Tax Analysts

Last updated
Tax Analysts
Founded1970
Type Nonprofit
23-7073182
Location
Website taxnotes.com

Tax Analysts is a nonprofit publisher offering the Tax Notes portfolio of products, including weekly magazines featuring commentary, daily online journals featuring news and analysis, and research tools, all focused on tax policy and administration. Tax Analysts also promotes transparency in tax policymaking and holds regular conferences on key tax issues.

Contents

History

Thomas F. Field founded Tax Analysts in 1970 as part of an effort to expose tax policymaking to the general public at a time when it was being heavily influenced by special interests. The organization provided analysis on prominent policy debates, offered congressional testimony on proposed legislation and published op-eds that could reach a broader audience. [1] But within 10 years, the group had shifted focus and become the country's foremost provider of unbiased tax information with a style that has since come to be regarded by tax professionals as "the epitome of hard-nosed impartiality." [2]

The organization underwent a restructuring at the end of 2001 as it sought to deal with globalization, technological advances, and increased competition in the tax publishing arena. In 2004, Field retired from Tax Analysts and was succeeded by Christopher Bergin, who had until then been the editor of Tax Notes, the organization's flagship publication. [1]

Cara Griffith succeeded Bergin as CEO in August 2017. The organization currently has 173 employees, most of whom are based out of the company's headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia, supplemented by a network of more than 250 domestic and international tax correspondents.

Since its founding, the organization has grown dramatically in size and scope, moving from a relatively small nonprofit to a publisher with correspondents across the country and around the globe providing information to more than 150,000 readers worldwide. [1] [3]

Mission, staffing, and governance

Mission

To shed light on tax policy and administration through aggressive, unbiased reporting and informed commentary from the leaders in the field.

Management team

Board of directors

Publishing

The organization publishes:

The organization also produces several research tools and reference sources, including:

Other activities

FOIA advocacy

Tax Analysts has devoted extensive time and effort to ensure public access to key documents in tax policy and administration. When necessary, it has sued the IRS for access to documents through which the agency provides guidance to its staff and individual taxpayers. Using the Freedom of Information Act, Tax Analysts fought for access to key documents in tax policy and administration. In 1972, the organization successfully sued the IRS for access to private letter rulings (PLRs) and technical advice memorandums (TAMs) — crucial guidance documents that provided legal advice to specific taxpayers and IRS field agents. [1] [2]

Over the years, those had become sort of "secret laws" whereby the IRS decided how to apply the law to particular taxpayers and then refused to make the terms public. This practice left other taxpayers at a disadvantage, since the IRS relied on existing secret guidance when deciding subsequent cases. At the same time, it gave an unfair advantage to a few large law and accounting firms that had joined forces to create a private library of these undisclosed materials. [1] [2]

The courts gave Tax Analysts access to PLRs, and Congress soon required public disclosure of TAMs as well. Those were the foundation for almost 40 years of subsequent litigation by the firm to defend disclosure and tax transparency. The organization continues to work for transparency in the administration of tax law and recently forced the IRS to disclose guidance being sent to its field agents via email. [1] [2] [6]

Conferences

The organization hosts policy forums and roundtable discussions to examine issues in federal, state, and international taxation. [1]

Tax History Project

In 1995 Tax Analysts created the Tax History Project to provide information about the history of American taxation to scholars, policymakers, students, citizens, and the media. The project provides access to web-based documentary publications, original historical research, tax returns filed by U.S. presidents and presidential candidates, and other archival data. [7]

Joseph J. Thorndike is the director of the project. [8] [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taxation in the United States</span> United States tax codes

The United States has separate federal, state, and local governments with taxes imposed at each of these levels. Taxes are levied on income, payroll, property, sales, capital gains, dividends, imports, estates and gifts, as well as various fees. In 2020, taxes collected by federal, state, and local governments amounted to 25.5% of GDP, below the OECD average of 33.5% of GDP.

