Talking Tax

The Treasury Department and IRS were given big opportunities—and big responsibilities—with the enactment of last year's Inflation Reduction Act. The tasks ahead include issuing guidance on various clean-energy provisions in the tax-and-climate law. The Biden administration and congressional Democrats say the provisions will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create more domestic jobs, but Republicans have raised concerns that the provisions are expensive and mostly benefiting large businesses. On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax reporter Naomi Jagoda talks to Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo, a key player in implementing the law, about the status of guidance on the energy provisions and Republicans' criticism of the tax breaks. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

After working in Big Four accounting firms, Carmela Walrond decided to work for herself, motivated by a desire to help small business taxpayers. "There's no better feeling than helping someone save lots of money in taxes," says Walrond. Walrond is a partner at JLD Tax Resolution Group and an entrepreneur based in New Jersey. After working in accounting and immigration law, Walrond established her own tax practice in 2019 helping individuals resolve back tax issues. She then merged with JLD Tax to launch a combined practice in 2020. The small business helps clients settle cases with the IRS, including assisting on preparation for audits, entity formation, and other tax services. Walrond reached out to Talking Tax after listening to an episode from February. For this episode, Walrond chats with legal reporter Jeff Leon to share her experiences as a woman of color advising small businesses and what's on her radar for 2023. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail

The focus of the House Ways and Means tax subcommittee will be oversight, according to the panel’s new head Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) Kelly took over the subcommittee that oversees tax policy after Republicans gained control of the House this year. Kelly has introduced legislation that would impose new reporting requirements on the IRS’s use of the $80 billion in funding it received from the Inflation Reduction Act, as well as other bills that similarly target the IRS. On this episode of Talking Tax, Kelly speaks with Bloomberg Tax reporter Samantha Handler about his subcommittee’s agenda, including how he’ll work in lockstep with Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.), the head of the oversight subcommittee, and what tax policy he’d like to see move this Congress. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The SEC’s Paul Munter set a blistering pace for accounting guidance during his two years as acting chief accountant—issuing blockbuster guidance on digital assets, SPACs, and more. Now the job of chief accountant is his, as of January, and he joined Bloomberg Tax reporter Amanda Iacone to discuss his goal to ensure investors get reliable and actionable financial reports from corporate America. He expects, for example, companies to disclose risks that could threaten their ability to operate and auditors to fully vet threats facing their clients, like rapidly rising interest rates. Munter also weighed in on the question of whether bank accounting for long-term investments should change, the potential break-up of Ernst & Young, and his concerns about private equity investing in accounting firms. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

For the OECD's tax policy chief, years of negotiations on the global corporate tax deal has been a "roller coaster ride" of different approaches by the nations involved. The organization is hoping to see efforts come together with major parts of it resolved this summer, says Grace Perez-Navarro, who is retiring Friday. Countries are pushing to meet a midyear deadline on the remaining key pieces of the deal, including what is known as Amount A—the reallocation of some multinational profits—and Amount B, a plan to streamline some transfer pricing. Perez-Navarro sat down with Bloomberg Tax reporter Isabel Gottlieb this week ahead of her last day as director of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Center for Tax Policy and Administration. She stepped into the director role last year after serving as deputy director since 2007. She talked about the status of remaining work on the agreement and what issues countries are still negotiating, as well as remote work taxation, and how the OECD is h

The US tax code doesn't take race into consideration, but should it? In this episode of Talking Tax, Georgetown Law professor Dorothy Brown argues the case for why the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service should make race a factor in tax policy. Brown, author of the 2021 book, "Whiteness of Wealth: How the Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans—and How We Can Fix it," sits down with Bloomberg Tax editor Yuri Nagano. Brown discusses how her book inspired a recent Stanford University study showing Black taxpayers are audited at higher rates, a topic at a Senate Finance Committee hearing on the nomination of now-confirmed IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. She also touches on how Treasury's Greenbook of 2024 revenue proposals doesn't reflect data from the department's January report on tax impact by race and ethnicity, and grades efforts by the Biden administration, Treasury and IRS on their progress. Brown is a member of the recently formed Treasury Advisory Committee on Racial Equity. Do you have

To help reduce poverty, many states have modeled their own versions of tax relief for lower and middle-income workers on an enhanced federal earned income tax credit that expired last year. Rising inflation, pandemic hardships, and increasing economic disparities have intensified calls to create or expand these credits along with child tax credits in both Democratic and Republican-led states. To date, 11 states have enacted their own child tax credits and more than 30 now have an earned income tax credit, according to a report by the nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax reporter Donna Borak speaks with Connecticut's new state comptroller Sean Scanlon, who says there's no one "silver bullet solution" to tax policy. The former state legislator discusses his involvement in creating the state's first child tax credit and the Biden administration's latest attempt to reinstate a federal enhanced child tax credit. Scanlon also speaks on why he thinks histo

