If the code sections do not provide an answer, where would you turn for additional resources?
When tax professionals need to perform tax research, sometimes they may come across a vague
answer that does not fit all their client’s facts. This sometimes happen when the Internal Revenue
Code sections do not provide an answer. When this happens, the tax professional will need to
thoroughly read the federal tax regulations regarding the code. This picks up where the Internal
Revenue Code (IRC) leaves off by providing the official interpretation of the IRC by the U.S.
Department of the Treasury. Another thing that the tax professional will do is search for past court
rulings that had similar facts.
How often should we reference the committee reports to see what was discussed on the
congressional floor?
The congressional committee reports are reports that are the most important source of legislative
history. Reports are issued for almost every bill that becomes a law, and there is usually a report
from each of the House and Senate committees that considered the legislation. The tax
professional should reference the committee reports to see what was discussed on the
congressional floor to gain clarity in law at any time or whenever there is any uncertainty not being
able to match their client's issues with the prevailing laws.
Give an example of when you would use additional resources to find the answer for a client's
unique situation.
The tax professional will need to use additional resources to find the answer for a client's unique
situation when the law itself is unclear. Sometimes codes are interpreted differently by different
people and for different circumstances that could be similar. Any question that can be debatable
will require the tax professional to check for additional sources for a correct conclusion to suit the
client specific situation.
Tax professionals encounter diverse clients with unique tax situations throughout their careers.
When they face ambiguous provisions, their initial reference point is the Internal Revenue Code.
However, comprehending the code can be challenging due to its intricate language. To address
clients' concerns effectively, tax professionals must delve into supplementary resources. These
include treasury regulations, revenue rulings, revenue procedures, and IRS bulletins. In-depth
research can also involve consulting committee reports, which prove invaluable in understanding
legislative intent. By tapping into these resources, tax professionals can navigate complex tax
scenarios and offer well-informed advice to their clients. Almost every bill that is enacted into law is
accompanied by a committee report. These reports serve to restate the bill, outline its intended
purposes, and provide the rationale behind the committee's recommendations concerning the bill.
Within committee reports, one can find the comprehensive legislative history of the bill, its
purposes, and the committee's perception of the necessity for the new legislation. Moreover, each
section of the bill is meticulously broken down and analysed. This level of detail proves particularly
valuable when a tax professional's research centres on a specific section of the bill. You can access
committee reports through various platforms, including ProQuest Congressional, Govinfo.gov,
Congress.gov, and U.S. Serial Set in Print. When faced with a complex tax scenario that cannot be
resolved solely by referring to the tax code, turning to committee reports becomes invaluable,
especially after the enactment of new tax laws. These reports offer crucial insights and context that
can aid tax professionals in understanding the legislative intent and interpreting the implications of
the new tax provisions for their clients.
