High‑stakes civil action; explainable AI; productivity partners; and other highlights from our favorite tax bloggers
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Hoisting the FIFA trophy
Don't Mess With Taxes : Football players and their national entourages from around the globe have been working toward one goal for the last month. They want to hoist the Fédération Internationale de Football Association trophy. But since many of this year's tournament games, including the remaining ones leading to the championship match on July 19, are in the United States, the international athletes also could collect something else: a substantial, and unwanted, U.S. tax bill.Sikich : Every AI-generated recommendation, workflow action, report, insight and customer interaction depends on underlying data, and the quality of those outcomes depends on the quality of that data. Organizations that strengthen their data foundation now are better positioned to scale automation, improve analytics and realize more value from AI.Yeo and Yeo : AI tools like ChatGPT and Copilot have become indispensable productivity partners. They draft emails, generate reports and write code. So, when a secure password is needed, turning to the same AI assistant feels like a natural shortcut. After all, if it can handle complex communications and technical tasks, surely it can generate a strong 16-character password, right? The answer is more complicated than might be expected.
Clear signal to start
Tax Pro Center : On June 24, the IRS Office of Professional Responsibility issued Alert 2026-19, "Introductory Guidelines for Responsible AI Use in Federal Tax Practice." This alert is important because, as the IRS states, "Virtually all professional tax firms use some form of AI, whether they are aware of it or not." However, this isn't a new law; it's a confirmation that Circular 230, the ethical framework users already operate under, applies fully to AI-assisted work. What does change is that the IRS has now put it in writing, and firms that haven't formalized their AI practices have a clear signal to start.Parametic : The first half of 2026 reinforced an important lesson for fixed income investors: Tax-loss harvesting opportunities don't always arrive at year-end, often appearing during short periods of market dislocation when interest rates rise, new-issue supply increases or investor sentiment shifts. This year, rate volatility, above-target inflation, geopolitical risk and uncertainty around the path of monetary policy have shaped the backdrop. The Federal Reserve's leadership transition has also added another variable for markets to digest.Canopy : For years, the month-end close has followed a predictable, if painful, routine. A spreadsheet is opened. It has anywhere from seven to 12 tabs. It is manually rolled forward, double-checking that no formulas broke in the process. Then, the next few hours are spent logging into separate accounting systems just to check the data health of various client files, jumping back and forth between tabs and tools until one's head spins. This blog breaks down exactly why modern firms are moving away from this fragmented approach.
No-brainer solution?
Tax Vox : The Social Security trust fund stands just six years away from its projected 2032 insolvency, which under current law would trigger a 22% reduction in benefits. Senators Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, and Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, are working across the aisle to promote solvency reforms, and propose what the lawmakers call a "no-brainer" solution: applying Social Security's 12.4% payroll tax to all annual earnings rather than just an individual's first $184,500. Unfortunately, uncapping the tax would undermine the program's social insurance status, harm the economy, starve other policy priorities and not even save Social Security.The Tax Times : A judge ruled the Trump-IRS settlement was the result of a sham suit and not a $1.8 billion "Anti‑Weaponization Fund." The case is a high‑stakes civil action brought by Donald Trump, his sons and the Trump Organization against the IRS and Treasury over the unlawful disclosure of their tax return information, which has since turned into a vehicle for probing an unusual "anti‑weaponization" settlement fund and possible fraud on the court.Trout CPA : Determining whether a business needs an accountant, controller or chief financial officer can be difficult because each role supports a different level of financial complexity. This blog offers a short quiz to determine which level of financial support may be right for a business and whether an outsourced accountant, controller or CFO could help fill the gap.
A major taxpayer win
Current Federal Tax Developments : In a recent commentary, the National Taxpayer Advocate characterized the IRS's introduction of the Automatic Exemption from Penalty program as "a major taxpayer win." For years, the NTA has advocated for a shift from the manual First Time Abate process to an automated system to ensure that "relief should not depend on a taxpayer's income, ability to reach the IRS by phone, or access to professional representation."Gordon Law : On July 8, the IRS announced the Automatic Exemption from Penalty, a new program that replaces First Time Abate and, for the first time, applies penalty relief automatically rather than requiring taxpayers to ask for it. Taxpayers with a clean compliance history are eligible. Most eligible taxpayers won't need to do anything. But penalty notices received during the transition deserve a close look and shouldn't be assumed to resolve themselves.CBIZ : On June 30, the New Jersey State Assembly passed the Garden State's 2026-2027 budget and sent it to Gov. Mikie Sherrill who is expected to sign it into law. Several tax bills are part of the overall budget package.Armanino : No matter how long it's been since an enterprise resource planning system go-live, users are familiar with the solution at this point. They are also clear on where the software needs fine-tuning. Now it's time to take the next step to maximize a company's ROI. No matter what core finance solution is in use, the post-go-live phase of the ERP implementation gives businesses the opportunity to tap into the full value of the ecosystem.Abrigo : Explainable AI is any artificial intelligence system that shows why it generated a certain output, including what influenced it, how, and how much. For banking compliance officers and other technology decision-makers, AI explainability is tied to regulatory and examination expectations, so it is a business necessity rather than merely a technical consideration.