A tax deduction or benefit is an amount deducted from taxable income, usually based on expenses such as those incurred to produce additional income. Tax deductions are a form of tax incentives, along with exemptions and tax credits. The difference between deductions, exemptions, and credits is that deductions and exemptions both reduce taxable income, while credits reduce tax.

Tax reform is the process of changing the way taxes are collected or managed by the government and is usually undertaken to improve tax administration or to provide economic or social benefits. Tax reform can include reducing the level of taxation of all people by the government, making the tax system more progressive or less progressive, or simplifying the tax system and making the system more understandable or more accountable.

Tax returns in the United States are reports filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or with the state or local tax collection agency containing information used to calculate income tax or other taxes. Tax returns are generally prepared using forms prescribed by the IRS or other applicable taxing authority.

Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, reduced rates, or tax on only a portion of items. Examples include exemption of charitable organizations from property taxes and income taxes, veterans, and certain cross-border or multi-jurisdictional scenarios.

Tax withholding, also known as tax retention, pay-as-you-earn tax or tax deduction at source, is income tax paid to the government by the payer of the income rather than by the recipient of the income. The tax is thus withheld or deducted from the income due to the recipient. In most jurisdictions, tax withholding applies to employment income. Many jurisdictions also require withholding taxes on payments of interest or dividends. In most jurisdictions, there are additional tax withholding obligations if the recipient of the income is resident in a different jurisdiction, and in those circumstances withholding tax sometimes applies to royalties, rent or even the sale of real estate. Governments use tax withholding as a means to combat tax evasion, and sometimes impose additional tax withholding requirements if the recipient has been delinquent in filing tax returns, or in industries where tax evasion is perceived to be common.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloomberg Industry Group</span> Legal, tax and regulatory news company

Bloomberg Industry Group, Inc. is an affiliate of Bloomberg L.P. and a source of legal, tax, regulatory, and business news and information for professionals. It is headquartered in the Crystal City section of Arlington County, Virginia. The CEO of the company is Josh Eastright.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Income tax in the United States</span> Form of taxation in the United States

The United States federal government and most state governments impose an income tax. They are determined by applying a tax rate, which may increase as income increases, to taxable income, which is the total income less allowable deductions. Income is broadly defined. Individuals and corporations are directly taxable, and estates and trusts may be taxable on undistributed income. Partnerships are not taxed, but their partners are taxed on their shares of partnership income. Residents and citizens are taxed on worldwide income, while nonresidents are taxed only on income within the jurisdiction. Several types of credits reduce tax, and some types of credits may exceed tax before credits. Most business expenses are deductible. Individuals may deduct certain personal expenses, including home mortgage interest, state taxes, contributions to charity, and some other items. Some deductions are subject to limits, and an Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) applies at the federal and some state levels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998</span>

The Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, also known as Taxpayer Bill of Rights III, resulted from hearings held by the United States Congress in 1996 and 1997. The Act included numerous amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. The bill was passed in the Senate unanimously, and was seen as a major reform of the Internal Revenue Service.

The United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) uses forms for taxpayers and tax-exempt organizations to report financial information, such as to report income, calculate taxes to be paid to the federal government, and disclose other information as required by the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). There are over 800 various forms and schedules. Other tax forms in the United States are filed with state and local governments.

The IRS Whistleblower Office is a branch of the United States Internal Revenue Service that will "process tips received from individuals, who spot tax problems in their workplace, while conducting day-to-day personal business or anywhere else they may be encountered." Tipsters should use IRS Form 211 to make a claim.

