Liaison Meetings

On November 15 and 16, 2016, members of TEI’s Canadian Income Tax Committee met with members of the Canada Revenue Agency and Department of Finance Canada to discuss various tax administrative and enforcement issues.  CRA and Finance have provided TEI with responses to the questions posed.

Download CRA Responses
Download Department of Finance Responses

On October 11-12, 2016, TEI Tax Counsel Ben Shreck participated in the OECD’s Public Consultations regarding revised OECD guidance on the use of the profit split method for transfer pricing purposes and the attribution of profits to permanent establishments under the OECD’s BEPS Project. TEI’s planned intervention at the Consultation addressed profit split factors. It is expected that the OECD will issue final guidance on these two topics by the end of 2016.

On September 30, 2016, the European Commission reappointed TEI as a member of the VAT Expert Group for a three-year term. The VAT Expert Group was established in 2012 for the purpose of “advis[ing] the Commission on the preparation of legislative acts and other policy initiatives in the field of VAT” and “provid[ing] insight concerning the practical implementation of legislative acts and other EU policy initiatives in the field of VAT.” The VAT Expert Group’s next meeting will take place on October 17, 2016 in Brussels.

On August 9, 2016, a delegation from TEI's Philadelphia Chapter met with representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. The delegation addressed taxpayer concerns arising from the Department's new corporation tax systems and procedures, such as gaps between assessments of tax, interest, and penalties; failure to notify taxpayers when an amended return or RAR adjustment has been accepted or rejected; and difficulties determining the basis for assessments.

On June 14, 2016, members from Regions VI and VII enjoyed a wide-ranging and insightful discussion with local and national LB&I executives at the University of Illinois Business Center in Chicago, Illinois. Special congratulations and thanks go out to Region VI leadership, notably RVP Janet Kreilein, who led the planning and organization of this year’s event. LB&I’s recent restructuring and the reengineering of its examination process fostered a lively conversation benefitting both TEI members and LB&I officials.

On May 16, 2016, TEI's Canadian Commodity Tax Committee held a liaison meeting with the British Columbia Ministry of Finance. Jordan Goss, Executive Director of the Consumer Tax Programs Branch; Ann Foy, Strategic Advisor of the Tax Policy Branch; Satish Perhar, Executive Director of the Vancouver District Office; and Bob Scott, Policy and Legislative Analyst of Program Services, attended on behalf of the Ministry.

On May 12, 2016, TEI's State and Local Tax Committee had the opportunity to discuss two of TEI's state and local tax policy statements at the Multistate Tax Commission's Executive Committee meeting. TEI discussed the need to standardize the timing, triggers, and format for reporting federal revenue changes to state governments and best practices for audit procedures, as outlined in TEI's "Reporting Federal Income Tax Changes" and "Audit Procedures" policy statements. Committee member Richard O'Connor and TEI Tax Counsel, Pilar Mata, attended the meeting.

On April 28, 2016, TEI's State and Local Tax Committee held a liaison meeting with Connie Beard, the Director of the Illinois Department of Revenue. TEI discussed the need to standardize the timing, triggers, and format for reporting federal revenue changes to state governments, as outlined in the State and Local Tax Committee's policy statement on "Reporting Federal Income Tax Changes." Committee member Cathleen Stevens and TEI Tax Counsel, Pilar Mata, attended the meeting.

On November 20, 2015, a delegation from TEI's State and Local Tax Committee had a liaison meeting with the Federation of Tax Administrators' Board of Trustees, which is comprised of 20 commissioners of revenue for various states. TEI discussed the need to standardize the timing, triggers, and format for reporting federal revenue changes to state governments, as well as best practices for audit procedures.

On November 17-18, 2015, representatives from Tax Executives Institute, led by 2015-2016 Vice President for Canadian Affairs Lynn Moen, met with officials from Canada Revenue Agency and the Canadian Department of Finance to discuss tax policy and administrative matters.

The agendas for the meetings on income tax matters were prepared by the Institute's Canadian Income Tax Committee, whose 2015-2016 chair is Grant L. Lee of HSBC Bank Canada. John Schoenecker of the Institute's legal staff coordinated the preparation of its agendas.