Practice management

I remember the tax-cutting years in previous political eras. Those were the good old days. Now it’s easy to get the impression we have higher income taxes and an extra tax on investment earnings. But analyzing taxes and the reasons behind them are not that simple. Some brackets are actually lower today, and some taxpayers are paying at a higher rate while others are paying at a lower rate.

Legislation to deter U.S. companies from moving their addresses overseas should avoid retroactive taxes, prevent a net tax increase and move toward a revamp of the tax code, Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah said today.

In another blow to President Barack’s Obama’s signature legislation, a three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of the plaintiff, declaring the law’s premium subsidies are invalid in more than two dozen states due to the law’s specific language.

CPAs working in the forensic and valuation areas listed “big data” as the top issue facing them in the next two to five years, according to a new survey from the American Institute of CPAs.

The Internal Revenue Service did not establish processes to verify eligibility for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, according to a new government report.

President Barack Obama’s health-care overhaul suffered a potentially crippling blow as a U.S. appeals court ruled the government can’t give financial assistance to anyone buying coverage on the insurance marketplace run by federal authorities.

A Renaissance Technologies LLC hedge fund’s investors probably avoided more than $6 billion in U.S. income taxes over 14 years through transactions with Barclays Plc and Deutsche Bank AG, a Senate committee said.

The Internal Revenue Service has released final regulations to amend the definition of research and experimental expenditures, providing guidance for taxpayers engaged in research activities on the treatment of amounts paid or incurred in connection with the development of tangible property, including pilot models.

A tax preparer and bookkeeper in Southern California was sentenced to 36 months in prison for using the stolen identities of her relatives and former clients to file fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has released the full version of the OECD’s new standard for the automatic exchange of tax information across different countries.

Employers say the Affordable Care Act is driving the costs of their medical plans higher, according to a new survey by accounting firm Cherry Bekaert’s benefits consulting unit.

Thomson Reuters has released a special report for tax professionals on how to respond to Internal Revenue Service examinations.

Professional services organizations confronted declining revenues and other challenges last year, according to a new report.

At one point we had a client that was going out of business and they asked us to negotiate a final settlement with the IRS where the two partners could walk away broke but without being in debt to the IRS for unpaid withholding taxes.

Congress is planning a hearing next week on the integrity of the Affordable Care Act’s Premium Tax Credit program as the Internal Revenue Service is cautioning taxpayers to make sure they are receiving the appropriate level of tax credits to help them pay for health insurance.

Some of our favorite recent tax fraud cases.

Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency contractor who blew the whistle on the secret surveillance activities being carried out by the federal government, is warning accountants and other professionals to be concerned about the privacy of their communications.

The tax reform proposal put forward by House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp earlier this year attempts, like other proposals before it, to broaden the base and lower the rates.

Highlights of some of our favorite tax-related blogs from the past week.

Barclays Plc and Deutsche Bank AG face scrutiny over their sale of products to a hedge-fund manager that allowed it to skirt borrowing limits and avoid taxes, according to people with knowledge of the matter.