Tax

Tax News & IRS Insights for Accounting Professionals

Accounting Today delivers news and analysis for accounting and tax professionals on federal and state tax developments, IRS guidance,information reporting, and operational implications for practices and clients. Our coverage focuses on legislative and procedural shifts that tax practitioners must monitor in planning, compliance, and advisory contexts.

  • Reports from inside the White House are that President Bush's administration may wait until 2007 to begin pushing a proposal to overhaul the tax code.

    December 6
  • After checking with the state's attorney general, a Texas nepotism law will prevent the Kerr County tax assessor/collector, Paula Rector, from marrying one of the district's tax appraisers.

    December 6
  • As most every tax practitioner in town makes their pitch on year-end tax planning to clients, research organization the Tax Foundation recently released a new report making an economic case against the federal deduction for charitable gifts.

    November 30
  • Tax protestor Larken Rose of Hollywood, Pa., was sentenced to serve 15 months in prison for failing to file tax returns for the years 1998 to 2002, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service announced.

    November 29
  • A new study from the Tax Foundation says that the federal tax deduction for charitable gifts is highly regressive and subsidizes many organizations that are questionably charitable.

    November 29
  • The final report of the President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform attracted a heavy dose of criticism even before it was released, failing to satisfy the interest groups most concerned about tax reform.The panel offered two options. Plan A, the "Simplified Income Tax Plan," would create four tax brackets of 15, 25, 30 and 33 percent; replace the standard-deduction personal exemption and the child and earned income tax credits with family and work credits; reduce long-term capital gain rates; replace the mortgage interest deduction with a credit; end tax-free health insurance from employers; and eliminate the deduction for state and local taxes.

    November 28
  • Electronic Data Systems Corp. will pay the U.K. government $122 million to settle a dispute over a faulty system the tech company supplied to administer tax credits.

    November 28
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Tax: Key Questions & Analysis:

What IRS guidance on forms and information reporting should practitioners prioritize?

The IRS continues to update thresholds and instructions for critical tax forms. This includes changes to information reporting requirements and guidance on evolving reporting standards, affecting 1099, W-2 and similar reporting obligations.

What procedural developments affect IRS automatic change consent for method changes?

Tax professionals must understand which accounting method changes qualify for automatic consent versus advance consent. This determines whether a Form 3115 must be filed with IRS National Office or via automatic procedures.

How are tip-related tax provisions evolving under current policy?

New tax provisions related to tip income will impact how service industry clients and payroll units handle tax reporting and compliance. This includes draft schedules and withholding considerations.

What IRS guidance will shape compliance for the 2026 filing season?

Practitioners will need to understand procedural updates, forms changes, and reporting shifts that will affect compliance workflows and client expectations for the 2026 filing season. This includes the implementation timeline for new schedules and reporting requirements as well as for emerging areas such as crypto broker reporting.