When criticism of the Internal Revenue Service's revision of its more-than-30-year-old preparer disclosure rules first surfaced, it came as an attack from consumer groups outraged that rules were being eased to permit the marketing of taxpayer information.However, contrary to press reports, the IRS said that the proposed rules actually tighten existing requirements regarding the customer consent that a return preparer must obtain to disclose the customer's tax return information to third parties. In fact, explained IRS Commissioner Mark Everson, "For over 30 years, under the law, return preparers have been able to disclose tax return information with the consent of taxpayers."

Code Section 7216 governs the disclosure and use of tax return information by tax return preparers. Late last year, in Notice 2005-93, the Internal Revenue Service issued a proposed revenue procedure purportedly to update the disclosure rules to account for changes in return filing, particularly to account for the growing use of electronic filing and electronic signatures and the foreign outsourcing of tax preparation work.The proposals have set off some apparently unexpected protests from several consumer protection groups, basically concerned that the proposals make it too easy for taxpayers to unknowingly grant permission for disclosure of their tax information.

The Internal Revenue Service has released updated draft instructions for the new Schedule M-3, filed by large and midsized corporations, and which should be rolled out for the 2006 tax year.

KPMG moved a bit closer to putting another piece of its tax shelter troubles in the past, filing court papers that more than 200 investors have agreed to a settlement in a class-action lawsuit against the accounting firm and law firm Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP.

As their colleagues float talks of $100 gas-rebate checks for taxpayers, the heads of the Senate Finance Committee have asked the Internal Revenue Service to provide tax and financial information on the nation's largest oil and gas companies.

According to a report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the nation's tax gap -- the annual difference between federal taxes owed and those paid -- could in fact exceed the $345 billion estimate from Internal Revenue Service.

The Internal Revenue Service announced that the recently completed 2006 filing season set a series of records, highlighted by 70 million tax returns being filed electronically this year and home computer usage jumping 18 percent.