TAXPRO BUZZ

+ A question from the IRS - “What California city do you suggest for an IRS Nationwide Tax Forum?”.  I suggested San Francisco.  (oops - once I took the survey the link was no good - sorry)

+ The CCH weekday headline email reminds us that “Tax Preparers Need to File Form 8867 with All Earned Income Tax Credit Claims (IR-2011-122)”.

+ Did you know that “Unclaimed Employee Paychecks Must be Returned to Your State”?  Dr Jean Murry tells us so at ABOUT.COM-US BUSINESS LAW/TAXES.

“If you are sitting on unclaimed paychecks, as an employer you are legally bound by state law to return any uncashed paychecks to the state where the person last worked. You can be fined or penalized if you don't return the check, even if the person can't be found.”

So pass this info along to your payroll clients. 

And this is another reason to advise your clients to do an “Unclaimed Property” search.

+ CCH has published a special report on “2011-Tax Year In Review”.

“2011 had been predicted to be a quiet year in federal tax news – as it landed between major tax legislation in 2010 and expected tax reform in 2012 – but the year brought many signifi cant tax developments from the Obama Administration, Congress, the Treasury Department, the IRS, and the courts.”

+ The JOURNAL OF ACCOUNTANCY announces that “IRS PTIN Application System to Go Down for Maintenance”.

“The IRS announced on its website that it will not be accepting new applications for preparer tax identification numbers (PTINs) from 5 p.m. EST Friday, Dec. 23, until approximately 6 a.m. EST on Monday, Jan. 9. The IRS PTIN system will be available for renewals during that time.”

+ The New York Department of Taxation and Finance has released the Personal Income Tax: Withholding Rates for 2012.  Click here.

+ For those of you who are interested you can click here to download the 600+ page “Back in Black” report from Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn.

Merry Christmas to all – except the idiots in Congress!

RDF