Looking forward to a mint julep on Kentucky Derby Day? You might be interested to know that a bit of each bourbon-soaked cocktail funds school districts, police departments, and other local services in the Bluegrass State. The money flows through Kentucky’s one-of-a-kind bourbon barrel tax, a levy on spirits aging in barrels. It’s a big deal for distillers, who must pay the tax, and municipalities, which derive significant revenue from the roughly 11 million barrels of bourbon inventoried across Kentucky. That could change soon. After a Bourbon Barrel Taxation Task Force studied the matter last year, senior lawmakers recently introduced legislation to gradually phase out the tax until it's eliminated in 2039 with the aim of giving local jurisdictions time to adjust to lost revenues. On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax senior reporter Michael J. Bologna digs into the unusual history of the tax and the current efforts to repeal it with Mark F. Sommer, tax practice group leader with Frost Brown Todd LL

California cities have made deals with retailers—Best Buy Co. Inc., Apple Inc., QVC, Walmart Inc., and others—to be the point of sale for statewide e-commerce purchases in exchange for a cut of the sales tax proceeds. But who really benefits? On this episode of Talking Tax, senior reporter Laura Mahoney sits down with Bloomberg Law editor Bernie Kohn to talk about her closer look at Dinuba, a small city in California's Central Valley, and its tax-sharing deal with Best Buy. Dinuba gives half of its influx of sales tax money to Best Buy and 10% to the lawyer who brokered the deal. Tens of millions of dollars are involved in an agreement that will last 40 years. They discuss what Dinuba's deal with Best Buy means for its fiscal health and quality of life compared with its neighbors, and how the tension between the haves and have-nots is part of a statewide debate about sales tax rules in California. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Tax practitioner Tifphani White-King is strongly invested in increasing diversity and equity in the world of tax. "I don't lose sight of the fact that I don't see many people that look like me in this field," she said. White-King, principal at Mazars USA, has over two decades of experience in tax, and as a Black woman, has extensive experience navigating a historically white male-dominated profession to become a leader in tax. She chatted with Bloomberg Tax reporter Jeff Leon to share more about her experiences in the profession, lessons learned, and being a woman of color in tax. White-King shares insights on how tax organizations can meaningfully level the playing field and embrace the strength of a diverse workforce, and where she sees the tax profession going. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

State sales taxes are now a fact of life for online buyers and sellers, since the US Supreme Court's 2018 Wayfair decision created a framework for remote-sales tax collection. It might look simple to customers, but for remote sellers and sales platforms—especially small businesses—the massive patchwork of state and local sales tax regimes can be daunting. How much of an "undue burden" on interstate commerce is the patchwork, and should Congress intervene to reduce the inconsistencies across sales tax regimes without stepping on state sovereignty? Some, including the US Government Accountability Office, have suggested it. This episode of Talking Tax explores the complicated requirements businesses have to deal with and the steps roughly half the states have taken to simplify their sales tax codes and streamline their processes. Bloomberg Tax senior reporter Michael J. Bologna speaks with Craig Johnson, executive director of the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, which administers a 24-state compact that st

Tax transparency is on the rise, and companies are figuring out how to adapt. Large multinationals will soon have to publicly report their tax information in the EU. The pressure for more information isn't just coming from governments. Investors, too, are pushing for greater disclosure of companies' tax arrangements. Companies have long worried that reporting their tax information could set them up for a reputational hit. But now, with public reporting requirements on the horizon, some are choosing to put the information out themselves ahead of the mandate. KPMG's Anu Varadharajan sat down with Bloomberg Tax's Isabel Gottlieb to talk about why the tax transparency measures worry companies, and what they're doing to prepare for the requirements. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Though never popular with neighboring state officials, New York's tax on the income of out-of-state residents working for Empire state companies is being scrutinized more closely. A post-pandemic shift to remote work — as a choice by either the employee or employer — has meant that many former commuters rarely if ever set foot in a New York workplace. There are winners and losers in the current situation and billions of dollars at stake. Officials in both New Jersey and Connecticut have recently revived efforts to keep their resident's income taxes within their own borders regardless of where the person works. New York isn't expected to relinquish these revenues without a fight. The state got roughly 17% of its income tax revenue from non-residents in fiscal 2020. On this episode of Talking Tax, our weekly podcast, podcast producer David Schultz talks with Andrew Silverman, a tax policy analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence, about the particular dynamics of the tri-state region. Silverman also examines why the U

