WASHINGTON − The Internal Revenue Service is seeking qualified applicants for nomination to the Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee.
 
The ETAAC provides an organized public forum for discussion of electronic tax administration issues − such as prevention of identity theft and refund fraud − in support of the overriding goal that paperless filing should be the preferred and most convenient method of filing tax and information returns. ETAAC members work closely with the Security Summit, a joint effort of the IRS, state tax administrators and tax industry to fight electronic fraud.

The IRS is looking for qualified individuals who will serve three-year terms beginning in September 2021. Applicants should have experience in such areas as state tax administration, cybersecurity and information security, tax software development, tax preparation, payroll and tax financial product processing, systems management and improvement and implementation of customer service initiatives.

The IRS also encourages representatives from consumer groups with an interest in tax issues to apply. Applications will be accepted through March 1, 2021.

Nominations of qualified individuals may be made by letter and received from organizations or the individuals themselves. Applicants should complete the ETAAC application and include a short statement of interest and a resume. Applicants should describe and document their qualifications, past and current affiliations, and involvement with cybersecurity and electronic tax administration.

In addition, applicants must successfully complete a tax compliance check, practitioner background check and FBI criminal background check.

ETAAC is a Federal Advisory Committee established by the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998.

Questions about the ETAAC and the application process can be e-mailed to publicliaison@irs.gov.

WASHINGTON – The IRS today sent the Taxpayer First Act Report to Congress, a comprehensive set of recommendations that will reimagine the taxpayer experience, enhance employee training and restructure the organization to increase collaboration and innovation.

The IRS will continue conversations with key stakeholders and congressional committees to secure funding and begin to work toward implementation of these recommendations over the next several years.

“The way we interact with taxpayers and the tax community, the way that we train our employees and the way we structure our organizational structure are important foundations for our future success,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. “Guided by the law, we will fundamentally change the way we operate, building upon our strengths, with additional focus on areas to improve the important service we provide to our great country.”

The Taxpayer First Act, signed into law in July 2019, was designed to improve taxpayer service and ensure the IRS continues to enforce the tax law in a fair and impartial manner. The report to Congress includes three integrated sets of recommendations required by the law, including:

The IRS will begin work to implement several of the recommendations in the report as early as 2021, building upon work already underway to expand digital services, reach underserved communities and improve proactive outreach.

“Over the next 10 years, taxpayers will find expanded options for information and services and an increasingly better experience across all of their interactions with the IRS,” Rettig said.

The report to Congress is available on IRS.gov.

WASHINGTON – Starting this week, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service are sending approximately 8 million second Economic Impact Payments (EIPs) by prepaid debit card. 

These EIP Cards follow the millions of payments already made by direct deposit and the ongoing mailing of paper checks that are delivering the second round of Economic Impact Payments as rapidly as possible. 

For those who don’t receive a direct deposit, they should watch their mail for either a paper check or a prepaid debit card. To speed delivery of the payments to reach as many people as soon as possible the Treasury’s Bureau of Fiscal Service is sending payments out by prepaid debit card. 

IRS and Treasury urge eligible people who don’t receive a direct deposit to watch their mail carefully during this period. The prepaid debit card, called the Economic Impact Payment card, is sponsored by the Bureau of the Fiscal Service and is issued by Treasury’s financial agent, MetaBank®, N.A. The IRS does not determine who receives a prepaid debit card. 

Taxpayers should note that the form of payment for the second mailed EIP may be different than the first mailed EIP. Some people who received a paper check last time might receive a prepaid debit card this time, and some people who received a prepaid debit card last time may receive a paper check. 

More information about these cards is available at EIPcard.com.

EIP Cards are safe, convenient and secure. EIP Card recipients can make purchases online or in stores anywhere Visa® Debit Cards are accepted. They can get cash from domestic in-network ATMs, transfer funds to a personal bank account and obtain a replacement EIP Card if needed without incurring any fees. They can also check their card balance online, through a mobile app or by phone without incurring fees. The EIP Card provides consumer protections including certain protections against fraud, loss and other errors. 

