TECHNOLOGY

What to Bookmark

Website of the Month: Tax Talk Today

By Susan B. Anders

Tax Talk Today (www.taxtalktoday.tv) has added substantial new resources since this column reviewed it in February 2002, making the website worth a second look. The main focus of Tax Talk Today is monthly webcasts featuring tax professionals and IRS representatives. Each webcast also includes support material.

Webcasts are available in four formats: a live, interactive program; an archived digital format; VHS tape; and audio CD. Live and archived webcasts and support materials are free; if CPE credit is desired, a charge of $25 per credit hour applies. VHS tapes are $24.95 and audio CDs are $14.95, with an additional $15 charge per CPE credit hour. Live webcasts are accepted for CPE credit by all 50 states, as well as the American Payroll Association and the IRS for Enrolled Agents. Archived programs and VHS tapes are accepted by all states except Florida and Tennessee.

The website is easy to navigate. The menu bar at the top of the homepage also appears on the main pages, in addition to a vertical menu bar with specific links to the program calendar, archives, resource materials, and CPE credits. Information about software requirements, VHS tapes, group rates, and group viewings is available under “Viewing Options.”

Webcasts

Dates and program descriptions can be accessed via “Program Topics & Calendar.” “Upcoming Programs” and “Archived Programs” provide a list of programs with hyperlinks to additional information. Archived programs go back to the website’s inception in 2001.

Registration is required to view both live and archived webcasts. Both current and archived webcast pages provide links to register for CPE credit. The links to view the online programs, using RealPlayer or Windows Media Player, worked quickly and cleanly.

Program Support Material

Hard-copy resources are available for upcoming live webcasts, as well as for archived programs less than a year old. Program support materials include published articles in pdf and HTML, IRS forms and publications in pdf, Congressional and Administrative reports in pdf, links to websites, and other documents in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and pdf. Documents and links connect easily, and this resource has been substantially improved since the February 2002 review. Practitioners and educators might be interested in the program support materials as stand-alone documents and may want to review these periodically.

Other Resources

In 2003, Tax Talk Today added a poll conducted during each live webcast. Results of prior opinion polls can be accessed via the “Viewer Opinion Poll” button, as well as the “News” button. Examples of the opinion poll questions include: “At what point do your clients typically contact you about a delinquent tax account?” and “Do you think people who prepare tax returns and represent taxpayers should be licensed? Who should license them?”

“Key Links” include the IRS, the AICPA and other professional organizations, and several state CPA societies. “Tax Tips” provides short reminders, new information, and links to other resources, courtesy of the IRS. “Tax Teasers” offers a bit of fun and a chance to win a free mug. The monthly questions are posted on the Tax Teaser webpage and answered on the next month’s webcast. The December 2003 question was, “What was the first year for the Short Form 1040-A?”

Tax Talk Today indicates that webcast viewers are 32% CPAs and 16% enrolled agents, with the remaining 52% IRS employees, attorneys, tax preparers, payroll professionals, and electronic returns officers. Noticeably absent from this group are students. Many of the webcasts and program support materials are suitable for college students, and educators might want to consider using them for discussion or out-of-class activities.