Bloomberg BNA Provides Insights into 2016 U.S and International Tax Policy
ARLINGTON, Va., Jan. 14, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Bloomberg BNA today announced the publication of the Daily Tax Report’s 2016 Outlook on tax and accounting policy. Dozens of policy experts, along with current and former members of Congress, congressional staffers and federal agency officials provided insights on the year ahead regarding potential developments in federal, state and international tax as well as financial accounting. A complimentary copy of the 52-page special report is available here.
“Our conversations with lawmakers, regulators and policy experts point to a continuation of efforts to stop corporate inversions, halt tax avoidance by multinationals around the world, and implement rules that may make large partnerships want to revisit their way of operating their businesses,” said Cheryl Saenz, News Director, Tax and Accounting at Bloomberg BNA. “While major tax policy decisions are likely to take a back seat to politics during an election year, there are expectations that proposals from candidates in both parties could help shape an international tax overhaul in 2017.”
Highlights of the 2016 Outlook include:
Federal Tax: In Congress, a major overhaul of the U.S. tax code remains unlikely, although the contours for an international tax revamp may begin to appear. The outlook for legislation to halt corporate inversions is dim in this election year, but the Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department are expected to continue targeting transactions they see as abusive. This also could be a year for deal-making among lawmakers related to state taxation of online businesses and Internet access. To date, none of the bills Congress is considering has become law. And the IRS may be looking at a delay, rather than the end, of its controversial project on political spending by tax-exempt advocacy groups following a government funding bill that will keep the agency from moving forward through September.
State Tax: Many state revenue officials will be looking to collect sales tax from out-of-state retailers such as Amazon with the help of the Multistate Tax Commission which is developing legislation on the issue. State regulators are also moving to regulate daily fantasy sports by treating — and taxing —winnings as income.
International Tax: The global push to combat tax avoidance via the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) initiative is expected to generate a flood of taxpayer information to government agencies, though their ability to process that data and keep it secure remains a serious concern for individuals and companies around the world. The OECD’s guidelines limiting tax avoidance by multinational companies, which were issued last year, are starting to be implemented around the globe. At least a dozen countries — including the U.S., Mexico, Australia, and the U.K. — have proposed or finalized rules to require country-by-country reporting with many more expressing their intent to follow the OECD recommendation.
Financial Accounting: This year’s priorities for the Financial Accounting Standards Board, laid out in an interview with Chairman Russell Golden, include issuing and implementing rules on leases, credit losses and classification and measurement of financial instruments. Some analyses say the leasing changes will add billions of dollars to balance sheets of many companies, including Walgreens and United Airlines.
About Bloomberg BNA
Bloomberg BNA, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bloomberg, is a leading source of legal, regulatory, and business information for professionals. Its network of more than 2,500 reporters, correspondents, and leading practitioners delivers expert analysis, news, practice tools, and guidance — the information that matters most to professionals. Bloomberg BNA’s authoritative coverage spans a full range of legal practice areas, including tax & accounting, labor & employment, intellectual property, banking & securities, employee benefits, health care, privacy & data security, human resources, and environment, health & safety.
