Tax planning

The U.S. Treasury Dept. has released a study on the income mobility of U.S. taxpayers between 1996 and 2005, and found evidence of upward mobility even as the gap between incomes at the upper and lower ends of the scale has grown.

Two firms in South Florida said they were merging, with Berenfeld, Spritzer, Shechter & Sheer LLP, expanding by combining with Lefcourt, Billig, Tiktin & Yesner.

Southern accounting firm Carr, Riggs & Ingram has acquired Bumpus Hall, allowing the firm to expand into the Nashville area.

The House has voted to approve a $78 billion bill that would provide a temporary fix to prevent the alternative minimum tax from spreading to about 23 million more taxpayers this coming tax season.

Intuit appointed R. Neil Williams as its new chief financial officer, succeeding Kiran Patel, who in June became general manager and senior vice president of the company's consumer tax business.

Lawyers for actor Wesley Snipes have filed a motion requesting a change of venue in his tax evasion trial, claiming that the current location is "a hotbed of Klan activity."

The Internal Revenue Service's financial management systems and internal controls came under sharp criticism in a financial audit conducted by the Government Accountability Office.

The Bush administration threatened to veto the Temporary Tax Relief Act of 2007 in its present form, putting the patch for the alternative minimum tax in jeopardy as the deadline nears for fixing the AMT before it spreads to millions more taxpayers.

Copanion released GruntWorx, a Web-based application that captures and organizes tax return documents and data from clients.

Authorities have charged two employees of the District of Columbia's Office of Tax and Revenue with stealing more than $16 million in illegal property tax refunds.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board has decided to defer the effective date for FASB Interpretation No. 48, "Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes," for nonpublic entities.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, has sent letters to six media-based ministries asking for information about their expenses, executive compensation and the amenities lavished on their executives to see if they are violating their tax-exempt status.

The Internal Revenue Service said it received nearly 80 million electronically filed tax returns this year, breaking last year's record of 73.3 million.

The House of Representatives unanimously passed legislation that would give tax relief to the families of military personnel, as well as help volunteer firefighters and emergency medical responders.

The Internal Revenue Service said it would begin sharing the results of employment tax examinations with 29 different state labor agencies to cut down on avoidance schemes and fraudulent employment tax filings.

Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh's former attorney cannot write off the value of the papers he donated from the case to the University of Texas at Austin, according to a U.S. Tax Court decision last week.

During the month of November, a number of accountants will be getting a telephone call or an e-mail from clients all asking the same question. “What is the little-known tax break that makes investing In GPS-tracking technology more affordable than ever?” Be careful what you say if asked because that inquiring client already has the answer.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case that could end state income tax breaks for municipal bonds.

H&R Block CFO William L. Trubeck has stepped down, the company announced.

Thomson Tax & Accounting released an online tax research service, QuickFinder Tax Manager, aimed at sole practitioners and small accounting firms.