REIMAGINING TAX ADMINISTRATION:

State Tax Practices & Taxpayer Rights

— Four Online Workshops from 25 October 2022 through 22 November 2022 —

Access the agenda & materials below

The Center for Taxpayer Rights is pleased to convene the second installment of its online workshop series, Reimagining Tax Administration. This series follows the Center’s first workshop sessions, Reimagining Tax Administration: Social Programs Through the Tax Code, which explored the role of the IRS in administering social benefit programs. The second series, State Tax Practices and Taxpayer Rights, will examine the 52 unique state, district, and territory tax systems and the ways in which state tax practices protect, strengthen, undermine, and impair taxpayer rights. 

Although the federal tax system is commonly the subject of news headlines and debate, there are 52 additional tax systems that affect Americans, which are often overlooked despite the significant impact they have on the economic welfare of taxpayers. There are several reasons why exploring state tax administration is important.  First, balanced budget requirements have the potential to take precedence over taxpayer rights; second, fewer opportunities for pro bono representation leave low income taxpayers vulnerable in state tax disputes; and third, a lack of opportunities for state-level advocacy increase the risk that taxpayer rights protections are ignored or undermined. 

This series of workshops is based on the initial results of a nationwide survey conducted by the Center designed to collect information on the practices of each state tax administration. Working with volunteer tax professionals, the survey includes over 200 questions about each state’s income (where applicable), sales (where applicable), and property tax practices.  As the Center receives results of the survey from its volunteers, we identify best practices and areas that need improvement. The survey results will provide state tax agencies, tax professionals and other stakeholders the necessary elements and practices to incorporate taxpayer rights protections into state tax administration. 

The Reimagining Tax Administration workshop series is made possible by the generous support of the Rockefeller Foundation.

Workshop 1: State Tax Return Filing Issues (10.25.22)

Moderator: Nina E. Olson, Center for Taxpayer Rights, Washington DC

Panelists:   

Anna V. Gooch, American Bar Association Christine Brunswick Public Service Fellow, Center for Taxpayer Rights, Washington, DC     — Slides

Dana Goldstein, Attorney, Community Legal Aid Services, Akron, OH    — Slides

Elissa Borges, Assistant General Counsel, Office of Tax & Revenue, Washington, DC    — Slides

Elena Fowlkes, Assistant Director of Operations, Office of Tax & Revenue, Washington DC

Gabriel Zucker, Associate Policy Director – Tax Benefits, Code for America, New York, NY    — Slides

Workshop 2: Audits, Administrative Appeals & Adjudication (11.o8.22)

Moderator: Professor Leslie Book, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, Villanova PA

Overview:  Anna Gooch, ABA Section of Taxation Public Service Fellow, Center for Taxpayer Rights, Washington, DC    — Slides

Panelists:

Craig Bell, Partner, McGuireWoods LLP, Richmond, VA  — Virginia Procedure —    — Handling a Tax Audit —    — Litigating Real Estate Assessments —    — Local Tax Assessments & Appeals

Larry Hess, CPA, Albuquerque, NM    — Outline —     — Slides

Christopher Meislahn, Taxpayer Rights Advocate, New York State Department of Taxation, Albany, NY  — Pub 130-F—      — Pub 130-D —    — Pub 131

Professor Michael Semes, Professor of Practice, Villanova University Law School, Villanova, PA  — Slides

Presiding Judge Mala Sundar,  New Jersey Tax Court, Trenton, NJ    — Outline —    — Slides

Workshop 3 - Panel 1: Enforced Collection of Tax (11.15.22)

Moderator: Professor Sarah Lora, Associate Clinical Professor & LITC Director

Panelists: 

Jaye Calhoun, Partner, Kean Miller, New Orleans, LA   — Slides

Nicholas Berger, Director, Frost Law, Baltimore, MD   — Slides

Audrey Patten, Lecturer on Law, Harvard University Law School, Cambridge, MA    — Slides

Workshop 3 - Panel 2: Collection Alternatives (11.15.22)

Moderator: John Warren, Enrolled Agent, Medford Tax Experts, Medford, MA

Panelists:

Professor Caleb Smith, Associate Clinical Professor, University of Minnesota Law School,
Minneapolis, MN    — Slides

Krystal Ibarra Premachandra, Director, Bet Tzedek Legal Services, Los Angeles, CA

Karen Ward, Director, Indiana Legal Services LITC, Bloomington, IN     — Slides —     — Indiana Public Hearing Report —    — IN Offer in Compromise —    —  Innocent Spouse Form IN-40PA

Workshop 4 - Panel 1: LITC Representation in State Tax Matters (11.22.22)

Moderator:  David Sams, Executive Director, The Community Tax Law Project, Richmond, VA

Panelists:  

Professor Keith Fogg, Clinical Professor of Law Emeritus, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, MA    —  Proposal —     — Legislation — 

Professor Janice Shih, Professor of the Practice, University of Baltimore School of Law,
Baltimore, MD    — Legislation

Anna Tavis, Staff Attorney, Brooklyn Legal Services, New York. NY  

Workshop 4 - Panel 2: State Taxpayer Advocates & Taxpayer Bill of Rights (11.22.22)

Moderator:  Nina E. Olson, Executive Director, Center for Taxpayer Rights, Washington, DC

Panelists:

Codi Trudell, Taxpayer Advocate, Oregon Department of Revenue, Salem, OR    — Legislation —    —  Slides

Gary Gray, Taxpayers’ Rights Advocate, Florida Department of Revenue Tallahassee, FL   — Legislation —    — Slides

Brenda Voet, Taxpayer Rights Advocate, California Franchise Tax Board Sacramento, CA    — Legislation —    — Slides

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