Weekly Report from Washington, D.C. (January 7-11)

In a quiet week at the White House and Congress, President Obama nominated Jack Lew to be Treasury Secretary and Senate Republicans named new members of the Senate Finance Committee. The IRS, meanwhile, released the official 2013 tax rate tables, along with some inflation-adjusted items, and the corporate bond weighted average interest rate and announced that the 2013 filing season would begin for some taxpayers on January 30.

White House

President Obama announced on January 10 that he has nominated his Chief of Staff and former Budget Director Jack Lew to be Treasury Secretary, to succeed Timothy Geithner who has held the position for the past four years.

Congress

Senate Republican leadership named Sens. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., to serve on the Senate Finance Committee in the 113th Congress. The other Republican members of the Finance Committee for the 113th Congress are: Charles E. Grassley, Iowa, Mike Crapo, Idaho, Pat Roberts, Kan., Mike Enzi, Wyo., John Cornyn, Tex., John Thune, S.D., and Richard Burr, N.C.

IRS

Official 2013 Tax Rate Tables. The IRS has released several inflation adjusted items for 2013, including the 2013 tax rate tables, personal exemption amount and phaseout ranges, standard deduction, and more. The guidance lists several changes made by the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, such as the expiration of the tax cut for certain high-income taxpayers who now fall within the 39.6-percent tax bracket, increased AMT exclusions, and the income threshold at which the limitation on itemized deductions kicks in.

Taxpayer Advocate Report to Congress. National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson has released her annual report to Congress, identifying the need for tax reform as the overriding priority in tax administration. She also expressed concern that the IRS is not adequately funded to serve taxpayers and collect tax, and she identified ways in which chronic underfunding hampers taxpayer service, impairs taxpayer rights and increases taxpayer burden.

Filing Season. The IRS plans January 30 as the opening day for the 2013 tax return filing season, meaning that it will begin accepting tax returns on that date. The vast majority of tax filers, more than 120 million households, should be able to start filing tax returns on January 30.

Corporate Bond/Interest Rate. For pension plan years beginning in January 2013, the IRS has released the corporate bond weighted average interest rate, the permissible range of interest rates used to calculate current plan liability and to determine the required contribution under Code Sec. 412(l) for plan years through 2013, and the current corporate bond yield curve and related segment rates for the purpose of establishing a plan's funding target under.

User Fee Schedule Correction. The IRS corrected a typographical error in the Schedule of User Fees found in Appendix A,  The procedure incorrectly lists the reduced user fee for a letter ruling, method or period change or closing agreement request involving a personal or business tax issue from a person with gross income of less than $250,000 as $1,000. The user fee is $2,000.