Tax practice

The Internal Revenue Service has issued guidance to individuals and businesses affected by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and announced new efforts to help affected taxpayers, including a special Gulf Coast Assistance Day on July 17.

An overwhelming majority of senior financial executives say their tax department’s top priority is not tax savings or their effective rate, but timely and accurate tax return and financial reporting, according to a national survey of CFOs and senior comptrollers conducted by Grant Thornton LLP.

Senate Democrats have introduced the latest version of their mammoth tax extenders and unemployment benefits extension legislation, further modifying provisions such as the taxation of carried interest of hedge fund managers and private equity firm partners and reducing the cost to under $110 billion in part by scaling back Medicaid aid to states.

Top companies were able to dramatically reduce their corporate risk profile, and maintain compliance with sales and use taxes and value-added taxes, by leveraging automated tax management tools, ranging from tax calculation engines, filing and remittance systems, to audit control solutions, according to a new report.

Nearly 1,300 prisoners claimed over $9 million in First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credits, according to a new government report.

Gulf Coast residents contending with the oil washing up on their shores could find that the checks from BP come with a few mucky strings attached.

The Tax & Accounting business of Thomson Reuters has integrated the latest tax holidays into its Sabrix sales and use tax solutions.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has sent a letter to Congress in support of reinstating lapsed tax provisions that require polluters to pay for the Superfund for environmental cleanup.

An Internal Revenue Service agent has been indicted in a federal court for soliciting and accepting a $9,700 bribe from the co-owners of a Minnesota business in exchange for lowering the amount of taxes they owed to the IRS.

Peter Orszag, the White House Budget Director and one of the driving forces behind the passage of the $787 billion economic stimulus package, will step down from his post.

The Internal Revenue Service needs to improve the security of its Automated Collection System, a telephone contact system used to collect unpaid taxes and secure tax returns from delinquent taxpayers, according to a new government report.

Health care professionals who have received student loan relief under state programs that reward those who work in underserved communities may qualify for refunds on their 2009 federal income tax returns, as well as an annual tax cut going forward, according to the IRS.

The Internal Revenue Service is extending some deadlines for sponsors of defined-contribution retirement plans, such as 401(k) plans, that were affected by storms and other severe weather in Alabama, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Tennessee and West Virginia.

The Internal Revenue Service does not always properly authenticate the identity of taxpayers calling its toll-free assistance lines before providing them with confidential tax account information, according to a new government report.

The 3.8 percent Medicare tax on investment income that will be imposed on higher-income individuals starting in 2013 has caught the immediate attention of many taxpayers.

SMALL CHARITIES GET EXTENSION ON IRS DEADLINE

Despite performing admirably in a difficult environment, the Internal Revenue Service still needs to improve on strategies to narrow the tax gap and hone its information technology systems, according to the IRS Oversight Board

The Internal Revenue Service has released an application form that will allow small firms to begin applying for certification for tax credits or grants available under the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project Program, created by the Affordable Care Act.

An outside advisory committee recommended that the Internal Revenue Service follow a three-year phase-in approach to implementing a new requirement for tax preparers to electronically file individual tax returns.

The House passed legislation to incentivize community banks to increase their small-business lending.