Talking Tax

House Republicans are moving quickly to get a massive tax-and-spending package across the finish line before week's end even as they negotiate with party factions over outstanding concerns. Some Republicans are demanding deeper cuts to social programs like Medicaid to curb deficits as part of the deal and to reduce the package's cost to extend the 2017 tax overhaul. And yet the bill increases the debt limit by $4 trillion and adds billions in spending. Cut out of the process, Democrats oppose the proposal, and even some Republicans have objected to its size and scope. Regardless of where lawmakers fall on the political spectrum, they all seem to agree on one data source: What the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget has to say about the package and what it will do to the national deficit, which now stands at over $36 trillion. On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax reporter Chris Cioffi talks with Maya MacGuineas, longtime president of the nonprofit public policy group, and digs into why the growing debt can be problematic for future economic growth. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Caroline Ciraolo, a partner at Kostelanetz and former No. 2 at the DOJ Tax Division, dives into the shift from government to private sector tax work. She discusses a new initiative connecting laid-off IRS professionals to law firms, emphasizing the passion and transferable skills that benefit both sides. Ciraolo shares insights on navigating career transitions, the importance of effectively highlighting IRS experience on resumes, and encourages future tax professionals by showcasing the enduring demand in the field despite challenges.

The IRS is facing significant upheaval as over 20% of its workforce exits, raising concerns about taxpayer services and data security. With a high turnover rate, leadership changes are reshaping the agency, particularly affecting its ability to regulate digital assets. The departures of key executives complicate efforts to maintain compliance and stability. As the IRS leans more on technology to fill gaps, the implications for individual taxpayers and overall revenue collection loom large. Listen for insights into this turbulent period for the agency.

House Republicans are pushing a plan to dismantle the US audit board and send its watchdog duties to the Securities and Exchange Commission as part of a federal budget-cutting process. It's not the first GOP attempt to rein in the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, but this time it comes against the backdrop of the Trump administration's sweeping drive to cut regulations and downsize government. Congress set up the board in the early 2000s to restore investor trust following high-profile corporate accounting scandals at Enron Corp. and WorldCom Inc. The move to eliminate PCAOB threatens to derail independent oversight of auditors charged with vetting the financial reports of public companies worth trillions in stock value, according to Bloomberg Tax senior reporter Amanda Iacone. On this episode of Talking Tax, Iacone speaks with Benjamin Freed, Bloomberg Tax team lead for state tax and financial accounting, about why the PCAOB is being targeted now, previous attempts to curb its influence, and what a potential disbanding could mean for audit firms. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Before leaving for a two-week break, House Republican lawmakers adopted a Senate budget outline to expedite legislation to push through trillions of dollars in tax cuts, raise the debt ceiling, and slash billions in spending.Now comes the hard part where policy committees need to fill in the fine details. The Senate framework called for $1.5 trillion in new tax cuts, to enact policies like some proposed by President Donald Trump on the campaign trail.The Senate's use of a so-called current policy baseline wipes away, on paper, trillions of dollars expected to add to the deficit from extending the expiring parts of the GOP's 2017 tax law.The House is seen as taking the lead, with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) publicly aiming for a Memorial Day deadline to get a bill on Trump's desk. In this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax federal editor Kim Dixon talks to congressional reporters Chris Cioffi and Zach Cohen about what to expect in the next work period.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Deep cuts to the IRS workforce mean the agency might have to rely more heavily on technology to keep up taxpayer services and enforcement. The IRS is set to lose 20,000 workers after the Trump administration's second deferred resignation offer. That's in addition to thousands who have already left or are on administrative leave. Barry Johnson, former IRS chief data and analytics officer, oversaw the rollout of artificial intelligence at the agency before his retirement in January. When he left, he said the IRS was piloting an AI tool to help employees search the Internal Revenue Code. The agency also used AI to improve taxpayer services, such as with chatbots, and to make enforcement more efficient.But the workforce cuts could hinder that progress, Johnson said."I'm especially concerned with proposed cuts in what we call the field staff, the folks who process tax returns and conduct audits," he said. "Because to the extent that we lose that subject matter expertise, our ability to train and validate AI applications will be diminished."In this episode of Talking Tax, Johnson talks to Bloomberg Tax reporter Erin Schilling about the challenges of relying on technology with a shrunken staff, how the research division uses taxpayer data while upholding confidentiality, and what it means for the agency when top executives leave.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Michael Plowgian, a partner at KPMG and former Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Affairs, joins Will Morris, global tax policy leader at PwC. They dive into the Trump administration's departure from the OECD’s global tax deal and its implications for international finance. The discussion reveals how rising tariffs may prompt countries to favor bilateral agreements over multilateral cooperation. They dissect the complexities of digital services taxes and highlight the tangled web of U.S. policies impacting global tax negotiations.

