The Internal Revenue Service has issued a new tax guide to help taxpayers and tax preparers get the most out of new recovery tax breaks and get a jump on preparing 2009 income tax returns.

Publication 17 features details on taking advantage of new tax-saving opportunities, such as the Making Work Pay Credit for most workers, the American Opportunity Credit for parents and college students, energy credits for homeowners going green, the First-Time Homebuyer Credit, sales or excise tax deduction for new car buyers, and the expanded Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit for low- and moderate-income workers. The 308-page guide also provides more than 6,000 interactive links to help taxpayers quickly get answers to their questions.

Publication 17 has been published annually by the IRS for more than 65 years and has been available on the IRS Web site since 1996. As in prior years, the publication is packed with basic tax-filing information and tips on what income to report and how to report it, figuring capital gains and losses, claiming dependents, choosing the standard deduction versus itemizing deductions, and using IRAs to save for retirement.