Federal
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February 28, 2024
IRS Delays Tax Deadlines After Wash. Wildfires
Certain taxpayers in Washington state will have extra time to file tax returns and make payments following wildfires last year, the Internal Revenue Service said Wednesday.
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February 28, 2024
Court Should Block IRS 'Fishing Expedition,' Company Says
A company that claims it has been the victim of an Internal Revenue Service "fishing expedition" after being hit with a raft of document requests urged a Georgia federal judge Tuesday to keep alive its bid to quash the summonses, telling the court the government overstepped its bounds in seeking "a wide variety of duplicative, irrelevant, and unrelated information."
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February 28, 2024
Stalled Pillar 1 Raises Specter Of EU Digital Tax
The stalling at the international level of a redistribution of taxing rights known as Pillar One is raising questions about whether the European Union would revive a digital tax, which it had put aside hoping Pillar One would succeed.
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February 28, 2024
IRS To Hold Hearing On Donor-Advised Fund Excise Tax Regs
The Internal Revenue Service will hold a public hearing in May on proposed regulations regarding excise taxes on certain taxable distributions made from donor-advised funds, the agency announced Wednesday.
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February 28, 2024
IRS Adds 36 Tax Court Sessions To Calendar
The Internal Revenue Service named calendar administrators for 36 U.S. Tax Court sessions in March, April and May on Wednesday, bringing the total number of upcoming sessions to 72.
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February 27, 2024
TaxAct Filers Ink $23M Deal Over Meta, Google Info Sharing
TaxAct Inc. customers have asked a California federal judge to greenlight a settlement they say is worth more than $23 million and would resolve class claims accusing the tax preparation company of secretly sharing confidential taxpayer information with Meta Platforms Inc. and Google.
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February 27, 2024
US Biz Group Urges Treasury Against Basis Denial Rule
The U.S. Treasury Department should rethink its proposed upcoming rule that would deny the basis that U.S. companies have in particular foreign affiliates involved in certain inbound transactions, the National Foreign Trade Council said in a letter made public Tuesday.
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February 27, 2024
IRS Opens Free E-File Pilot To More New Users
The Internal Revenue Service temporarily reopened its free electronic filing pilot program to more new users Tuesday in the 12 states where taxpayers can participate, an agency official said in a statement.
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February 27, 2024
IRS Hires 2 To Lead Digital Asset Efforts
The Internal Revenue Service hired two staffers to assist with forming the agency's approach to cryptocurrency and other digital assets, the agency announced Tuesday.
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February 27, 2024
IRS Delays Deadlines For San Diego Storm Victims
Certain deadlines for San Diego-area taxpayers have been postponed following severe storms and flooding in the area, the Internal Revenue Service announced Tuesday.
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February 27, 2024
Tax Court Couldn't Rule On Whistleblower Claims, Circ. Told
The U.S. Tax Court lacked authority to rule on two of a tipster's three claims that the IRS should have given him a whistleblower award, the government told the D.C. Circuit, urging it to vacate a decision even though it upheld the agency's denial of the payout requests.
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February 27, 2024
DOL Finalizing ERISA Voluntary Correction Program Changes
A top official with the U.S. Department of Labor's employee benefits arm said Tuesday that the agency expects to soon finalize changes to a program allowing retirement plan managers to voluntarily self-correct when they fail to forward employee contributions on time or make other transaction errors.
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February 27, 2024
IRS Nixes Digital Filing Of Form For Foreigners For 2 Years
Certain withholding agents will not be required to electronically file a form relating to U.S.-based income of foreigners in 2024 and 2025, the Internal Revenue Service announced Tuesday.
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February 26, 2024
Ex-Bank CFO Cops To $700K Theft And Life Insurance Scam
An ex-Eastern International Bank chief financial officer has pled guilty to defrauding the bank out of more than $700,000 to pay his personal expenses, and he admitted to opening life insurance policies in the names of bank employees to benefit his wife, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
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February 26, 2024
US Can Bring Quick Appeal In Donor Reporting Rule Fight
The federal government can immediately appeal a ruling that would require it to prove a strong governmental interest in forcing nonprofits to report their major donors, an Ohio federal court decided Monday, saying there's significant room for a difference of opinion on the matter.
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February 26, 2024
Wealth Taxes Bring In Small Part Of G20 Revenue, Oxfam Says
Roughly 8% of tax revenue collected by Group of 20 countries is raised from wealth taxes on average, compared with over 32% from taxes on goods and services, anti-poverty group Oxfam said Monday ahead of a G20 meeting in Brazil.
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February 26, 2024
Inmate, 8 Others Charged In Trafficking, Tax Fraud Schemes
A California prison inmate has been charged along with eight other individuals with operating two separate illegal schemes: one to distribute methamphetamine and another to fraudulently claim over $550 million in COVID-19-based tax credits.
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February 26, 2024
More Analysis Needed In Lithium Pricing Guide, Groups Say
Functional analysis of multinational corporate groups should be included in a list of factors that could highly influence market prices within a transfer pricing framework for lithium, industry groups and accountants told the OECD in letters published Monday.
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February 26, 2024
Estate Correctly Taxed On Insurance Payout, Justices Told
The U.S. Supreme Court should affirm a decision denying a tax refund to the estate of an owner of a building materials company that used a payout from his $3.5 million life insurance policy to purchase his shares in the business, the federal government argued.