The hard-charging effort led by billionaire Elon Musk to reshape the federal workforce at the IRS and other agencies might lead to lasting changes. But what it means for taxpayers still isn't fully realized. Some efforts to buy out or fire employees have been postponed until after the filing season ends in April, and are facing legal action. Ending taxpayer assistance center leases and reducing the number of taxpayer assistance staff who can answer phones will mean backsliding in improved service levels, former National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson warns. On this episode of Talking Tax, Olson talks to Bloomberg Tax reporter Chris Cioffi about the potential for brain drain at the agency amid a wave of resignations and whether major upheaval might lead to an erosion in taxpayer trust. They also tackle the danger of taxpayer data privacy violations as Musk's Treasury Department team gains access to the department's payment systems.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Millions of US companies are off the hook when it comes to disclosing their beneficial owners' identities to the federal government, after the Trump administration announced it wouldn't enforce penalties for domestic entities under the Corporate Transparency Act. The Treasury Department's previous regulations had required about 30 million businesses operating in the US to disclose who directly or indirectly controlled them in reports to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. But in a pivot from the previous administration, the Treasury now says all US entities are exempt from reporting requirements.The move was the latest twist in a wave of litigation against the law, which some companies argue oversteps Congress's authority to regulate interstate commerce. Following a nationwide injunction blocking the CTA's enforcement in December 2024, businesses across the country faced whiplash as the law and the previous version of its implementing regulations were successively enjoined past the original January 2025 compliance deadline. But now, facing a narrower scope of which companies are obliged to comply under new rules, appeals courts must now grapple with whether newly exempt domestic companies retain their standing to sue.On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax audio producer David Schultz talks with Bloomberg Law reporter John Woolley about the year-long legal drama around the Corporate Transparency Act, how the Trump administration disrupted that litigation, and how the Treasury's policy changes could impact the fight against international financial crime.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

New York officials are in the final stage of the state’s budget process, following March 13 passage of the Assembly and Senate individual spending and revenue proposals for fiscal 2026. It's now up to a three-way negotiation between the Legislature's two chambers and Gov. Kathy Hochul (D), who has her own plans for a budget that’s likely to top $252 billion—including a host of tax changes that don’t completely align with what the Democratic-led lawmakers want.As in recent years, lawmakers have proposed raising taxes on the highest-income earners and corporations, which Hochul has rejected in the past. There are divergent approaches to how much to expand the state’s child tax credit. And the Senate wants to tailor the governor's idea of sending New Yorkers sales tax rebates—a salve to inflation—to just seniors rather than all taxpayers. Other issues include an expansion of New York's film tax credit program to benefit more independent movies and whether the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's funding needs will disrupt the various tax proposals.On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax state editor Benjamin Freed talks with New York correspondent Danielle Muoio Dunn and Bloomberg Government Albany correspondent Zach Williams about the budget process, the political stakes for Hochul ahead of her 2026 re-election campaign, and the odds that lawmakers wrap up the budget by their April 1 deadline—or at least the first night of Passover.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.