First Vice President Ana Barnabe tells us all about the benefits of an MSATP membership including free ethics CPE, Talking With TaxSpeaker, and more.

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Coming Up: On Wednesday, August 11 at 10 a.m., MSATP President Barbara Smith will join us to discuss her Payroll and 1099 Forms seminar/webinar in Ellicott City, MD on December 13.

Be sure to Like/Follow us on Facebook so you can catch MSATP TV live every week.

Agency Collection Activities to Resume August 16 | Comptroller of Maryland

Comptroller Peter Franchot announced that the Comptroller’s Office will resume collection activities beginning August 16, 2021.

Collection and licensing activities have been on hold as a result of Executive Orders issued by Governor Larry Hogan in response to COVID-19, but those activities were to resume no later than June 30, 2021.

At the Comptroller’s request, in recognition of the financial struggles of Maryland individuals and businesses resulting from the pandemic, as well as the role that his agency played in administrating and assisting in pandemic relief programs, Governor Hogan granted an additional extension through August 15, 2021.

For more information, click here.

IRS Reminds Heavy Vehicle Owners of August 31 Highway Use Tax Return Deadline | IR-2021-164

The IRS reminds those who have registered, or are required to register, large trucks and buses that it’s time to file Tax Year 2021 Form 2290, Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax Return. The deadline to file and pay is Aug. 31, 2021, for vehicles used on the road during July 2021.

The highway use tax applies to highway motor vehicles with a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more. Taxpayers unsure if they must file can use the IRS online tool, “Do I Need to Pay the Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax?” The question-and-answer format helps owners determine if they are required to pay the highway use tax. The “Understanding Form 2290 – Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax” recorded webinar is also available.

For more information, click here.

Security Summit: Tax Pros Can Help Clients Battle Identity Theft Risk Related to Unemployment | IR-2021-163

IRS Security Summit partners outlined for tax professionals how they can assist clients who were victims of unemployment compensation fraud schemes that targeted state workforce agencies in 2020 and 2021.

The IRS, state tax agencies, and the tax industry – working together as the Security Summit – reported that unemployment compensation fraud was one of the more common identity theft schemes that emerged in 2020 as criminals exploited the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic impact.

For more information, click here.

Information for FIRE Users | Issue Number: 2021-11

The IRS will be making significant improvements to the Filing Information Returns Electronically (FIRE) application process for new users. The new online Information Returns (IR) Application for Transmitter Control Code (TCC) is scheduled to deploy on September 26, 2021. The new application will be available on IRS.gov and will replace both the current Form 4419 and the Fill-in Form 4419 on the FIRE System.

New users will be required to authenticate their identities and create a new account through IRS Secure Access Account to access the new online IR Application for TCC. Details on what users need to verify their identities can be found at www.IRS.gov/SecureAccess. Existing Secure Access (SA) users will be able to use their existing SA account.

For more information, click here.