EIP Cards are being sent in a white envelope that prominently displays the U.S. Department of the Treasury seal. The EIP Card has the Visa name on the front of the Card and the issuing bank name, MetaBank®, N.A. on the back of the card. Each mailing will include instructions on how to securely activate and use the EIP Card. 

 

 

EIP Cards are being issued to eligible recipients across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Residents of the western part of the United States are generally more likely to receive an EIP Card. 

The swift issuance of this second round of payments follows the successful delivery of more than $270 billion in CARES Act Economic Impact Payments earlier this year. To check the status of a payment, visit IRS.gov/GetMyPayment. For more information about Economic Impact Payments visit IRS.gov/EIP.

WASHINGTON – Today the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service issued final regulations regarding the credit for qualified carbon oxide captured using carbon capture equipment placed in service on or after Feb. 9, 2018.

The final regulations help businesses understand how the credit for qualified carbon oxide sequestration may benefit those claiming two carbon capture credit amounts, which are:

Neither of these new credit amounts, contained in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, is subject to a limitation on the number of metric tons of qualified carbon oxide captured. The law also expanded carbon capture to include “qualified carbon oxide,” a broader term than “qualified carbon dioxide.” Prior to the change in law, carbon capture was limited to a total of 75,000,000 metric tons of qualified carbon dioxide.

These final regulations provide rules to determine:

In addition, the final regulations allow smaller carbon capture facilities to be aggregated into one project for purposes of claiming the credit when certain factors are present, such as common ownership and location. The final regulations also provide guidance on recapture, including introducing a recapture period of three years. Under these rules, credits must be repaid if carbon oxide leaks into the atmosphere during a three-year period after the initial storage or injection.

The Treasury Department and IRS received written and electronic comments responding to the proposed regulations. A public hearing on the proposed regulations was held on Aug. 26, 2020. Copies of written comments and the list of speakers at the public hearing are available at Regulations.gov.

Revenue Ruling 2021-02 obsoletes Notice 2020-32 and Rev. Rul. 2020-27 due to the enactment of the COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020 (Act).  The Act retroactively amends the CARES Act to provide that no amount is included in the gross income of a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) participant by reason of forgiveness of a PPP loan, and no deduction is denied, no tax attribute is reduced, and no basis increase is denied, by reason of the exclusion from gross income.  Accordingly, the holdings in Notice 2020-32 and Rev. Rul. 2020-27 are no longer determinative with regard to the treatment of certain expenses paid with PPP loan proceeds.

Revenue Ruling 2021-02 will be in IRB:  2021-04, dated January 25, 2021.

WASHINGTON – The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service issued guidance today allowing deductions for the payments of eligible expenses when such payments would result (or be expected to result) in the forgiveness of a loan (covered loan) under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

Today’s guidance, Revenue Ruling 2021-02, reflects changes to law contained in the COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020, enacted as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Act), Public Law 116-260, which was signed into law on Dec. 27, 2020.

The COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020 amended the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) to say that no deduction is denied, no tax attribute is reduced, and no basis increase is denied by reason of the exclusion from gross income of the forgiveness of an eligible recipient’s covered loan. This change applies for taxable years ending after March 27, 2020.

Revenue Ruling 2021-02 obsoletes Notice 2020-32 and Revenue Ruling 2020-27. This obsoleted guidance disallowed deductions for the payment of eligible expenses when the payments resulted (or could be expected to result) in forgiveness of a covered loan.

For more information about this, the COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020, and other tax changes, visit IRS.gov.

WASHINGTON − The Internal Revenue Service today released its 2020 annual report describing the agency’s work delivering taxpayer service and compliance efforts during COVID-19 while spotlighting actions taken by IRS employees to help people during the challenging year.

