryan gives his all with each and every client interaction. His personal motto is “hard work and more hard work.” Ryan currently resides in Wheeling, Ill., with his wife Julie, son Cole Jameson, and rescue dog Pinky. He likes the area for its proximity to the CJBS offices. His hobbies include cheering on the NY Yankees, mixed martial arts, and motorsports.
Cannabis Tax and Accounting FAQs
How does IRS Code 280E affect my business?
This decades-old federal statute remains a big challenge for cannabis operators today, as it limits companies’ ability to deduct typical business expenses from their federal taxes or claim certain tax credits. We leverage our extensive industry experience and deep knowledge of cannabis tax laws to ensure you remain compliant and can focus on growth.
It’s important to work with an expert who understands the nuances of section 280E and has extensive industry experience. Your cannabis accountant should also understand the different approaches for calculating your cost of goods sold (COGS) and know whether you are required to use 471 or can use 263a, for example. Finally, ensuring you have the proper ownership structure for your company and the possibility of creating multiple entities so that not all are subject to 280E is vital.
How is banking different for cannabis businesses?
Without traditional banking options and with large cash transactions, some cannabis businesses must submit IRS Tax Form 8300 to record cash handling for amounts of $10,000 or more. Unfortunately, many companies are unaware of their obligation to complete this form—and that’s where we see the IRS pursuing them for failure to file penalties. Completing this form late is far better than not completing it at all—potentially saving them hundreds of thousands of dollars in IRS penalties.
What is the process for setting up Internal Controls for my business?
Non-Cannabis companies have traditional federal and state tax compliance needs (federal, state, sales, local). Cannabis companies add to those requirements by requiring intense and intricate inventory reporting to meet state compliance. (While reporting rules differ from state to state, CJBS is well versed in compliance reporting requirements in states across the U.S.) Every seed and leaf must be accounted for throughout the entire growing and manufacturing process, which can be very cumbersome if not approached in the right manner. CJBS can assist with these detailed reporting requirements to make sure cannabis operators comply with all current state regulations. This allows operators to focus on what they know—cannabis.
How is compliance in cannabis different than other industries?
Cannabis compliance reporting requirements differ in that they involve producing financial statements and inventory analysis, showing your business is upholding safety standards, and helping you keep your license in good standing. (While reporting rules differ from state to state, CJBS is well versed in compliance reporting requirements in states across the U.S)
News & Updates
Stay current on the latest Cannabis industry developments and find out what it means for you and your business.
