Talking Tax

Note: This episode originally aired May 19, 2022.Automation tools increasingly used by seasoned tax professionals are helping to take some of the pain and manual labor out of routine compliance work.That futuristic tech goes beyond robotics process automation and can link together the many programs and platforms that accountants rely on everyday. Those building blocks can automate every step in the tax process from onboarding clients to tax return delivery, according to John McGowan, the CEO of Hubsync and former chief information officer for two Big Four tax practices.On this episode of Talking Tax, McGowan talks to Bloomberg Tax about the challenges that firms face in adopting new ways of working and how it can not only help get work done faster but could make CPA firms more attractive to job candidates and clients alike.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

Puerto Rico lawmakers say a tax plan backed by Gov. Pedro Pierluisi still falls short of being the long-sought tax overhaul the island desperately needs.After years of modifications, Puerto Rico still has one of the most complex tax systems in the US, with over 400 tax breaks, deductions, credits, and exemptions.The Democratic governor presented a proposal earlier this year that would lower income taxes for both individuals and corporations and simplify the US territory's tax code. The Senate says it’s working on a counter-proposal but has provided few details.Bloomberg Tax’s Angélica Serrano-Román and Bloomberg News’ Jim Wyss sat down with Kenneth Rivera Robles, a tax partner at Galíndez LLC and treasurer of the board for Puerto Rico's Manufacturers Association, Sen. Juan Zaragoza Gómez, president of the Puerto Rico Senate’s finance committee, and Ella Woger-Nieves, the CEO of Invest Puerto Rico.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

New IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel has a lot on his plate.He is tasked with effectively spending the IRS's new $80 billion in Inflation Reduction Act funds and ensuring the agency has smooth tax-filing seasons, while also needing to respond to questions and concerns from Congress.On this episode of Talking Tax, Werfel talks to Bloomberg Tax's Naomi Jagoda in his first podcast interview since his confirmation in March. Werfel talks about his goals for his first six months on the job, how he plans to keep Congress informed about the agency's work, how he plans to improve trust in the agency, and more.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

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 at 703-341-3690.

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 helping governments discuss carbon taxes.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

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 feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.

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 historic surpluses make it possible for Connecticut lawmakers to create both a permanent child tax credit (SB 771) and pursue Gov. Ned Lamont's (D) plans to cut income taxes and raise the earned income tax credit.Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.