Few pieces of legislation have a more hopeful name than the Hire Act, the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act that was that was signed into law in March. And whatever a person's opinions about whether it will have its intended effect or not, it's a complicated law that put some extra work on the nation's payroll service and software providers.

Sage North America, which sells a French/English version of Simply Accounting in Canada, has begun testing a Spanish/English edition of the low-cost accounting software in the United States. The company did not state when it might make a decision, but it is offering the product via a Sage Web site.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Society of Accountants supports tax preparer registration requirements proposed by the Internal Revenue Service, but wants several changes in administration, compliance and enforcement. And it asked to have more preparers covered by requirements, including volunteers. The positions are contained in comments the NSA submitted to the IRS this week.