Text for questions 14 to 20.1 Accountants and auditors help to ensure that the Nation’sfirms are run efficiently, its public records kept accurately, and itstaxes paid properly and on time. They analyze and communicate4 financial information for various entities such as companies,individual clients, and government. Beyond carrying out thefundamental tasks of the occupation — preparing, analyzing, and7 verifying financial documents in order to provide information toclients — many accountants also offer budget analysis, financial andinvestment planning, information technology consulting, and limited20 legal services.Specific job duties vary widely among the four major fieldsof accounting and auditing: public, management, government13 accounting, and internal auditing.Public accountants perform a broad range of accounting,auditing, tax, and consulting activities for their clients, which may16 be corporations, governments, nonprofit organizations, orindividuals. For example, some public accountants concentrate ontax matters, such as advising companies about the tax advantages19 and disadvantages of certain business decisions and preparingindividual income tax returns. Others offer advice in areas such ascompensation or employee health care benefits, the design of22 accounting and data-processing systems, and the selection ofcontrols to safeguard assets, or audit clients’ financial statements andinform investors and authorities that the statements have been25 correctly prepared and reported. These accountants are also referredto as external auditors. Public accountants, many of whom areCertified Public Accountants (CPAs), generally have their own28 businesses or work for public accounting firms.Some public accountants specialize in forensic accounting —investigating and interpreting white-collar crimes such as securities31 fraud and embezzlement, bankruptcies and contract disputes, andother complex and possibly criminal financial transactions, includingmoney laundering by organized criminals. Forensic accountants34 combine their knowledge of accounting and finance with law andinvestigative techniques to determine whether an activity is illegal.Many forensic accountants work closely with law enforcement37 personnel and lawyers during investigations and often appear asexpert witnesses during trials.Internet: <www.bls.gov> (adapted). In the text, "others" (l.20) refers to