Washington Watch: Filing Season Pressures and Legislative Gridlock

Washington Watch: Filing Season Pressures and Legislative Gridlock

January 26, 2026 · 59 min · Episode 68

About this episode

Roger and Annie discuss the challenges facing tax professionals as filing season begins amidst legislative gridlock and IRS staffing issues.

Roger and Annie welcome back Thad Inge to decode what's happening in Washington DC as filing season kicks off. With potential government shutdowns, billion-dollar IRS budget cuts, and 25% of IRS staff gone through early retirements, uncertainty looms over tax professionals trying to implement retroactive provisions for overtime and tips. The conversation shifts to the renewed push for minimum tax preparer standards and why getting bipartisan legislation passed might be harder than ever in an election year. Sponsors Padgett - Contact Padgett or Email Jeff Phillips Get NASBA Approved CPE or IRS Approved CE Launch the course on EarmarkCPE to get free CPE/CE for listening to this episode. Connect with Thad Inge LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thad-inge-9342155 Website: https://www.vsadc.com/ Chapters (00:00) - Introduction and Greetings (03:15) - Congressional Updates and Government Shutdown Concerns (09:19) - IRS Staffing and Service Levels (11:31) - Tax Legislation and Employer Guidance (16:08) - State Tax Variations and Software Updates (19:35) - IRS Budget Cuts and Inflation Reduction Act Funds (25:25) - Student Loan Offsets and Political Implications (28:31) - Potential…

People in this episode

Hosts: Roger Harris, Annie Schwab

Guest: Thad Inge

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Padgett

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: IRS, EarmarkCPE

Places: Washington DC

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