Abstract
The U.S. federal income tax code is incredibly complex. Taxpayers do their best to make sense of ambiguous rules in order to figure out their fair share, but what happens when the law is unclear and the taxpayer has to decide whether or not to report a tax liability to the Internal Revenue Service? For corporations, the answer to this question is getting more and more complicated. Because of an accounting rule that took effect in 2006 and a new IRS policy that will affect large companies starting this year, many corporations will soon be required to tell the IRS about every dollar that could potentially be taxable based on different interpretations of the rules, even if the company’s managers stand by their own interpretation and are willing to take the case to court. The IRS says the new policy will allow for more efficient auditing, businesses say the government is playing unfairly. Who is right, and how does all of this affect John Q. Taxpayer? This project takes a critical look at the implications of the policies from accounting and policy perspectives.
Recommended Citation
Muller, Kevin
(2012)
"Government-Taxpayer Tensions in the Wake of FIN 48 and Schedule UTP,"
Proceedings of GREAT Day: Vol. 2011, Article 9.
Available at:
https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/proceedings-of-great-day/vol2011/iss1/9