Talking Tax

Calls for regulation and global standards for the cryptocurrency industry have taken on fresh urgency recently, with the stunning collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX exchange and its sister trading house Alameda Research.One important regulatory proposal already in progress is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Crypto Asset Reporting Framework—CARF—which would standardize how global tax authorities regulate and share information on cryptocurrency assets and still give nations significant leeway to set their own rules. The G20 endorsed the OECD’s crypto plan at its October finance minsters meeting.On this episode of our weekly podcast, Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax correspondent Shaun Courtney speaks with the OECD Center for Tax Policy and Administration’s Paul Hondius and Artur Olszewskicq about the crypto framework. Hondius and Olszewski talk about what the new framework does and doesn’t do, how it meets the needs of tax administrations, and expectations for implementation of the standards among G20 nations—which of course include the U.S. They also offer an update on the organization's timeline for creating legal and IT solutions to help countries with implementation and global information sharing.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The polls have closed on the midterm elections, but with many races left undecided, it's still unclear which party will lead the next Congress.Though there was no "Red Wave" as some prognosticators predicted, Republicans appear to be closing in on a narrow majority in the House. In the Senate, the balance of power remains up in the air as the Nevada and Arizona races remain uncalled, and the Georgia contest between Democratic incumbent Raphael Warnock and Republican Herschel Walker heads toward a December runoff.On this episode of our weekly podcast, Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax reporters Chris Cioffi, Naomi Jagoda, and Samantha Handler preview what kind of oversight a House Republican majority may conduct and who's poised to take over for retiring ranking member Kevin Brady (R-Texas).The group also talks about how a potentially GOP-controlled Senate could slow down the process of confirming a new IRS commissioner to replace the outgoing agency head, Charles Rettig.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

State policy makers and budget officials are facing a period of greater economic uncertainty as forecasts increasingly point to the likelihood of at least a mild U.S. recession in 2023. Over the past year many states have sought to stay ahead of any downturn by managing their budgets more prudently.Roughly 30 states took some type of permanent tax policy action in 2022 through their legislatures—rate cuts for income, corporate, or both, plus some sales tax holidays—to offer relief to taxpayers. Many also put more guardrails in place to help offset future economic volatility by funding reserves, instituting revenue triggers, or slowly phasing in rate cuts.On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax reporter Donna Borak speaks with Eric Kim, head of state ratings and senior director at Fitch Ratings, about his outlook on the U.S. economy and how states are preparing for what's expected to be challenging economic times ahead.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Tax professionals are racing to advise companies on two laws passed this year—the tax-and-climate law and the CHIPS Act—both providing tax credits that can be claimed as soon as Jan. 1. Guidance from IRS and Treasury can't come soon enough as companies try to decipher how they would be affected.On this episode of our weekly podcast, Talking Tax, we discuss one Big Four accounting firm's strategy for working with companies as they eagerly await guidance.Bloomberg Tax's Erin Slowey speaks with Steve Kimble, chairman and CEO of Deloitte Tax LLP. Kimble talks about some of the biggest questions he'd like to get answered from the agencies and how companies shouldn't wait for guidance before planning. We also get an update on how the firm is consulting with companies ahead of the midterm elections.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Companies have rushed to apply for an expiring Texas program that offers hefty school district property tax abatements for new manufacturing and renewable energy projects.The Chapter 313 incentive has drawn big investment through its 20-year history, but has been criticized as too expensive and harmful to some schools and populations. It wasn't renewed, and policy makers are determining whether and how to redesign it. In the meantime, applications for it leaped to more than 400 this year as companies including Tesla Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., and Micron Technology Inc. try to get their awards while the program still exists. There were 74 applications in 2021 and 49 in 2020.Bloomberg Tax’s Angélica Serrano-Román sat down with representatives of key players—school groups, researchers, and transparency organizations—to talk about the tax incentive, its impact on state revenues and budgets, and the possibility that lawmakers will take up the issue next year.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Over the past decade, some of the biggest changes to the international tax framework have come out of the Paris-based OECD—from the worldwide crackdown on base erosion and profit shifting to the two-pillar plan to overhaul global tax rules.Pascal Saint-Amans, the man at the helm of the organization's tax division through those years, recently announced he would be stepping down from his role at the end of October.Bloomberg Tax's Isabel Gottlieb sat down with Saint-Amans to talk about what he's doing next, what it will take to get the tax deal's Pillar One over the finish line, and the future of international cooperation on environmental taxation.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

The global tax pact that’s been agreed to by nearly 140 countries has run into some obstacles, but the new global vice chair of tax for EY thinks chances are good that the big changes the agreement calls for will ultimately be implemented.EY’s Marna Ricker acknowledges that there’s a lot of work still to be done on both of the key parts of the agreement—Pillar One, which would reallocate a chunk of the taxing rights on big companies’ profits to other countries, and Pillar Two, which would impose a 15% global minimum tax.“I think this is going to be a really interesting window of time,” Ricker said.On this episode of Talking Tax, senior reporter Michael Rapoport discusses the OECD agreement and the new Inflation Reduction Act taxes with Ricker, who assumed her new post on Oct. 1. She’s been with EY for 28 years, and had previously been vice chair of tax for EY Americas.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

An estimated 43 million Americans qualifying for the Biden administration’s student loan debt forgiveness program won’t have to account for the $10,000 benefit on their federal 1040 tax returns next year, but they could face a very different reality when they file their state returns.The federal government and most states are waiving taxes on the cancellation of debt program. According to one analysis, roughly seven states—Arkansas, California, Indiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Wisconsin—plan to make debtors pay income taxes ranging from a few hundred dollars to as much as $900, depending on the state.On this episode of Talking Tax, Bloomberg Tax senior correspondent Michael J. Bologna caught up with Jared Walczak, vice president of state projects at the Tax Foundation, to help sort through some of these potentially complicated state tax issues. He explained which states plan to tax student loan debt cancellation and how taxpayers should account for the benefit. 

Richard Jones took the helm of the board charged with writing US accounting rules the same year the coronavirus pandemic upended the economy.Jones and the six other members of the Financial Accounting Standards Board had to act quickly to tackle questions on how to use accounting standards during such an uncertain time. Two years later, FASB is plotting its next big moves, including writing rules for buzzy topics like cryptocurrency and figuring out how the new tax-and-climate law will impact its work.On this episode of Talking Tax, Jones speaks with Bloomberg Tax's Nicola M. White about FASB's agenda and how the standard-setter works with a Securities and Exchange Commission that's increasingly active in accounting issues.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Ernst & Young faces numerous challenges as it tries to gain ground in the competitive advisory market while maintaining its place in the audit industry as its leaders push ahead with a planned breakup of the $40 billion revenue firm.The consequential deal could hinder EY's ability to retain and hire the skilled professionals it needs to deliver in-demand audit and reporting services as a stand-alone audit firm, said Jim Peterson, former in-house attorney for Arthur Andersen, the former top audit firm which collapsed in 2002.On this episode of Talking Tax, Peterson discusses with Bloomberg Tax's Amanda Iacone about what EY’s breakup means to the accounting industry and the risks that firm leaders face as they try to decouple the global business.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.