Tax

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision that will allow railroads to challenge state methods for determining the value of railroad property, as well as how those methods are applied.

Accounting firm Hausser + Taylor has changed its name to Maloney + Novotny and severed its association with RSM McGladrey.

Tax pros have their own rituals for getting ready for tax season, including checking supplies, test-driving software, training staff, sending out organizers, and wrapping up year-end planning tips for their clients.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., unveiled a $21 billion package of energy tax legislation that Congress will consider this year, although opposition is expected from the White House as the bill would raise taxes on major oil and gas producers.

The Internal Revenue Service has found problems with many of the conservation easements it gives to landowners in Colorado.

Tax prep firm Gilman Ciocia has acquired Madison CPA, a Fort Lauderdale accounting firm.

The National Association of Enrolled Agents is calling on the Internal Revenue Service to look into problems with the timing of its correspondence audits of taxpayers.

A 63-year-old homemaker has won a lawsuit against Kmart for improperly charging her tax on the toilet paper she bought.

Electronic tax prep provider Orrtax Software Solutions has released its 2007 IntelliTax Program and Setup package for professional tax preparers.

As Washington struggles to fix the alternative minimum tax to prevent it from spreading to an estimated 23 million taxpayers, consumer tax prep software vendor 2nd Story Software is offering a peek at how the AMT would affect tax returns prepared under either scenario with its TaxAct software.