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February 26, 2016 - 11:55 AM EST

Forget the Audit: Trump Should Release His Tax Returns Today

by Joseph J. Thorndike

Donald Trump has finally explained – sort of – why he’s been so evasive about releasing his tax returns. Apparently, he’s being audited. But in fact, that’s no explanation at all: Trump is still free to release his returns, and he should do it today.
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February 24, 2016 - 2:03 PM EST

Think Twice Before You Kill FICA Taxes

by Robert Goulder

What if someone waved a magic wand and suddenly increased your take-home pay? No, you wouldn’t need to put in longer hours. You’d simply be allowed to retain a larger slice of the paycheck you already earn. Who wouldn’t enjoy that?
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February 24, 2016 - 9:27 AM EST

Pay-to-Play Is an Awful Shakedown

by David Brunori

The government shouldn’t be able to take your money before you get your day in court.
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February 23, 2016 - 2:01 PM EST

Exiting the EU: Fleeing the Vulgar Pride of the Brussels Empire

by Ajay Gupta

Hell hath no fury like a Brussels bureaucrat scorned. Consider European Union Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager. Questioned by BBC Radio 4's Today program on member states’ making “sweetheart deals about back taxes,” such as Google’s £130 million tax settlement with HM Revenue & Customs, which was announced January 22, Vestager responded, “It’s unfair. And sometimes it is also illegal state aid.”
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February 22, 2016 - 4:15 PM EST

A 'Brexit' Would Mean More if Labour Were In Power

by Jeremy Scott

The prospect of the United Kingdom pulling out of the European Union is now much more than theoretical. Having cut his deal with the European Union, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron announced that the long-promised referendum on leaving the EU would be held on June 23. A British exit from Europe would have major repercussions on trade and immigration policy, but its effect on tax would be much more significant if there were a Labour government.
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February 16, 2016 - 7:22 AM EST

It’s Still Groundhog Day, at Least in America.

by Stuart Gibson

I recently attended the Capital Matters conference, presented by the Tax Council Policy Institute in Washington. The 2016 conference focused on how taxes influence the global creation, deployment, and mobility of capital. This was my second year attending the conference, which showcases the best thinking of influential tax professionals and business leaders. And both years offered a glimpse into how the corporate world views the tax world. What a view!
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January 19, 2016 - 8:30 AM EST

Why the Minnesota Tax Court Is Making Me Paranoid

by Cara Griffith

Sometimes it really feels like something untoward is going on, but the suspicion is difficult to confirm. I’m having one of those moments regarding the Minnesota Tax Court.
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September 21, 2015 - 9:21 AM EDT

Donald Buffett?

by Martin A. Sullivan

Two outspoken billionaires at opposite ends of the political spectrum reach the same conclusion.
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July 24, 2015 - 10:12 AM EDT

Donald Trump Is Contagious!

by Christopher Bergin

I’ve predicted that it will take two years to start a serious discussion of reforming the tax laws and the agency that administers them. After watching Rand Paul’s latest video, I’ve pushed that back a decade.
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July 11, 2014 - 9:39 AM EDT

International Tax Trending

by Mindy Herzfeld

This week’s international tax highlights include Jean-Claude Juncker’s agenda for EU tax policy, changes in the IRS’ international administration, and continued assertiveness by the U.S. and other governments in pursuing tax evasion while BEPS goes into sleep mode.
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Today's News

Federal

State

International

Federal Tax News from TaxAnalysts.com

FEDERAL HEADLINES
For Monday, February 29, 2016

News Analysis: Dividend Stripping and Derivatives to Avoid Withholding Challenged

Economic Analysis: Three-Way GOP Race, Three Paths to Tax Reform

Practitioners Urge Changes to Fee Waiver Regulations

Hilton Receives Letter Ruling Confirming Tax-Free REIT Spinoff

LB&I Issues Updated Exam Process, Keeps Informal Claims Limit

BEPS Action 7 Makes PE Avoidance Trickier, Stack Says

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State Tax News from TaxAnalysts.com

STATE HEADLINES
For Monday, February 29, 2016

Michigan Court of Appeals Hands SBT Taxpayers a Win in Compact Cases

Oklahoma House Panel Approves Sales Tax Nexus Bill

Utah Legislature Pushing Click-Through Nexus Bills After Latest DMA Decision

California Property Tax Ballot Initiative Pulled by Backers

California BOE Again Votes to Reduce Rob Lowe's Taxable Gain on Mansion Sale

If You Need Tax Credits, You Shouldn't Be in Business

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International Tax News from TaxAnalysts.com

INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES
For Monday, February 29, 2016

News Analysis: Could Integration Be the Antidote to Inversions?

News Analysis: Minding the Gap in FBAR Filings

Countries Implementing More Labor Taxation Reforms, OECD Says

HMRC Issues Final CbC Reporting Regulations

U.S. Model Tax Treaty More Closely Aligned With OECD Model

Belgium Authorities to Investigate UBS for Tax Fraud

Subscribers to Expert3 or Worldwide Tax Daily receive access to the full content for these articles plus many more on a daily basis. Our automated system can send you summary e-mails with links to the full content.

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Featured News

February 26, 2016

IRS ID Theft PINs Too Easy to Obtain Online, Observers Warn

by Luca Gattoni-Celli

The IRS should stop providing online access to a key anti-fraud program through a marginally revised version of the authentication process that allowed thousands of tax records to be stolen last year, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration and other tax observers told Tax Analysts.

February 25, 2016

No Stopping Political Nonprofits Now, Some Say

by Paul C. Barton

If perception is reality, the new reality for nonprofit "social welfare" organizations is that they can emphasize politics as much as they want and not worry in the slightest about losing their tax exemptions.

February 24, 2016

The VAT: Coming Soon to a Campaign Stop Near You

by Alan D. Viard

Alan D. Viard analyzes proposals by two Republican presidential candidates, Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rand Paul, R-Ky., to replace much of the federal tax system with a subtraction method VAT.

February 22, 2016

Koskinen, Olson to Face Off on Taxpayer Service 'Future State'

by William Hoffman

Under the IRS's "future state" vision for taxpayer service, taxpayers will be able to solve tax return filing problems in minutes that could've taken months before, according to the IRS's top executive, but the Service's taxpayer advocate counters that they might have trouble if they need to talk with an agency representative on the phone.

February 18, 2016

Flawed Authentication May Have Exposed E-File PINs

by Luca Gattoni-Celli

The IRS's reliance on Social Security numbers to authenticate users of its electronic filing personal identification number application endangers the program's integrity, security experts and tax practitioners said in the wake of a major cyberattack on the agency.

February 18, 2016

The Effect of Profit Shifting on the Corporate Tax Base

by Kimberly A. Clausing

Kimberly A. Clausing summarizes her research estimating the effect of profit shifting on corporate tax base erosion for the United States and other countries

February 17, 2016

Justice Antonin Scalia: Applesauce, Jiggery-Pokery, and the Judicial Fraud of the Negative Commerce Clause

by Eric Yauch and Amy Hamilton

The death of Justice Antonin Scalia deprives the U.S. Supreme Court of a strict constructionist and a gifted writer who could look at a state tax case concerning the dormant commerce clause and find judicial fraud, incoherence, and "ad hocery."

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Watch Tax Analysts' video featuring a conversation with Lawrence B. Gibbs, former IRS Commissioner and a member of the law firm Miller & Chevalier, in which he discusses the current state of the IRS and its challenges.