Tax

The Internal Revenue Service has reached a settlement with the law firm Arnold & Porter, which has paid an undisclosed penalty for promoting tax shelters.

The Senate's Subcommittee on Investigations held a hearing on how foreign investors dodge taxes on U.S. stock dividends with the help of U.S. banks and investment houses.

SpeedTax said its Web-based sales tax management service would soon be integrated with Intuit's QuickBooks Enterprise, Pro and Premier editions.

Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., refused to resign his chairmanship of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee after revelations that he failed to pay taxes on rental income from a vacation villa in the Dominican Islands.

Influential tax protestor Irwin Schiff had his 151-month prison sentence extended by an additional 11 months after he was sentenced for criminal contempt.

The Treasury Department's decision to take over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and put them under conservatorship has prompted questions about the implications for accountants and their clients.

The Internal Revenue Service has recently added a page to its Web site for small businesses and the self-employed.

The Congressional Budget Office sees the deficit growing to $407 billion for the year ending Sept. 30 and ballooning to $438 billion next year, with the takeover of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae threatening to send it far higher.

Actor Nicolas Cage, whose movie Bangkok Dangerous topped the weekend box office numbers, has settled his tax debts with the Internal Revenue Service for $666,000, plus interest.

Approximately $7.6 billion of potentially collectible taxes is lost annually due to withholding noncompliance, according to a report from the Treasury Department's inspector general.