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# About us
Advocate Accounting was founded in 2013 by Erin Louis, CPA and has grown to be one of the most trusted names in Seattle for complex nonprofit accounting and consulting. More than just providing these services, we are an administrative partner and extend your in-house capacity so you can focus on your mission or business. We take pride in friendly and personable service. If you are our client, we actually care about you. If you don’t want to be cared about by us, you can’t be our client. Read more about .
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### Erin Louis, CPA, President and Founder
Erin (she/her) has over thirteen years of experience working with individuals, nonprofits and campaigns and has been a CPA since 2011. She got her start specializing in tax preparation for registered domestic partners and same-sex married couples before marriage equality. She was so passionate about spreading good information about a confusing topic that she became a blogger: you can read her past articles at . Erin has served as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of ,  and  and has served on multiple committees to the  Board of Directors. In her early days in the industry she was an instructor for the  Financial Literacy Program and is a current member of the . Prior to accounting, Erin was a professional Texas Hold ‘Em poker dealer and still regularly visits Las Vegas to play. Don’t worry, she doesn’t gamble when it comes to accounting.
!erin@advocate-accounting.com
### Emily McLongstreet, Staff Accountant
Emily (she/her) joined Advocate Accounting in 2023 with over 15 years of bookkeeping experience. Whether crunching numbers for a flower farm, public television station or general contractor, she has approached every stage of her career with enthusiasm and an open mind, guided by the principle that no task is too small if it needs doing. As a fresh transplant to the Pacific Northwest, she is looking forward to exploring all the lush natural beauty the region has to offer. She is also a lawn sport enthusiast, quick to create a playlist for any occasion and would like to pet your dog.
!emily@advocate-accounting.com
### Lisa Niverson CPA, Accounting Manager
Lisa (she/her) joined Advocate Accounting in 2023 and has well over twenty years of public accounting experience, specializing in tax planning & preparation, auditing, accounting, and consulting. She has experience working with all entity types, including individuals, small businesses, counties, cities, and nonprofit organizations. She takes pride in working with and supporting her local community. She enjoys spending her free time outdoors, on her mini ranch caring for her horses, mini KuneKune pigs, Irish Wolfhound and two feisty ginger cats.
!lisa@advocate-accounting.com
### Anis, Office Manager and Bookkeeper
Anis (they/them) is grateful to be part of Advocate Accounting. Their survival under capitalism has included housekeeping, bartending, performing, feature writing, and all manner of sitting. As an office manager and bookkeeper, they've worked exclusively with nonprofits and small businesses. When they're not scheming for the fall of capitalism, they're enjoying moments of humanity with clients and community. They like quiet cats and loud Geminis.
!anis@advocate-accounting.com
## Ready for better accounting?
### Get in Touch
info@advocate-accounting.com
206.216.4629
1916 Pike Pl. Ste 12 #323
Seattle, WA 98101
© 2025 Advocate Accounting, LLC. • Homepage photo © Joshua Putnam • Site design by
# Employment
We are currently hiring for a **Senior Accountant!**.
See the full job description and instructions to apply .
# Services
## Accounting
Our accounting services are right for you if you have the in-house capacity to do your own bookkeeping. Much of bookkeeping is basic data entry, and it’s more cost-effective for your org to handle this in house. That allows us to focus on higher-level services: we work with you to develop or improve your systems, train your team on the day-to-day bookkeeping, and provide monthly reconciliation, review, and reporting for your financial activity. We specialize in working with complex nonprofits, including multiple entities (affiliated 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), and/or PACs), organizations with fiscal sponsor / sponsee relationships, and those that receive government grant and contract funding.
Some of our most commonly provided services include:
* **Grant and Contract Tracking**—Reimbursable/billable grant and contract invoicing for government or foundation grants and spenddown tracking for grant funds received up front.
* **Reporting**—Customized financial reporting for executive teams, boards of directors, and/or grant/contract reporting. Our customized templates include solutions for complex reporting needs related to multiple entities, fiscal sponsorships, budgeting, and cash flow.
* **Monthly Adjustments**
  + Application of cost allocations based on staff time and effort.
  + Cross-entity expense allocations with related entities and fiscal sponsorship arrangements.
  + Monthly adjustments to track grant spending.
  + Periodic adjustments to ensure our accrual basis clients are adhering to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
* **Audit Assistance**—We can work with you or directly with your auditor to provide support through the entire audit process.
* **Consulting**—We are often available to provide consulting support for our accounting clients. .
## Consulting
We love sharing information. We know that our skills and experience help organizations optimize existing systems, handle growth, and navigate new complexities.
Because every person has a different relationship to systems of finance, we want to hear about the kinds of services that make sense for you. Examples of our most often used consulting services are:
* **Accounting System Design**—An organized accounting system enables you to monitor cash flow and budget goals, allocate expenses across programs or entities, report activity to grant funders, prepare for your audit, file your taxes, and provide valuable information for strategic planning.
* **Internal Control Development**—Internal controls can be difficult to set up in a small organization, but strong controls and policies can reduce the risk for error and fraud.
* **Policy and Procedure Development**—Effective policies and procedures can increase your capacity, reduce confusion, and help facilitate smooth employee transitions.
* **Employee Handbooks**—We provide handbook reviews and drafting, helping you to develop sound policies that are in line with your values.
