Former IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman Gives Prepared Remarks Before the AICPA, Washington, DC

On November 7, 2012, Douglas H. Shulman, Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service from March 24, 2008 through this past Sunday, November 11, 2012, in prepared remarks before the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in Washington, DC, closed out his long tenure as IRS Commissioner with the following statement covering subjects including tax evasion, IRS efficiency, taxpayer improvements, corporate taxes, IRS technology, and more:

Side note:  In an interview with C-SPAN in January 2010, Commissioner Shulman stated, "I use a preparer... I've used one for years. I find it convenient. I find the tax code complex, so I use a preparer.”

IR-2012-89, Nov. 7, 2012

WASHINGTON — Today is the day after the elections and of course, political Washington is all abuzz…bloggers are blogging…commentators are commenting… folks on Twitter are tweeting… the pundits are dissecting last night’s results.

However, I am not here to wade into those political waters. Rather, I come before you today to talk about something entirely different.

In a few days time – November 11th to be precise – my term as the 47th Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service officially comes to a close. And looking back, I can say it has been a true honor and one that I wouldn’t trade for anything.

I suppose it’s quite natural when one has completed a significant task like running the IRS for almost five years to pause ... to reflect on the journey taken … to mark the milestones met … and to ponder the lessons learned.

Standing before you today…standing on the shoulders of those who came before me…building on their work and achievements…it is gratifying to share with you the meaningful…and I believe, lasting progress that has been made to our nation’s tax system.

IRS Releases 2011 Tax Stats - Estate Tax and Gift Tax Statistics

The IRS Statistics of Income Program (SOI) has posted "SOI Tax Stats - Estate Tax Statistics" and "Gift Tax Statistics," with data from 2011.  The update includes three estate tax statistics spreadsheets showing data from filing year 2011 for estate tax returns (Form 706).  One spreadsheet shows income, deduction, and tax computation data, classified by taxability of estate tax return and size of estate.  A second spreadsheet shows selected estate tax computation data classified by State of residence.  A third spreadsheet shows data regarding charitable bequests classified by state of residence.  Below is an excerpt from the first spreadsheet showing estate tax revenue classified by taxability of estate tax return and size of estate.

Table 1. Estate Tax Returns Filed in 2011, by Tax Status and Size of Gross Estate [Money amounts are in thousands of dollars.] Tax status and size of gross estate	Gross estate for tax purposes
	Number	Money Amount   (in thousands)
All Returns	4,588	48,009,811
Under $3.5 million	601	1,427,959
$3.5 million < $5.0 million	990	4,129,975
$5.0 million < $10.0 million	2,110	13,874,974
$10.0 million < $20.0 million	563	7,531,234
$20.0 million or more	324	21,045,670
All Taxable Returns	1,480	19,832,684
Under $3.5 million	174	428,126
$3.5 million < $5.0 million	278	1,181,171
$5.0 million < $10.0 million	654	4,443,130
$10.0 million < $20.0 million	218	2,967,290
$20.0 million or more	156	10,812,968
All Nontaxable Returns	3,108	28,177,127
Under $3.5 million	427	999,833
$3.5 million < $5.0 million	712	2,948,804
$5.0 million < $10.0 million	1,456	9,431,844
$10.0 million < $20.0 million	345	4,563,945
$20.0 million or more	168	10,232,702

...

Permanent Change on the Way for the Estate Tax?

Jeffrey A. Cooper of Quinnipiac University School of Law makes the case in his recently published paper, Time for Permanent Estate Tax Reform:

 

In the next four years, preferably in the next four months, Congress and the President must work together to implement their own vision for the estate tax, rather than allowing mere inertia to effectuate choices made by their predecessors. Put simply, the Congress of 2013 must enact permanent estate tax reform.

Unfortunately, that task will not be so simple. In many ways, the challenge facing estate tax reform is but one narrow slice of a far larger problem confronting modern tax policy. In much of the recent past, Congressional action on tax legislation has been dictated by short-term considerations rather than long-term policy goals. Through skillful legislative drafting and genuine compromise, the President and the Congress of 2013 can reverse this trend. I offer this essay as a modest contribution to that effort.

Waldon: The Fiscal Cliff: Recession Looms Without Compromise, Leaders in Arkansas Fear

George Waldon of Arkansas Business warns of upcoming tax crisis in his article, The Fiscal Cliff: Recession Looms Without Compromise, Leaders in Arkansas Fear:

If Congress fails to address the so-called fiscal cliff, the United States faces another recession, leaving Arkansas political and business leaders to hope the critical hour of decision will force the appearance of bipartisanship.

The fiscal cliff remains an icon of the hour: a metaphorical escarpment built on a mountain of national debt that stands at $16 trillion and growing.

Threatening to send the economy tumbling over the edge in 2013 is a convergence of possible tax increases and automatic spending cuts intended to reduce the federal government's budget deficit.