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TIGTA

Washington Alert – IRS needs more employees; IRS seeking applicants for Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council (IRSAC); TIGTA report on premium tax credit (PTC) claims; IRS accepting applications for the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) grant programs

Washington Alert – IRS needs more employees; IRS seeking applicants for Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council (IRSAC); TIGTA report on premium tax credit (PTC) claims; IRS accepting applications for the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) grant programs

IRS will soon begin the first wave of a plan to hire up to 700 employees to serve in enforcement positions, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen told agency employees in a May 3 memo. This will mark “the first significant enforcement hiring in over five years,” Koskinen wrote. The initial wave of hiring will fill entry-level […]

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Washington Alert – RSC’s tax choices; TIGTA on filing season; JCT on background for business reform; TIGTA alert re IRS and phony iTunes gift cards

Washington Alert – RSC’s tax choices; TIGTA on filing season; JCT on background for business reform; TIGTA alert re IRS and phony iTunes gift cards

On April 22, the Republican Study Committee (RSC) released the conservative caucus’s tax policy recommendations. Perhaps most eye-catching of the suggestions was a proposal to repeal (sunset) the current tax Code at the end of 2019 in order to force Congress to finally act on comprehensive tax reform. Other suggestions included: collapsing the current seven […]

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Washington Alert – IRS Commissioner on taxpayers and IRS; Applications for Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC); Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP) update

Washington Alert – IRS Commissioner on taxpayers and IRS; Applications for Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC); Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP) update

IRS must negotiate a balancing act as it works to enhance taxpayers’ online experience while it also must continuously upgrade and improve its authentication protocols, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said at an April 12 hearing of the Senate Finance Committee. The subject of the hearing was cybersecurity and the protection of taxpayer information. “The reality […]

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Washington Alert – Cayman companies plead guilty; Income tax refunds await; TIGTA report on over-aged correspondence and taxpayer burden

Washington Alert – Cayman companies plead guilty; Income tax refunds await; TIGTA report on over-aged correspondence and taxpayer burden

In a case marking the first time non-Swiss financial institutions have been convicted of conspiring to facilitate federal tax evasion, two Cayman Island financial institutions pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring with U.S. taxpayer-clients to hide more than $130 million in offshore accounts and evade U.S. taxes, the Justice Department (DOJ) announced on March […]

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Washington Alert – Phishing and Malware Incidents up 400% at IRS; IRS improves its direct debit installment agreement (DDIA) procedures; Identity theft tops IRS’s annual “Dirty Dozen” list of tax scams

Washington Alert – Phishing and Malware Incidents up 400% at IRS; IRS improves its direct debit installment agreement (DDIA) procedures; Identity theft tops IRS’s annual “Dirty Dozen” list of tax scams

The current tax season already has seen a 400% surge in phishing and malware incidents, a situation which prompted IRS to renew an earlier consumer alert regarding email schemes. (IR 2016-28) This has become a nationwide problem, and variations of the schemes also are appearing in text messages. As described by the agency, the emails […]

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IRS warns of phone scams

IRS warns of phone scams

Editor’s Note: we previously have blogged on this many times.  Click here for the September 2014 blog entitled “IRS Phone Scams Remain a Threat – Officials Say the Actual IRS Will Never Make First Contact by Phone Associated Press” and in March 2014, click here for “IRS Tax Tip 2014-19: Beware of Fake IRS Emails […]

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Washington Alert – DOJ & 2 more banks enter deal; Webinar on practicing before IRS; TIGTA report on further review needed to avoid questionable refunds

Washington Alert – DOJ & 2 more banks enter deal; Webinar on practicing before IRS; TIGTA report on further review needed to avoid questionable refunds

The Justice Department (DOJ) announced on Dec. 31 that two additional Swiss banks have reached resolutions under the department’s Swiss Bank Program which provides a path for Swiss banks to resolve potential criminal liabilities in the U.S. Bank Lombard Odier & Co. Ltd. will pay a penalty of $99.8 million, and DZ Privatbank (Schweiz) AG […]

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Washington Alert – TIGTA Semi-Annual Report to Congress; JCT on Technical Explanation of the Revenue Provisions of the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015; IRS announces updates to Forms 1023 and 1024