* **Fiscal Sponsorships**—We can work with you and your legal team to establish agreements, structures, and procedures relating to fiscal sponsorship agreements and cost sharing.
* **Payroll**—We can help you navigate 3rd party payroll providers, including choosing a provider and software setup. We additionally consult on how to deal with payroll tax notices, garnishments, severance pay, out of state employees, and other common payroll complications.
* **Public Disclosure Commission Compliance**—PDC reporting and compliance is important to get right. We can help you navigate the complexities of these rules and develop systems to support you with your filings.
* **Growth and Administrative Capacity Management**—Don’t underestimate the need to grow your administrative and finance capacity needs as the organization grows. We can advise on hiring strategies and support your hiring process.
* **Whatever you need**—Just ask us and maybe we can help!
## Trainings
In an industry that gatekeeps specialized knowledge, we believe in making that knowledge accessible and sharing the language that opens doors, grant coffers, and pathways to wealth for those who have been excluded. We offer training in a variety of topic areas and formats. No matter the audience, we are committed to helping you work better.
We are offering discounted solidarity pricing. Please  or fill out a  if you’re interested.
Trainings are offered as on demand pre-recorded videos, public live trainings, and customized private training.
## Taxes
Whether you need help with tax strategies and planning, or simply filing your tax return, we can help. We work remotely, primarily over email, and use secure file transfer systems to handle your sensitive information. Most returns will be filed electronically on your behalf.
Our expertise includes:
**Nonprofits (990 & 990-EZ Filers)**
* Political activity and lobbying
* Related entities
* Public charity test
* Required disclosures
**Individuals (1040 Filers):**
* Rentals
* Children and college
* Retirement
* Capital gains
* Other deductions & credits
* Estimated tax planning
**Small Businesses (Schedule C and 1120-S Filers)**
* Entity selection
* S-Corp payroll
**Everyone!**
* New tax legislation
* IRS correspondence and notice response
# Accounting
## Join the Accounting Services Waitlist
We are currently not accepting new accounting clients. Join the waitlist to be notified when accounting services will be reopened!
Join the waitlist
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On Demand Trainings Live Trainings Private Trainings
Thank you to our current and former team members and colleagues for helping us develop this content.
## QuickBooks Online Basic Training (for Nonprofits) - Part 1
$
100
This training is designed for the accidental operations manager, board treasurer, executive director, or anyone else who needs to understand how QuickBooks works so you can accurately and confidently record and track your organization's financial information. It covers the basics of bookkeeping, QuickBooks vocabulary, data entry for income and expenses, and basic troubleshooting. To help you understand the why behind it all, this course also includes and introduction to basic accounting concepts. Although this training assumes no prior QuickBooks knowledge, there's still plenty to learn for those who need a refresher, need nonprofit specific training, or who are coming to QuickBooks Online from Desktop.
Purchasing this training grants you access to our portal, where you can view the video and
presentation slides at your convenience.
Purchase
Training
## QuickBooks Online Basic Training (for Nonprofits) - Part 2
Building on Part 1, this training will show you how to verify your data entry and create useful reports for both staff and board that will help you make decisions. This training covers QuickBooks' banking integration, reconciling accounts, generating and manipulating reports. You'll also learn how to handle non-cash activity and understand the difference between cash and accrual accounting.
## QuickBooks Online Intermediate Training (for Nonprofits) - Part 1
So you feel comfortable with QuickBooks data entry, but you still have a feeling there's a lot QuickBooks can do that you're not taking advantage of? Our two-part series of intermediate trainings are for you. In Part 1 we cover ensuring your QuickBooks is set up in the best way to capture different kinds of information: functional expenses (program vs. admin and fundraising), grants, and multiple entities like fiscal sponsorships or related organizations. You'll learn why this tracking is necessary, how to gather the information you need to do it, and how the information is used. budgeting -- for your whole organization, specific programs, and even grants.
## QuickBooks Online Intermediate Training (for Nonprofits) - Part 2
Building on Part 1, in this training we'll take your fully tricked out QuickBooks and put it through the paces, covering how to track grant expenditures or invoice against reimbursable grants, how to allocate expenses across multiple programs, and how to manage multiple entities such as related 501(c)(3)/(c)(4) orgs. This course also includes general background and training on fiscal sponsorships such as what to consider, how to set them up, and the differences between fiscal sponsorship models.
## How to Review a 990 for Staff & Board
This training reveals the mystery contained in the many pages of Form 990 and its associated schedules. You will learn from the perspectives of both a CPA 990 preparer and experienced nonprofit director. Nonprofit staff will learn how to review a drafted 990 and work with the external tax preparer on any needed adjustments. Board members will learn how to review a finalized 990, and which parts of the form are of greatest concern. This training is also useful to anyone who wants to better understand some of the "why" behind many nonprofit accounting structures, practices, and terminology.
## 1099-MISC & 1099-NEC Training
75
Every January your organization is responsible for providing 1099 forms to certain independent contractors who you paid more than $600. In this training we'll go over the ins and outs of which contractors this applies to, and how to build your systems so that it's not a crunch to prepare.
Coming this summer, check back often!!
We offer trainings as 1:1 sessions, customized private trainings for you and your team, or sponsored customized trainings for your community members. 
There was an error adding your trainings to your account. Please try again or
email
erin@advocate-accounting.com
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