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February 23, 2024
FTC Rips H&R Block's 'Deceptive' Marketing, 'Coercive' Ploys
The Federal Trade Commission filed an administrative complaint against H&R Block claiming the tax preparation company deceptively marketed some products as "free" and "coerced" people to pay for pricier products, the government agency announced Friday.
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February 23, 2024
'Empire' Star Owes Income Tax After Threatening DOJ Atty
"Empire" actor Terrence Howard owes more than $900,000 in federal income taxes under a default judgment by a Pennsylvania federal judge that follows a monthslong search by the government to notify the actor of the suit, during which he threatened a government attorney.
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February 23, 2024
UN Tax Pact May Need OECD Nations' Support, Diplomats Say
The United Nations' global tax convention will likely require adoption by many advanced economies to address corporate tax abuse effectively, diplomats said, after countries resolved to pursue consensus over the long term but retain majority rule while drafting its terms of reference.
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February 23, 2024
Lead Pipe Replacement Not Taxable, IRS Says
The government-triggered replacement of lead service lines on residential property is not considered taxable income, the Internal Revenue Service said Friday.
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February 23, 2024
With Interest, Trump Now Owes $454M For NY Valuation Fraud
Donald Trump owes New York state nearly a half billion dollars after a county clerk on Friday tacked on $99 million in interest linked to a $355 million judgment in the state attorney general's civil fraud case against the former president last week.
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February 23, 2024
IRS To Open Grant Application Period For Low-Income Clinics
The Internal Revenue Service will accept applications for low income taxpayer clinic grants starting Monday, the agency announced Friday.
Expert Analysis
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Unpacking The New Stock Buyback Tax And Its Exceptions
Xenia Garofalo and Kyle Colonna at Eversheds Sutherland discuss provisions of the recently enacted tax on corporate stock repurchases, how its exceptions may be applied and what companies should consider when evaluating the cost of new or existing programs.
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Health Issues To Watch In Inflation Act, Other Policy Initiatives
The newly signed Inflation Reduction Act includes a number of significant drug pricing reforms, and the future holds a wider array of health issues that may be addressed in pending legislation when Congress returns in September, says Miranda Franco at Holland & Knight.
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How New Markets Tax Credit Can Help Pandemic Recovery
The New Markets Tax Credit program, designed to spur private investment in low-income, nonmetropolitan and distressed communities, is one potential remedy that can help alleviate the pandemic's negative impact on especially vulnerable areas, says Julia Fendler at Butler Snow.
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Senate Cannabis Bill May Give Some Cos. A Competitive Edge
Though the recently introduced Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act is unlikely to pass, it provides a bellwether for federal legalization, with a robust regulatory framework that would offer large food and beverage companies a structural advantage and poise multistate cannabis operators for further growth, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.
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Lessons For Federal Lawmakers As Calif. Alters Cannabis Tax
California recently eliminated a cultivation tax that had for years burdened the state’s licensed cannabis market, providing important lessons for federal lawmakers on cumbersome regulations and unduly high taxes as they debate legalization, says Raza Lawrence at Zuber Lawler.
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Tips On Qualified Small Business Stock Exclusions
While awaiting more Internal Revenue Service guidance on the maze of requirements a taxpayer must satisfy for the qualified small business stock exclusion, there are steps proactive taxpayers can take to ensure their ability to establish their qualifications if they are audited, says Stephen Josey at Kostelanetz & Fink.
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Inside The OECD Transfer Pricing Documentation Guidance
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's recently modified documentation guidelines can assist tax administrations in developing requirements for transfer pricing risk assessments and evaluations, and help multinational entity taxpayers demonstrate satisfaction of the arm's-length principle, says Neil Aragones at Lexis Tax.
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Superfund Tax Is Back: Implications For Chemical Industry
In light of the Internal Revenue Service's recently issued guidance on the reinstated Superfund tax, manufacturers, producers and importers should review their existing agreements that involve taxable chemicals and substances to determine who will be commercially responsible for the tax, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.
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Tech Co.'s Suit May Create Hurdles For Research Tax Credits
The recently filed U.S. Tax Court case Perficient v. Commissioner — challenging standards under research credit regulations that determine whether research is funded by any grant or contract — could make it difficult to substantiate research tax credits, say Dennis St. Martin and Kevin Benton at Grant Thornton.
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Expected Retirement Law Changes May Spark ERISA Suits
As Congress is poised to pass bipartisan retirement legislation that could bring collective investment trusts and 403(b) plans together and may form a new wave of litigation under the Employee Retirement Security Act, it is helpful to review the important roles that they have played in prior waves of ERISA excessive fee cases, say attorneys at King & Spalding.
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A Close Look At The Decentralized Effort To Tax Digital Assets
Clarity on taxation is one of the biggest hurdles to mass adoption of cryptocurrency, and although digital asset innovation has consistently outpaced worldwide government regulation, recent efforts in the U.S. and elsewhere hint at an emerging standard, says Joshua Smeltzer at Gray Reed.
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Lessons From The SEC's Largest-Ever Audit Firm Penalty
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent $100 million settlement over professional test cheating with Ernst & Young — the largest ever in an audit firm case — points to important ramifications for any entity responding to an SEC inquiry, say attorneys at Cleary.
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Navigating The IRS Pre-Audit Retirement Plan Pilot Program
The Internal Revenue Service launched a Pre-Examination Compliance Pilot program for retirement plans last month that gives sponsors and administrators 90 days to self-correct errors and avoid audits, and while several details are unclear, there are important steps to take at this time, say attorneys at Ice Miller.