Practice and client management

A group of 10 Senate Democrats has written to Speaker of the House John Boehner and other House leaders asking them to reduce the budget deficit by eliminating unneeded subsidies and tax breaks for oil companies.

The Internal Revenue Service has begun a new voluntary disclosure program aimed at convincing more taxpayers to tell the U.S. government about any funds they have been hiding in foreign bank accounts.

The five states with the highest combined state and local tax rates are Tennessee at 9.44 percent, California at 9.08 percent, Arizona at 9.01 percent, Louisiana at 8.69 percent and Washington at 8.64 percent, according to a new report.

There are many important new tax breaks for U.S. individuals on the 2010 Form 1040, and several more have been eliminated, noted one tax expert.

U.S. taxation of international operations and financial statement disclosure issues were the top two concerns of leading corporate tax executives, according to a new survey.

President Obama urged business leaders to begin creating jobs and taking advantage of the tax breaks offered by his administration during a speech Monday at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

A Mississippi woman has pleaded guilty to paying $2,000 in cash to an IRS employee in an attempt to get her federal tax liability reduced.

A Southern California tax preparer was sentenced to 66 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to charges that he helped clients claim more than $3.6 million in fraudulent refunds.

The Internal Revenue Service has published final regulations on how to treat the sale or exchange of a musical composition or of the copyright in a musical work.

After prodding by a group of senators and an embarrassing report by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the Internal Revenue Service has signed an agreement with the Bureau of Prisons to end fraudulent tax returns filed by prisoners.

The new cost basis reporting rules won’t affect this year’s returns, but they are already in effect.

The American Institute of CPAs is providing a checklist developed by leading CPA financial planners to help accountants identify financial planning opportunities during tax season.

President Obama urged businesses to make their buildings more energy efficient and called on Congress to provide tax incentives to help.

The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously voted Thursday to approve bipartisan patent reform legislation, including provisions banning tax strategy patents.

Approximately $33 million in credits for plug-in electric and alternative-fueled vehicles were erroneously claimed by at least 12,920 taxpayers through July 24, 2010, according to a new government report that also found nearly $50,000 worth of the credits going to prisoners.

The outlook for small business expansion remained bleak for most of 2010 as fewer and fewer business owners sought to access credit; a trend that has continued since 2009, according to a new report.

IMGCAP(1)]Credit scores have become a major factor for consumers and businesses that seek financing ranging from mortgages, car and student loans to business credit lines and bank loans.

The Senate approved an amendment Wednesday to repeal the expanded 1099 information reporting requirements in the health care reform law.

A coalition of 15 national organizations urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to keep a provision in S. 23, The Patent Reform Act of 2011, which would stop tax strategy patents. The bill goes to mark-up on Feb. 3.

The Internal Revenue Service warned small businesses and their tax preparers Wednesday that a group of tax return forms should not be filed until it is ready to start processing them.