Today Deloitte Tax LLP (“Deloitte”) announced an agreement with Tax Analysts, the publisher of the Tax Notes product portfolio, to make the nonprofit’s federal tax law library available to the general public. Placing Tax Notes’ entire federal tax law library in front of a paywall is a win for tax policy transparency, as it grants the public easy access to timely information and updates on a platform that is intuitive and reliable.
“It has become increasingly challenging for many in the tax profession to find content when they are looking for it. This has been true despite living in an era where vast pools of information are available and should be at our fingertips. Until now, the ability to access current federal tax law required a time-consuming approach of cobbling together information from a variety of sources,” said Chuck Kosal, chief transformation officer, Deloitte Tax LLP.
“By teaming with Tax Analysts on this effort, not only are we helping our clients easily access relevant data on federal tax policies impacting their businesses, but we’re making an impact on the public at large. This is in keeping with Deloitte’s mission to make an impact that matters in the communities where we live and work — in this case, making business-critical federal tax information readily available to those who need it.”
“For the last 50 years, Tax Analysts has continuously fought to ensure the disclosure of the IRS’s working law. In 1972, the organization obtained public access to private letter rulings and technical advice memoranda, and through the years, engaged in numerous efforts to continue to gain access to guidance documents. It is fitting that Tax Analysts, with Deloitte’s support, would be pioneering a project to make that working law publicly available to all. I am thrilled to have engaged with Deloitte on this effort,” said Cara Griffith, president and CEO of Tax Analysts.
“Fundamentally, we believe that every U.S. taxpayer should have access to current tax law,” added Banks Edwards, managing partner, Washington National Tax, Deloitte Tax LLP. “We are thrilled that our effort with Tax Analysts not only supports their larger effort to bring transparency to tax policy issues, but it also helps alleviate a real pain point for those who have struggled to easily access the most recent tax laws and the Treasury Department’s interpretation of them. Deloitte is proud to sponsor Tax Analysts’ efforts to offer a real, tangible solution.”
Tax Notes’ federal tax law library is part of an extensive suite of daily tax news, analysis, research and reference tools. As part of Deloitte Tax’s sponsorship, visitors to the site can now access details about the federal code, regulations, and other primary source documents, including the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; proposed, final and temporary regulations; rules for lawyers, accountants and others practicing before the IRS; Treasury decisions, IRS guidance, and private rulings; court and legislative documents; public comments on regulations; rate tables; and other correspondence, press releases and miscellaneous tax documents.