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HOT TOPICS |
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REGULATORY |
Committee Approves Medicaid Asset Transfers Rules
The Illinois General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules unanimously approved
rules dealing with the practice of "gifting assets" to relatives and other people,
restricting the ways Illinoisans can shelter
assets and still qualify for Medicaid
benefits to cover nursing home care.
See Draft of
Approved Rules.
Visitation Abuse Results in Suspension of Professional Licenses
House Bill 1604 (Rep. Connie Howard, D-34, Chicago; Senator John Sullivan, D-47, Rushville) allows a court to order the
suspension of the defendant's professional
licenses, amongst other things, following
visitation abuse.
Status: Passed House and is scheduled for a hearing during
the veto session in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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TAX |
Reinstatement of Net Loss Carry Over Deduction Wanted
Representatives Tom Cross, David Leitch, and Michael Unes in a joint press conference recently called on the General Assembly to reinstate and extend the Net Operating Loss Deduction. The General Assembly suspended the NOL Deduction as a part of the FY2012 Budget Stabilization Act.
Read More.
Electronic Filing of Corporate Returns Amendment Adopted
The Illinois Department of Revenue adopted an amendment to
"Electronic Returns or Other Documents" effective Sept. 29, 2011. The change requires corporations
e-filing their federal income tax returns to also
e-file their Illinois income tax returns.
Read More.
Rule Proposed for Lower E-Filing Threshold
The Department of Revenue proposed an
additional change to electronic filing
requirements, lowering the threshold at
which an income tax return preparer is
required to file Illinois returns and
documents electronically.
Read More.
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GENERAL GOVERNMENT |
Online Database of Illinois Businesses
House Bill 3795 (Rep. La Shawn Ford, D-8, Chicago) requires the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to establish a searchable online database containing information about businesses located in Illinois. Authorizes the Department to charge an initial registration fee of $100 and a renewal fee of $25 for small businesses who wish to participate.
Introduced: 7/1/2011; Status: House Rules Committee.
Pension Reform
House Bill 3832 (Rep. Tom Cross, R-84, Oswego) amends the Chicago Municipal and Chicago Laborers Articles clarifying that creditable service for leaves of absences by municipal employees without pay for full-time labor organization service may be established provided that the municipal employee does not receive credit in any pension plan established by the labor organization.
Introduced: 10/12/11; Status: House.
Prohibition of Charitable Funds Sweeps
Senate Bill 2489 (Sen. William Brady, R-44, Bloomington) amends the State Finance Act prohibiting fund sweeps or any other budgetary maneuver that would in any way transfer any amount from the charitable funds into any other fund.
Introduced: 10/12/2011; Status: Senate
Assignment Committee
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MOBILITY |
D.C. CPA Mobility
The District of
Columbia City Council passed the
Accountancy Mobility Act of 2011,
granting CPAs with valid licenses in other
states practice privileges in the District
of Columbia. All D.C. laws are subject to
congressional review, and the legislation
must be reconciled with next year's city
budget before it can become effective.
See NASBA
Mobility Index.
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OTHER NEWS |
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STATE |
Fall Veto Session Begins
The Fall Veto Session of the Illinois General Assembly is scheduled for six days. During the
Fall Veto Session, the House and Senate will act upon the Governor's vetoes of 29 bills from the Spring Session.
See Vetoed Bills.
2012 Election News and Legislative District Finder
The Illinois State Board of Elections has
posted an
interactive map featuring the
newly drawn Congressional, Legislative, and
Representative boundaries on their website.
Updated Report on Illinois Gaming Revenues Released
The Illinois General Assembly's Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability recently released
Wagering in Illinois, which provides an analysis of state gaming with a focus on riverboat gambling, lottery, and horse racing.
State
Sales Tax Rates Vary
The Tax
Foundation released a
study
ranking the 50 States and District of
Columbia on State and Local Taxes. The study
found that states have a wide range of
average sales tax rates.
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NATIONAL |
IRS PTIN Processing Open
The IRS opened its preparer tax identification number (PTIN) registration system
for the 2012 filing season renewals. Preparers are required to renew their PTINs annually.
See IRS Press Release.
See PTIN Information Page.
See ICPAS Comprehensive Tax Preparer Resource Page.
Guidance for Registered Tax Preparer Program Published
The IRS issued proposed regulations concerning user fees for its competency exam for registered tax return preparers and for the fingerprinting portion of the required
"suitability check."
Read More.
(Journal of Accountancy)
See IRS News Release.
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CONTACTS |
Marty Green, JD
Vice President,
Government Relations
Jill Loeser
Manager,
Government Relations
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Government
Relations Office
Join the Legislative Contact Program
The Legislative Contact Program is a network of CPAs who seek to represent the profession's views on issues being considered by the legislatures.
Learn More & Join.
Illinois CPAs for Political Action
The CPA PAC serves as a strong collective voice for CPAs and CPA firms and provides a foundation for successful legislative advocacy.
Learn More.
Federal Legislation Resource
The AICPA has launched
The CPA Advocate,
a new resource to help track federal
legislation and regulatory issues of
interest to the CPA profession.
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New General Assembly Members
102nd District: O’Fallon Attorney Paul Evans was appointed to
serve out the remaining term of Rep. Ron Stephens.
After 27 years in the House, Stephens unexpectedly announced his resignation after his district boundaries were redrawn.
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Key Legislative Dates
House and Senate stands adjourned at the call of the Chair
October 25: Fall Veto Session begins
November 10: Fall Veto Session
adjourns
Key Election Dates
March 20:
General Primary Election
November 6: General Election
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Legislative Statistics
During the Spring Legislative Session, a total of 7,198 bills were introduced. Of the 7,198, 640 passed both Chambers (8.89%) and were sent to the Governor.
As of this date, there are 29 bills the
General Assembly could reconsider in the
2011 Veto Session.
See ICPAS monitored
Substantive Bills
and
Tax Bills.
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