Tax practice

The IRS Criminal Investigation Division’s Los Angeles Field Office is urging taxpayers to be very careful when choosing a tax return preparer this filing season.

Jodi Hoskins, the operator of an escort service in Salt Lake City, has been found guilty of one count of tax evasion.

A woman has been charged with trying to bribe an IRS official by giving him $2,000 and a package containing promissory notes and a $100 Starbucks gift card.

With average tax refunds up nearly 10 percent this year, the White House has launched an online interactive Tax Savings Tool to help taxpayers take advantage of Recovery Act tax credits.

The House has approved health care reform legislation after a tense series of negotiations that left the vote in doubt until a group of pro-life Democrats agreed to support the bill after receiving assurances that President Obama would issue an executive order prohibiting federal funding of abortions.

The Internal Revenue Service continues to have problems with the security of its computer systems, jeopardizing the confidentiality of taxpayer information, according to a new report.

The Internal Revenue Service is seeking civic-minded volunteers to serve on the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, a federal advisory committee that makes recommendations for improving the agency’s service.

California Secretary of State Deborah Bowen, the state’s top elected Democrat, has rejected Republican congressional candidate Phil Liberatore’s ballot designation, alleging that Liberatore’s description as "IRS Problem Solver," is overly broad and associated with an entity or organization.

The health care reform reconciliation bill makes a number of adjustments in the excise taxes on so-called “Cadillac” insurance plans and medical device makers, along with Medicare taxes and the fees imposed on pharmaceutical companies.

The jobs bill signed by President Obama on Thursday includes various revenue-raising provisions that would put foreign financial institutions with U.S. taxpayers under a new reporting and tax regime.

President Obama has signed legislation that provides employers with tax incentives to hire unemployed workers.

The House Ways and Means Committee has approved legislation to provide tax relief to small businesses and extend financing measures for creating jobs.

One week after California CPA Phil Liberatore announced he was running for a congressional seat in that state's 42nd district, former New York lawmaker and Arthur Andersen partner Joseph DioGuardi announced he is challenging Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., for her Senate seat.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania will offer amnesty to those who owe back state taxes, for only the second time in its history.

The Senate has approved legislation that provides companies with a payroll tax exemption for hiring new employees.

The Internal Revenue Service has been making good on its promises to step up its audits of wealthy taxpayers, and sites like Facebook could be a big help.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued its annual list of common tax scams to avoid, with tax preparer fraud and phishing schemes topping the list.

Calls to the Internal Revenue Service’s toll-free phone lines for tax help may exceed the agency’s projections this tax season.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sander Levin, D-Mich., has unveiled a draft of a new bill that would provide tax incentives to small businesses to spur job creation.

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., has released a draft version of the financial regulatory reform legislation that he has been working to write since the House passed its own legislation last December.