Thursday, the Senate approved a bill making the Internet Tax Freedom Act’s ban on state and local taxes on internet access permanent.
Advertisement
News
AICPA “Fly-In” to D.C. Seeks Path Toward a 21st Century IRS
The “fly-in” was intended to highlight dissatisfaction by practitioners and taxpayers with the IRS’s admittedly unacceptable levels of service and CPAs’ potential role in improving the IRS in that and other ways.
IRS Suffers Another Data Breach
The IRS revealed that it discovered and stopped an automated cyberattack on its e-filing personal identification number (PIN) system last month.
President’s Budget Proposes Many Tax Changes
In addition to a proposed spending blueprint for the government, President Barack Obama’s proposed FY 2017 federal budget contains a wide variety of tax law changes that would affect individuals and businesses.
Additional 2016 Inflation Adjustments Released
The IRS issued inflation adjustments for the Sec. 179 expensing limits, the above-the-line deduction for eligible expenses of educators, and the deductible amount for van pool and transit expenses.
Maximum Vehicle Values for Personal-Use Vehicles Are Issued
The IRS issued the 2016 inflation-adjusted amounts for the maximum vehicle values for purposes of determining the amount that is included in employees’ income for personal use of an employer-provided vehicle.
IRS Restores E-Filing Services
The IRS’s tax return e-filing system was back in operation Thursday afternoon, a day after a computer hardware failure knocked out it and other IRS system services.
Regulations Clarify Partnership Allocations of Creditable Foreign Taxes
New rules released by the IRS are intended to improve an existing safe harbor for allocating creditable foreign taxes so that they are deemed to be in accordance with the partners’ interests in the partnership.
Closed Pension Plans Could Meet Nondiscrimination Rules
Employers will be able to maintain closed defined benefit plans without running afoul of the nondiscrimination rules of Sec. 401(a) under proposed regulations issued by the IRS.
European Commission Issues Anti-Tax Avoidance Directives
Proposals include automatic exchange of the information gathered under new country-by-country reporting requirements.
Notice Postpones Sec. 501(c)(4) Social Welfare Organization Requirements
A new notice requirement recently enacted by Congress in the wake of the scandal regarding the IRS’s handling of Sec. 501(c)(4) applications will not be implemented immediately, the IRS announced.
How Employers Should Handle Retroactive Reinstatement of Transit Benefits Parity
The IRS issued procedures for employers to use to handle the retroactive application of the increased amount of the 2015 income exclusion for monthly transit benefits.
Controversial Charitable Donation Rules Withdrawn
The IRS announced that it is withdrawing proposed regulations released last September that would have allowed charities to file information returns with the IRS and donors instead of providing contemporaneous written acknowledgments of charitable donations.
IRS IP PIN Notice Contains Wrong Tax Year for Filing
The IRS warned that identity protection personal identification number (IP PIN) notices it has recently sent to victims of identity theft refer to the wrong tax year.
IRS Extends Health Care Information Return Due Dates
In response to concerns by employers and insurers about meeting the current due dates for information returns required under the health care law, the IRS delayed the due dates for these returns for the upcoming filing season.
Guidance Explains the Reinstated Sec. 35 Health Coverage Tax Credit for 2014 and 2015
The law now allows taxpayers who receive coverage from a health insurance exchange to claim the Sec. 35 credit through 2015, but prohibits it after 2015.
Proposed Regulations Outline Country-by-Country Reporting Requirements
The much-anticipated rules, under which the US would adopt the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s country-by-country reporting regime, would require reporting by multinational enterprise groups with revenue of $850 million or more in the prior annual accounting period.
Congress Passes Extender and Other Tax Legislation
The omnibus spending bill passed by Congress on Friday, which extends a long list of expired tax provisions, also contains a large number of other tax items.
Guidance Contains Inflation Adjustments for 2015 Information Return Penalties
A recently enacted law requires penalties for failing to file certain information returns to be adjusted for inflation. The latest adjustments are announced in this guidance.
Standard Mileage Rates Will Go Down in 2016
The IRS issued the standard mileage rates for business use of an automobile and for driving for medical or moving purposes for 2016.
TAX PRACTICE MANAGEMENT
2025 tax software survey
AICPA members in tax practice assess how their return preparation software performed during tax season and offer insights into their procedures.
