Tax practice

The Internal Revenue Service has introduced a new online tool for ordering tax return copies, tax transcripts and return information.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, introduced legislation Wednesday to create job opportunities for veterans returning home from war and help businesses create jobs.

President Obama placed an unusual degree of emphasis Tuesday during his State of the Union address on tax reform, and while there appears to be more bipartisan spirit in Congress in the wake of the tragic shootings in Tucson, the prospects for getting an agreement are murky at best.

President Obama urged Congress to work across party lines on an overhaul of both corporate and individual taxes to reduce tax loopholes during his State of the Union address on Tuesday night.

Senate Finance Committee member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., have introduced a bill that would prevent any individual or firm from being able to receive patents on tax strategies.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., have introduced and pledged to pass a bill to repeal the expanded 1099 reporting requirements in the health care reform bill.

A Washington think tank, the Center for Economic and Policy Research, has released a report recommending a tax on financial speculation as a way to help solve the federal government’s long-term budget deficits.

The Internal Revenue Service has provided a dispensation for tax preparers who have tried unsuccessfully to register for a Preparer Tax Identification Number so they can go ahead and prepare tax returns for compensation, even though they have not yet received a PTIN.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ken., said he expects President Obama to call for lowering the corporate income tax rate during the president’s State of the Union address on Tuesday evening.

The Internal Revenue Service has selected 10 new members for its Information Reporting Program Advisory Committee and another 10 members and a chairman for its IRS Advisory Council.

The Internal Revenue Service has introduced IRS2Go, its first smartphone application that lets taxpayers check on the status of their tax refund and obtain helpful tax information.

A whistle-blowing former Swiss bank executive has handed over two CDs containing the names and account holdings of more than 2,000 high net worth American, European and Asian customers to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

The Senate has introduced bipartisan legislation that would give law enforcement access to tax return information that could help them locate missing children.

Three Democratic Senators have written a letter to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, urging him to fix the 1099 reporting requirement in the health care reform law, and have pledged speedy action in the Senate if he does.

With nine out of 10 families either hiring tax preparers or purchasing tax software in order to file their taxes, it is clear that the Tax Code is too complex, too time-consuming and too costly for our families and businesses. So says Dave Camp, R-Mich., the new chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and ranking member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, released the language of legislation they intend to introduce that would eliminate the patenting of tax strategies, a key priority of the American Institute of CPAs.

Intuit has made several updates to its ProLine Tax Online tax prep application for this tax season.

Valentine’s Day will turn into Tax Day as the Internal Revenue Service plans to begin processing tax returns delayed by last month’s tax law changes on Feb. 14.

The Republican-controlled House voted Wednesday evening to repeal President Obama’s landmark health care reform law, but the measure is not expected to come to a vote in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

A trio of senators is urging the Internal Revenue Service to share information with the Bureau of Prisons to prevent more prisoners from committing tax fraud from within their jail cells.