Tax practice

The former chief executive of the investment company Quellos, along with two attorneys, have been indicted in a tax fraud and kickback scheme.

House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman John Lewis, D-Ga., criticized the IRS’s handling of taxpayer phone calls at a hearing that reviewed IRS operations and budget proposals, with IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman in attendance.

The IRS has filed a tax lien of $819,848 on the 2004 presidential campaign of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., but his office claims the debt has long been paid.

Former BDO Seidman vice chairman Charles W. Bee Jr., has pleaded guilty to tax fraud charges stemming from tax shelters marketed to the firm’s wealthy clients.

IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman intends to propose a comprehensive set of recommendations by the end of 2009 to ensure “uniform and high ethical standards of conduct for tax preparers” in order to increase taxpayer compliance.

IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman laid out the Obama administration’s plans for cracking down on offshore tax evasion, including extending the statute of limitations.

The new administration released its budget and included its revenue proposals, detailed by the Treasury Department in the "Greenbook." There is quite a bit of material, so I want to focus on the proposals that didn't happen that are of concern to accountants and clients.

A California businessman was sentenced to a five-year jail term for tax evasion and ordered to pay a $75,000 fine, as well as given a tongue lashing by the judge, after he failed to report the profits from his marble tile company on his personal income tax return, claiming the business was owned by a “pure trust.”

Minority-owned businesses were less successful in obtaining awards from the Treasury Department’s New Markets Tax Credits program than non-minority entities in recent years, according to a new government report.

THOMSON REUTERS STARTS TAXWATCH UNIVERSITY

Under the heading, "Nothing in the tax law turns out to be easy," add the temporary motor vehicle sales tax deduction enacted in the 2009 Recovery Act. The concept sounds simple enough: Give consumers a tax incentive to purchase new vehicles in an effort to help the ailing auto industry. Its execution, however, has left many tax advisors scratching their heads over the number of issues that have been raised in connection with this new deduction.

Nexus for state corporate income and sales and use taxes remains widely variable between states.

The Internal Revenue Service said that 112 U.S. companies, partnerships, individuals and other entities reported receiving almost 2,300 requests to participate in boycotts unsanctioned in the U.S. in 2005 and 2006.

Silicon Valley chip manufacturer Xilinx has lost an appeals court ruling in a tax dispute with the IRS that could have implications for other multinational companies that use transfer pricing.

The IRS offered guidance to businesses that plan to claim a newly expanded work opportunity tax credit for eligible unemployed veterans and unskilled younger workers.

It’s all too easy to confuse the Treasury Department’s recently issued greenbook outlining the Obama administration’s tax policies with the venerable women’s magazine, so here are a few examples of the ways they differ.

A Texas restaurant owner has been sentenced to two years in jail after he was convicted of trying to bribe an IRS agent by offering her free pizza and a job.

An influential group of financial executives is urging Congress to oppose the Obama administration’s proposals for reforming the corporate tax system, especially the rules used by multinational companies to defer paying taxes on foreign earnings.

The House has introduced a bill to ban patents on tax-planning methods and strategies after previous versions of the legislation died in the last congressional session.

The Internal Revenue Service spent nearly two years and $19.5 million to develop its new Web portal, but canceled the project six months before its scheduled completion date, according to a new report.