The $80 billion in new funding the IRS will get over the next decade offers a chance "to bring US tax administration into the 21st century," according to National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins. Collins leads the Taxpayer Advocate Service, an independent office within the agency that provides taxpayer assistance. She's written multiple blog posts about modernization efforts and sent a report to Congress discussing her vision for a revamped, paperless tax enforcement agency. On this episode of Talking Tax, Collins speaks with Bloomberg Tax reporter Aysha Bagchi about key recommendations for how the agency can improve taxpayer services using the additional funding authorized by the Biden administration's sweeping tax-and-climate bill. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The IRS and Treasury pushed back the effective date for brokers forced to report client transactions to the IRS, giving the cryptocurrency industry some relief as they wait for more guidance. There are still a lot of unknowns about how to report and what exactly is required—answers the industry anticipates in new guidance. On this episode of our Talking Tax podcast, Bloomberg Tax reporter Erin Slowey speaks with Deloitte's Jonathan Cutler, a senior manager, and Rob Massey, global and US tax blockchain and digital assets leader, about the crypto reporting landscape here in the US. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

All eyes are on the IRS in 2023, as the cash-strapped agency is finally getting an $80 billion infusion, with potential big implications for the tax world. Bolstered by the additional multiyear funding in the Inflation Reduction Act, the agency plans to upgrade its outdated systems, staff up, and take bolder steps toward enforcement, aiming largely at big companies and high-wealth taxpayers. Bloomberg Tax reporter Jeff Leon talks about the prospects with Niles Elber, a tax professional at Caplin & Drysdale who has been following the developments closely. The IRS has a tall order, Elber says. He talks about how the agency might deploy the funds, and the biggest areas of need, from hiring to enforcement. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Congress was busy on tax policy in 2022, and that means the IRS will have work to do this year. The agency has issued some guidance clarifying the Inflation Reduction Act's tax provisions, but it has lots more that needs to get out in the coming weeks and months. On this episode of our weekly podcast, Talking Tax, we hear about the big-ticket items the IRS needs to get out the door from three Bloomberg Tax reporters: Erin Slowey, Lauren Vella, and Naomi Jagoda. We also discuss the IRS's plans to spend the nearly $80 billion in federal funding Congress granted—funds that could make this year's filing season go more smoothly. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

For this episode of our weekly podcast, Talking Tax, we're revisiting interviews with some of the biggest tax policy makers in the news this year. The OECD's two-pillar plan to reshape the global tax framework, the Inflation Reduction Act, and getting the court system back to a sense of normalcy amid the pandemic were among the biggest tax stories this year. Kathleen Kerrigan, the new chief judge of the US Tax Court, talks about pushing for more electronic filing of petitions and other challenges. Richard Jones, chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, talks about the new work on his plate as a result of the Inflation Reduction Act. And Pascal Saint-Amans, chief of the OECD's Centre for Tax Policy and Administration until late this year, talks about his decade-plus work revamping global tax rules and some of the organization's under-the-radar initiatives. Saint-Amans is now a partner at Brunswick Group and a professor at Lausanne University. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Gi

Most state tax stories are about legislation, regulation, and litigation. Too often lost in the headlines are the people who develop and manage state tax policies, and their motivations for pursuing careers in tax advocacy and tax administration. On this episode of Talking Tax, we talk with Alan Lindquist, a special assistant attorney general with the Illinois Department of Revenue. Lindquist has had an unusual career, representing taxpayers as a partner at Chicago-based Winston & Strawn LLP for 30 years. He surprised many of his peers in 2018, when he retired from the legal giant and began using his extensive background in complex tax litigation as an advocate for the revenue department. He spoke with Bloomberg Tax’s Michael Bologna about his career choices, the balance of power in tax litigation, the hot topics in state taxes, and the challenges revenue agencies face. Lindquist also offered some advice to recent law school graduates—and near-retirees, too—by encouraging them to consider public service work.

Starting with Ronald Reagan in 1981, every Republican president at some point has made tax cuts a centerpiece of his economic agenda, often with scant evidence that these policies have produced economic benefits that touch all Americans. Delving into some of the more notable moments in this history offers a roadmap to this inequality. How did a tax designed to discourage multigenerational inherited wealth come to be known as the "death tax?" Why are qualified dividends—which most taxpayers see as a single line on their 1040s—an outsized benefit for high income individuals? How did generous incentives help to reshore income held abroad? On this episode of Talking Tax, James B. Steele, a two-time Pulitzer Prize journalist who has covered economic inequality for decades, sat down with Bloomberg Law editor Bernie Kohn to talk about his story co-written for the Center for Public Integrity and Bloomberg Tax showing how US tax policies have consistently fueled inequality. This podcast is a partnership between the Ce