JUNE 4 - 7, 2000, BOSTON
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JUNE 4 - 7, 2000, BOSTON |
The Federation of Tax Administrators Board of Trustees, FTA President John Chavez, and the Massachusetts Department of Revenue extend a cordial invitation for you to attend the Sixty-eighth Annual Meeting of the Federation of Tax Administrators at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel, June 4-7, 2000, in Boston, Massachusetts.
Conference Schedule
The meeting begins with registration on Sunday, June 4 and
concludes at noon on Wednesday, June 7. General sessions will be held
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings. In-depth sessions organized
around legal/policy developments; audit and compliance; management
initiatives; technology developments; IRS developments; and other
special interest areas are scheduled for Monday and Tuesday
afternoons. The Annual Business Meeting will take place on Wednesday
morning. The opening reception will be held Sunday evening. Tuesday
evening will feature a banquet at the John F. Kennedy Presidential
Library. Monday evening is left free for participants to soak in the
historical flavor of Boston.
Electronic Commerce: Glimpse of the Future
The opening general session will focus on examining expected
future developments in electronic commerce as a means of
understanding the implications of changing business operations for
tax administration as well as the opportunities to apply electronic
commerce to tax administration. Plans call for discussions of
emerging technologies and applications involving both
business-to-business and business-to-consumer transactions as well as
an update on the status of debate and discussions regarding the
application of sales and use taxes to electronic commerce. IRS Chief,
Office of Communications and Liaison, David R. Williams, will also
address the delegates on developments at the Service.
Electronic Government and Other Issues in Tax
Administration
The Tuesday general session will discuss developments in
"electronic government" and "electronic tax administration" in the
U.S. and elsewhere. Dr. David Pollard, Commissioner of State Revenue
for Victoria, Australia, has been invited to discuss electronic
government and tax administration issues in that country. The session
will also examine other issues facing tax administrators such as
cooperation with business in tax administration and management
challenges, as well as examining certain exemplary initiatives being
pursued by tax administration agencies.
Closing Session
The Wednesday program will begin with the Annual Business Meeting
of the Federation which will include the discussion and adoption of
policy resolutions, election of officers, and discussion of other new
business. The meeting will then break into two sessions.
There will be a Commissioner’s Session for the senior tax administrator from each state. The agenda will focus on state initiatives in sales tax simplification, electronic and Internet-based filing developments, performance measures work, and the TaxExchange electronic communications network.
There will also be a general session for other conference participants. The agenda will be directed at providing a briefing for state tax administration personnel and others on topics in tax policy and administration. The agenda will include federal tax matters, IRS developments, and other tax agency initiatives.
President’s Awards Luncheon
A special FTA President’s Awards luncheon will be held
Monday for all participants. As well, the
FTA awards will be presented for outstanding initiatives by state
tax agencies in training for tax agency employees and for taxpayer
and customer service initiatives. The recipient of the annual FTA
Leadership and Service Award will also be honored.
The conference will also feature concurrent sessions on legal and tax policy developments, management initiatives, customer and taxpayer service, IRS developments, sales tax simplification, and technology initiatives.
Legal/Policy. Breakout sessions will be held on Monday and Tuesday. Planned topics include recent noteworthy developments in income and sales and use taxes, the (anticipated) new bankruptcy law, recent Supreme Court decisions involving the Eleventh Amendment, and an examination of electronic commerce issues such as nexus considerations and electronic signatures. Time will also be set aside at the end of the Tuesday breakout for a "government only" discussion of tobacco tax matters, including the tobacco settlement and gray market issues.
Management. Expected subjects include the FTA training award winner, "corporate universities" for tax agencies, employee evaluation based on accountability, centralization of economic development responsibilities, and basic management concepts for a tax agency.
Customer and Taxpayer Service. Expected subjects include the FTA taxpayer service award winner, customer satisfaction myths and realities, creation of a business process for taxpayer education, and FedState advanced pricing agreements.