“Internal Revenue Service Progress Update / Fiscal Year 2020 – Putting Taxpayers First” outlines how the agency overcame difficulties during the pandemic to deliver Economic Impact Payments in record time. At the same time, IRS employees made adjustments to complete a successful filing season despite office closures and the latest tax deadline ever.

“The COVID-19 pandemic presented some of the greatest challenges to the IRS in its history, both in terms of being able to carry out our mission and in protecting the health and safety of taxpayers and our own workforce,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig wrote in the report’s opening message and addressed in his A Closer Look column. “IRS employees responded admirably by quickly facilitating financial assistance to millions of deserving and needy Americans.”

The 44-page report also highlights accomplishments around the agency’s six strategic goals and identifies ongoing modernization efforts. This year’s edition also discusses work related to implementing the Taxpayer First Act.

“Even with all the challenges, we believe we have made great strides during Fiscal Year 2020, but we want to do more,” Rettig said.

Retting explained that each year the IRS collects more than $3 trillion in taxes and generates approximately 96% of the funding that supports the federal government’s operations.

“My experiences as Commissioner have strengthened my belief that a fully functioning IRS is critical to the success of our nation,” he said. “When citizens can perform their civic duty each year by preparing and filing their taxes and paying only what they should, they help fund critical aspects of the United States ranging from schools and roads to Social Security payments and the nation’s military.”

The document lays out numerous examples of how IRS employees helped taxpayers, including:

The report also illustrates ways IRS employees worked to maintain the tax system through a strong, visible and robust tax enforcement presence. The IRS enhanced its criminal investigation and civil enforcement efforts with an expanded use of data analytics and artificial intelligence across all lanes from selection to examination.

The new Progress Update also highlights IRS work partnering on landmark criminal investigative cases that brought down child pornography, drug and terrorist organizations.

The agency continued to step up its pursuit of those who promote and make use of abusive tax shelters, including syndicated conservation easements, where it saw successful Tax Court litigation and the completion of the first settlement initiative.

The report also explains the IRS’ Integrated Business Modernization Plan, the roadmap guiding agency efforts to offer best-in-class service people are accustomed to receiving from an online retailer or financial institution.

“As we move into the future, the name of the game for the IRS will continue to be innovation, creativity and service to the people of our country to make their world better,” Rettig said. “Given all we’ve accomplished together in 2020 and all we’re working to achieve, we believe the future looks bright for the IRS, the tax system and our nation.”

The resource document complements other documents, including the annual IRS Data Book.

Revenue Procedure 2021-10 provides procedures for an issuer of tax-advantaged bonds to request an administrative appeal to the Independent Office of Appeals of a proposed adverse determination made by the office that is responsible for examinations of tax-advantaged bonds with respect to issues within the scope of this revenue procedure.

Revenue Procedure 2021-10 will be in IRB:  2021-04, dated January 25, 2021.

Today, the IRS published the latest executive column, “A Closer Look,” which features IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig addressing the IRS Progress Update and how the IRS helped taxpayers and the nation during 2020. “COVID-19 presented some of the greatest challenges to our country and the IRS in its history, both in terms of being able to carry out our mission and in protecting the health and safety of taxpayers and our own workforce.” Continue reading here. It’s also available in Spanish here.

“A Closer Look” is a column from IRS executives that covers a variety of timely issues of interest to taxpayers and the tax community. It also provides a detailed look at key issues affecting everything from IRS operations and employees to issues involving taxpayers and tax professionals.

Check the IRS News Release here for additional information about the IRS Progress Update.

Check here for prior “A Closer Look” posts and new updates.

Please contact newsroom@irs.gov for any questions or requests for interviews.

Revenue Procedure 2021-08 makes certain modifications to Rev. Proc. 2021-5 to allow for the new electronic submission process on www.pay.gov for the Form 1024-A, Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code. It also provides a 90-day transition relief period, during which paper Form 1024-A applications will be accepted by EO Determinations.

Revenue Procedure 2021-08 will appear in IRB 2021-4, dated Jan. 25, 2021.