Washington Alert – TIGTA Semi-Annual Report to Congress; JCT on Technical Explanation of the Revenue Provisions of the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015; IRS announces updates to Forms 1023 and 1024

During the second half of fiscal year 2015, the audit and investigative activities of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) “resulted in the recovery, protection and identification of monetary benefits” of approximately $4.9 billion, according to a report released on Dec. 17. (TIGTA Semi-Annual Report to Congress – April 1, 2015-Sept. 30, 2015) […]

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TIGTA report says some employers avoid penalty for failure to file correct wage documents

TIGTA report says some employers avoid penalty for failure to file correct wage documents

TIGTA Report: Employers Who Do Not Comply With Requests to Provide Complete and Accurate Wage Documents Are Not Always Assessed Penalties. A new audit by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) found that IRS didn’t always assess penalties under Code Sec. 6721 against employers that fail to respond to IRS’s requests to resolve […]

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Washington Alert – “Taxes, Security, Together”; IRSAC released its annual report; TIGTA reports IRS needs to improve its audit coverage of high-income taxpayers

Washington Alert – “Taxes, Security, Together”; IRSAC released its annual report; TIGTA reports IRS needs to improve its audit coverage of high-income taxpayers

IRS, state tax administrators and the private-sector tax industry launched the “Taxes. Security. Together.” campaign with the goal of encouraging people to protect their personal and financial data online and at home. (IR 2015-129) According to IRS, the campaign, which will run through the April tax deadline, “is designed to raise public awareness that even […]

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Washington Alert – Republicans vote for impeachment of IRS Commissioner; Cadillac Tax may not be the best policy; TIGTA reports IRS failed to respond to FOIA requests

Washington Alert – Republicans vote for impeachment of IRS Commissioner; Cadillac Tax may not be the best policy; TIGTA reports IRS failed to respond to FOIA requests

The Republican majority on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, following the lead of panel chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), on Oct. 27 voted in favor of a resolution calling for the impeachment of IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. The impeachment resolution contains four articles which allege that Koskinen: engaged in a pattern of conduct that […]

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Washington Alert – TIGTA finds health insurers generally compliant; GAO report on ACA; Webinar on General Employment Tax Issues; Lois Lerner escapes criminal prosecution

Washington Alert – TIGTA finds health insurers generally compliant; GAO report on ACA; Webinar on General Employment Tax Issues; Lois Lerner escapes criminal prosecution

A Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) audit released on Oct. 23 found that health insurers participating in the Affordable Care Act advance premium tax credit and/or cost-sharing reduction programs and receiving subsidy payments on behalf of taxpayers were generally tax compliant. (Audit Report No. 2016-13-001) According to the audit, the federal government paid […]

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Washington Alert – TIGTA report phony IRS employees phone scam; Webinar on identity theft; IRS Nationwide Tax Forums; “Illegal Tax Protester” codes

Washington Alert – TIGTA report phony IRS employees phone scam; Webinar on identity theft; IRS Nationwide Tax Forums; “Illegal Tax Protester” codes

Progress is being made in an ongoing probe of a widespread phone scam being perpetrated by individuals posing as IRS employees, but taxpayers must remain vigilant so they will not be victimized, J. Russell George, the Treasury inspector general for tax administration, said on Oct. 15. Over the past year, some individuals associated with the […]

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Washington Alert – TIGTA report on FATCA; IRS pub on Safeguarding Taxpayer Data; TIGTA report on IRS failure to revoke the PTINs for unsuitable tax return preparers

Washington Alert – TIGTA report on FATCA; IRS pub on Safeguarding Taxpayer Data; TIGTA report on IRS failure to revoke the PTINs for unsuitable tax return preparers

IRS has made good progress in implementing the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) said in an audit released on Oct. 13. (Audit Report No. 2015-30-085) As described in the audit, under FATCA, individual taxpayers with specified foreign financial assets that meet a certain dollar threshold are […]

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Washington Alert – Shutdown Plans of IRS; TIGTA report on IRS’s Return Review Program (RRP); TIGTA report on assessment of the 2015 filing season