Under the United States taxation system, an enterprise may deduct business expenses from its taxable income, subject to certain conditions. On occasion the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has challenged such deductions, regarding the activities in question as illegitimate, and in certain circumstances the Internal Revenue Code provides for such challenge. Rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court have in general upheld the deductions, where there is not a specific governmental policy in support of disallowing them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Internal Revenue Service</span> Revenue service of the US federal government

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory tax law. It is an agency of the Department of the Treasury and led by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, who is appointed to a five-year term by the President of the United States. The duties of the IRS include providing tax assistance to taxpayers; pursuing and resolving instances of erroneous or fraudulent tax filings; and overseeing various benefits programs, including the Affordable Care Act.

Taxation in Puerto Rico consists of taxes paid to the United States federal government and taxes paid to the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Payment of taxes to the federal government, both personal and corporate, is done through the federal Internal Revenue Service (IRS), while payment of taxes to the Commonwealth government is done through the Puerto Rico Department of Treasury.

The alternative minimum tax (AMT) is a tax imposed by the United States federal government in addition to the regular income tax for certain individuals, estates, and trusts. As of tax year 2018, the AMT raises about $5.2 billion, or 0.4% of all federal income tax revenue, affecting 0.1% of taxpayers, mostly in the upper income ranges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tax return</span> List of individuals monetary gains and losses over 12 months submitted to government each year

A tax return is a form on which a person or organization presents an account of income and circumstances, used by the tax authorities to determine liability for tax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act</span> 2010 U.S. tax law

The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is a 2010 U.S. federal law requiring all non-U.S. foreign financial institutions (FFIs) to search their records for customers with indicia of a connection to the U.S., including indications in records of birth or prior residency in the U.S., or the like, and to report such assets and identities of such persons to the United States Department of the Treasury. FATCA also requires such persons to report their non-U.S. financial assets annually to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on form 8938, which is in addition to the older and further redundant requirement to report them annually to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) on form 114. Like U.S. income tax law, FATCA applies to U.S. residents and also to U.S. citizens and green card holders residing in other countries.

CalFile is the current tax preparation program/service of the California Franchise Tax Board (FTB).

In the United States, an income tax audit is the examination of a business or individual tax return by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or state tax authority. The IRS and various state revenue departments use the terms audit, examination, review, and notice to describe various aspects of enforcement and administration of the tax laws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taxation in Brazil</span>

Taxation in Brazil is complex, with over sixty forms of tax. Historically, tax rates were low and tax evasion and avoidance were widespread. The 1988 Constitution called for an enhanced role of the State in society, requiring increased tax revenue. In 1960, and again between 1998 and 2004, efforts were made to make the collection system more efficient. Tax revenue gradually increased from 13.8% of GDP in 1947 to 37.4% in 2005. Tax revenue has become quite high by international standards, but without realising commensurate social benefit. More than half the total tax is in the regressive form of taxes on consumption.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "History of tax Analysts". Falls Church, Virginia: Tax Analysts. May 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-05-02. Retrieved 2010-01-04.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Glain, Stephen J. (2003-10-14). "Shining a light on the 'secret law' of the IRS". Boston Globe.
  3. ↑ "About Tax Analysts". Falls Church, Virginia: Tax Analysts. Archived from the original on 2008-07-08. Retrieved 2009-01-04.
  4. 1 2 "Federal Tax News and Analysis". Falls Church, Virginia: Tax Analysts. Archived from the original on 2008-08-01. Retrieved 2009-01-04.
  5. ↑ "Federal Research Tools". Falls Church, Virginia: Tax Analysts. Archived from the original on 2008-08-03. Retrieved 2009-01-04.
  6. ↑ David Cay Johnston (2008-02-12). "I.R.S. Said to Flout Orders to Yield Data About Audits". The New York Times . New York City . Retrieved 2010-01-04.
  7. ↑ "Tax History Project". Falls Church, Virginia: Tax Analysts. June 2013. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
  8. ↑ Glenn Kessler, Trump's false claim that 'there’s nothing to learn' from his tax returns, Washington Post (May 12, 2016).
  9. ↑ Domenico Montanaro, 3 Reasons We Care About Politicians' Taxes, NPR (August 12, 2016).

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.