Tax practice

The watchdog group Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington had a big surprise during a conference call with reporters Tuesday to announce the latest complaint CREW had filed with the Internal Revenue Service: the subject of the complaint joined the call and defended himself.

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance outsourced the responsibility of refunding money to a new contractor this year and many taxpayers who filed paper-based returns still have not received their refunds.

The Internal Revenue Service budget would be cut by 24 percent under a House Republican proposal that would create new restrictions on the tax agency.

The Internal Revenue Service has reportedly posted the Social Security numbers of tens of thousands of people on the Internet before taking down the information after a whistleblower pointed out the mistake.

The House has approved a bill that prohibits the Public Company Accounting and Oversight Board from forcing public companies to automatically change or rotate their independent auditing firms.

The leaders of Congress’s two main tax-writing committees kicked off their national tax reform tour Monday with meetings at two businesses in the Twin Cities area.

The Swiss government announced a new approach allowing banks to hand over data to U.S. authorities in a bid to solve a dispute over undeclared assets and forestall further indictments by the Department of Justice.

The Internal Revenue Service has proposed tax relief for money market fund investors in response to concerns about proposed reforms from the Securities and Exchange Commission in the money market industry that could trigger so-called “wash sale’ tax rules.

Rep. Bill Posey, R-Fla., has written a letter to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew questioning regulations that would require U.S. banks and credit unions to collect and report information on nonresident aliens, urging him to cease enforcement of the Foreign Accounting Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA, and stop negotiating intergovernmental agreements with other countries for FATCA enforcement.

The Internal Revenue Service reminded taxpayers and tax preparers that it would be closed Friday, July 5, due to the current budget situation, including the sequester, but filing and payment deadlines remain unchanged.

The National Taxpayer Advocate submits two annual reports to the Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee each year.

BDO USA LLP has named CCH as the primary research provider for its professionals nationwide.

Thomson Reuters has introduced a mobile version of its ONESOURCE corporate tax software, allowing users to track the status of income tax e-filings from any mobile device.

Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., and Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., have introduced legislation in the Senate and the House to block foreign governments from collecting taxes on securities transactions.

The Obama administration has decided to postpone the employer responsibility payment and insurance reporting requirements under the Affordable Care Act for one year to give businesses more time to comply with the health care reform law.

The American Institute of CPAs has requested changes in a Senate bill aimed at combating the growing problem of identity theft and tax fraud to avoid increased penalties for tax preparers who improperly disclose or use taxpayer information.

A Maryland businessman has pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return for tax year 2008 after admitting to concealing his foreign bank account at an Israel-based bank on his return.

The Internal Revenue did not always comply with legal guidelines when conducting seizures of taxpayers’ property, according to a new government report.

The chairmen of Congress’s two main tax-writing committees in the House and Senate plan to begin a tour across the country visiting with taxpayers and businesses as they plan a major tax reform overhaul.

Profitable U.S. corporations paid only about 13 to 17 percent of their pretax worldwide income in U.S. federal income taxes, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office based on data from the actual tax returns filed by the corporations.