Washington Alert – Shutdown Plans of IRS; TIGTA report on IRS’s Return Review Program (RRP); TIGTA report on assessment of the 2015 filing season

In the event IRS is confronted with a lapse in appropriations leading to a government shutdown during the first quarter of fiscal year 2016, just 9,975 agency employees – known as “excepted/exempt” employees – out of a total workforce of some 87,500 will remain at work pursuant to a Treasury Department directive. (Fiscal Year 2016 […]

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Washington Alert – Change in LB&I Division;TIGTA report on IRS options re payment;IRS on ACA – Applicable Large Employers;The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation publishes final rule on reportable events

Washington Alert – Change in LB&I Division;TIGTA report on IRS options re payment;IRS on ACA – Applicable Large Employers;The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation publishes final rule on reportable events

A big shakeup is underway for IRS’s Large Business and International (LB&I) Division, and its new look will be launched in the early months of 2016, according to Douglas O’Donnell, commissioner of the division. O’Donnell and several other agency officials revealed a number of key details during their appearance at a Sept. 17 conference in […]

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Washington Alert – GAO Report on federal low-income programs; TIGTA Report on IRS seizure & sale procedures; TIGTA to report on IRS’s Identity Protection Specialized Unit (IPSU)

Washington Alert – GAO Report on federal low-income programs; TIGTA Report on IRS seizure & sale procedures; TIGTA to report on IRS’s Identity Protection Specialized Unit (IPSU)

In 2012, 106 million people received benefits from one or more of eight selected federal low-income programs, which included the EITC and the additional child tax credit, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) survey that was recently reported. (GAO-15-516). Of the eight programs, the EITC and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) “moved the […]

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Washington Alert – TIGTA on IRS processing returns claiming PTC; Tax Policy Center – Why Individual Income Tax Revenues Grow Faster Than GDP; District Court orders IRS to comply with FOIA

Washington Alert – TIGTA on IRS processing returns claiming PTC; Tax Policy Center – Why Individual Income Tax Revenues Grow Faster Than GDP; District Court orders IRS to comply with FOIA

During the 2015 filing season, IRS’s processing of tax returns that reported or claimed premium tax credits (PTCs) was hampered by prolonged delays in receiving data from various Marketplaces (also known as Exchanges), the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) said in an audit released on Sept. 1. (Audit Report No. 2015-43-057) As of March […]

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Washington Alert – Health Insurance Companies and ACA; U.S. and St. Vincent and the Grenadines on Aug. 18 sign an intergovernmental agreement; TIGTA on levies and taxpayer rights

Washington Alert – Health Insurance Companies and ACA; U.S. and St. Vincent and the Grenadines on Aug. 18 sign an intergovernmental agreement; TIGTA on levies and taxpayer rights

IRS on Aug. 27 advised taxpayers that health insurance companies may ask policyholders to provide Social Security numbers (SSNs) for themselves, spouses and children covered by the policies. (HCTT-2015-53) “This is because the Affordable Care Act requires every provider of minimum essential coverage to report that coverage by filing an information return with the IRS […]

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Washington Alert – TIGTA Report on Appeals decisions on penalty abatement; US & Portugal sign IGA; Reminder – E-File Application

Washington Alert – TIGTA Report on Appeals decisions on penalty abatement; US & Portugal sign IGA; Reminder – E-File Application

The IRS Office of Appeals (Appeals), in many of the cases reviewed, correctly accepted cases in which agency operating divisions had previously denied the taxpayer’s request for abatement and provided sufficient documentation of the reasons for penalty abatements in case files, according to an audit released on Aug. 21 by the Treasury Inspector General for […]

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Meet Paul Raymond

Meet Paul Raymond

Mr. Raymond is a sought after speaker in tax controversy law by many attorney, accountant, and business groups and at the request of the Internal Revenue Service, has presented programs at the IRS Nationwide Tax Forum, attended by tax professionals throughout the United States.

Additionally, he continues to be an active member in the Section of Taxation, American Bar Association, where he was the Past Chair of the Employment Taxes Committee.

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Member CA Bar Member Orange County Bar US Tax Court Attorney