CPA Observation Post

IRS Interest Rates Remain the Same for the Third Quarter of 2012

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced that interest rates will remain the same for the calendar quarter beginning July 1, 2012.  The rates will be: 

• 3 percent for overpayments (2 percent in the case of a corporation);
• 3 percent for underpayments;
• 5 percent for large corporate underpayments; and
• 0.5 percent for the portion of a corporate overpayment exceeding $10,000.

>> Read More

 

IRS to Close 43 Offices, Consolidate Others

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced a sweeping office space and rent reduction initiative that over the next two years will close 43 smaller offices and reduce space in many larger facilities. These measures will save more than 40 million in taxpayer dollars. Coupled with space reductions last year, the initiative will slash total IRS office space by more than one million square feet. >> Read More

IRS Revises Offer In Compromise Program

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced another expansion of its "Fresh Start" initiative by offering more flexible terms to its Offer in Compromise (OIC) program that will enable some of the most financially distressed taxpayers to clear up their tax problems and in many cases more quickly than in the past. >>Read More

IRS Changes EIN Limit to One Per Day

Effective May 21, the Internal Revenue Service will begin issuing only one employer identification number per responsible party each day, a change from the current limit of five per day. >> Read More

AICPA to IRS: Capitalization Rules ‘Too Complex’ For Taxpayers

Many taxpayers will lack the resources to comply with the overly complex Internal Revenue Service (IRS) capitalization rules that govern the deduction and capitalization of tangible property expenditures are too complex and many taxpayers, especially small businesses, will not have the resources to comply, Carol Conjura, chair of the American Institute of CPAs Tax Methods & Periods Technical Resource Panel, said at an IRS hearing. Read More>>

IRS Provides Template For Employee vs. Contractor Mess (via @Forbes)

Determining who is a true independent contractor and who is really an employee involves more than labels. The IRS, Department of Labor, state labor and employment boards, unemployment insurance and worker’s compensation authorities all investigate this. It also comes up in private lawsuits over benefits, liability, and more. Read More>>

IRS Needs Better Oversight of Whistleblower Program (via @AccountingToday)

The Internal Revenue Service’s Whistleblower Program Office has still not addressed several problems that were brought to its attention several years ago, according to a new government report. Read More>>

Identity theft and tax fraud get attention of Congress and TIGTA (via @AICPA_JofA)

House Ways and Means subcommittees held a hearing on identity theft and tax fraud on Tuesday, and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration issued a report, faulting the Internal Revenue Service on the way it handles identity theft issues. IRS records show over 600,000 taxpayers were affected by identity theft in 2011. TIGTA made several recommendations for how the IRS can improve its service to taxpayers in this area. Read More>>

Congress Introduces Bill to Increase Tax Preparer Penalties (via @AccountingToday)

A bipartisan group of lawmakers have introduced legislation that would increase the penalties on tax preparers who defraud taxpayers and the Internal Revenue Service by altering tax returns for personal benefit without their clients’ knowledge. Read More>>

IRS Seeks Applications for Advisory Council

The Internal Revenue Service is accepting applications for the Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council (IRSAC), which provides a public forum for IRS officials and representatives of the public to discuss relevant federal tax administration issues. >>Read More