IRS Developments. A number of developments involving the Internal Revenue Service will also be addressed. These include: an update on IRS modernization efforts, mediation in appeals, "prefiling" compliance tools, the joint 1099 program expansion, complexity and burden models.
Sales Tax Simplification. One breakout session will focus exclusively on a wide range of efforts underway to simplify and streamline administration of states' and local sales and use taxes. The session will examine various regional simplification projects and simplification efforts in the context of the electronic commerce debate as well as other initiatives.
Technology. One afternoon will focus on the rapidly expanding use of Internet technologies for filing state taxes electronically and for other interactions with taxpayers, with a focus on communications channels, security measures, customer service initiatives, and other electronic tax administration initiatives. A second afternoon session is expected to include presentations on web page presentation and design, data warehouses, growth of 2-D bar-coding and an introduction to a draft electronic commerce "best practices" guide.
Continuing Education Credits
Participants seeking continuing education credits will be asked
to complete attendance forms and evaluations on site.
Local Arrangements
Conference social events include an opening reception Sunday
evening, while Tuesday evening will feature a banquet at the John F.
Kennedy Library. Enjoy a clambake overlooking the ocean and view
historical documents in the library. Golfers may wish to take
advantage of the Sunday morning golf tournament being held at the
Putterham
Meadows Golf Club.
In addition to Sunday’s opening reception and Tuesday’s banquet, other events are planned for registered guests of delegates. On Monday, there is a tour of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. The museum’s three floors of galleries open onto a spectacular courtyard filled with flowering plants. On Tuesday, guests will delight in a Duck Tour of Boston, aboard a renovated World War II amphibious landing vehicle. The Duck splashes right into the Charles River for a breathtaking waterside view of Boston. Click here for the Guest Agenda
Information on the weather in June and sightseeing opportunities in Boston may be found at the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau Web site at www.bostonusa.com.
Conference Registration
Registration fees are:
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$270 |
for government delegates |
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$370 |
for nongovernment delegates |
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$145 |
for guests |
To register, complete the enclosed form (or register online) , including golf and guest activity if applicable, with payment for all activities made payable to 2000 FTA Conference, and send to:
Conference registration deadline is May 1, 2000. After that date, please add $50 late fee. For questions on registration, contact Jen DeSimone by e-mail at desimonej@dor.state.ma.us.
Hotel Reservations
Conference headquarters is the Boston
Park Plaza hotel, located at 64 Arlington St., Boston, MA 02116.
Hotel rates for the conference are, single occupancy $169 and double
occupancy $189. Deadline for making hotel reservations at FTA’s
special rates is May 6, 2000. Reservations made after
that date are subject to space and rate availability. Please mail the
enclosed reservation form directly to the hotel or call the Boston
Park Plaza at (800) 225-2008 if you wish to register by phone,
stating that the reservation is for the Federation of Tax
Administrators Annual Meeting.
Return to FTA Meetings Page
Sunday, June 4
1:00 p.m. -- 7:00 p.m. Registration
6:00 p.m. Opening Reception
Monday, June 5
7:30 a.m. -- 5:00 p.m. Registration
8:30 a.m. -- 12:00 Noon General Session
12:00 Noon - 1:45 p.m. FTA President’s Awards Luncheon
1:45 p.m. -- 5:00 p.m. Concurrent Breakout Sessions
Tuesday, June 6
8:30 a.m. -- 12:00 Noon General Session
12:00 Noon --- 1:30 p.m. Lunch on your own
1:30 p.m. -- 5:00 p.m. Concurrent Breakout Sessions
6:00 p.m. Reception and Dinner with Entertainment at the JFK Library
Wednesday, June 7
8:30 a.m. -- 12:00 Noon Annual Business Meeting
General Session
Commissioners’ Meeting
A more detailed conference program will be posted in late April on our Web site at http://www.taxadmin.org