BULLETIN

B-16/00
March 28, 2000

To State Tax Administrators:

 FTA, in cooperation with the IRS, is sponsoring the 2000 FedState Electronic Filing Symposium April 30 - May 3 in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the Adam’s Mark Hotel.

All individuals interested in individual income tax electronic filing are encouraged to attend. Representatives of states participating in the FedState joint filing program and states with interest in other electronic filing issues are strongly urged to attend.

Registration will begin on Sunday afternoon, April 30, from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. The program begins Monday at 8:30 a.m. and will conclude by 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday. This should permit flights home beginning at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.

We have contracted the room block for Saturday night through Wednesday night. The room block is limited for Saturday night and Wednesday night, and availability is on a first-come, first-served basis, so you should make your reservations as soon as possible.

There will be a reception with light snacks on Sunday evening from 5:30 -- 7:00 p.m., and a continental breakfast will be available on all three mornings. Lunches will be on your own, but there should be plenty to choose from at the hotel and nearby. While no evening activities are planned, there will be area maps, restaurant lists and activity guides available at the registration desk. Dress for the symposium will be "business casual."

Speakers, panelists and moderators are still being sought for some topics. If you can help out, please contact Stephanie Rosenbusch at FTA at stephanie.rosenbusch@taxadmin.org. Information and on-line registration are provided on the FTA Home Page at www.taxadmin.org.

For all other meeting details, please contact Michael Sanzi at FTA at michael.sanzi@taxadmin.org.

Symposium Registration
A registration form is included with this mailing. Please submit your registration by Friday, April 14. The registration fee is:

$195 Registration fee includes opening reception and continental breakfast each morning.

On-site new registrations will be assessed a $25 fee. Cancellations will be accepted without penalty if received by April 24; after that date (except for emergencies) there will be a $25 processing fee. If you are unable to make payment at the time of registration, registrants are asked to indicate payment method, including requests for invoicing.

Questions? Contact Michael Sanzi at FTA at michael.sanzi@taxadmin.org.

Hotel Registration
The symposium will be held at the Adam’s Mark Charlotte, 555 South McDowell, Charlotte, NC, 28204. The hotel deadline for reservations is March 31, 2000. Rooms or conference rates may not be available after that date. For reservations call 1-800-444-ADAM (800-444-2326), or 704-372-4100. More information is available at http://www.adamsmark.com. The guest fax number is 704-348-4646. Please make sure you tell the hotel that you are with the FedState ELF Symposium. The room rate is $69 plus tax. The hotel requires a first night's deposit or credit card guarantee with each reservation. Deposits from attendees are refundable if notice of cancellation is received and can be confirmed, with a cancellation number issued by the hotel, at least 48 hours prior to arrival date.

Self-parking for guests is available for $4 per day; non-guests may park for a maximum of $10 per day. Carolina Shuttle (704-359-9600) offers airport transportation to the Adams Mark with pick-up outside of baggage claim. Current rates are $15 round trip and $8 one way. Taxi fare is approximately $15 one way. The hotel is about 15 minutes from the airport.

For information on Charlotte, check out the Convention and Visitor Bureau Web site at www.charlottecvb.org. Other sites of interest include www.visitnc.com and www.citysearch.com.

Sincerely,

Harley T. Duncan
Executive Director

Enclosures: as stated

Return to FTA Home Page

3:00 p.m. -- Registration

5:30 - 7:00 p.m. -- Opening Reception with light hors d'oeuvres

7:30 am -- Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:30 a.m. -- Welcome to Charlotte
Randy Barnes, Asst. Secretary for Planning, Development and Technology, North Carolina Dept. of Revenue

8:45 a.m. -- IRS/ETA Strategic Plan
Bob Barr, Asst. Commissione, Electronic Tax Administration

9:45 - 10:15 a.m. Break

10:15 a.m. -- Feedback on Recent Filing Season - Federal/State Panel
JoAnn Blank, National Director, Individual Electronic Filing Division
State Representatives, invited

11:00 a.m. -- Major Uniformity Needs from Industry
Industry Report Card
Industry Representatives - Panel Discussion

12 noon - 1:30 p.m. Lunch (on your own)

1:30 p.m. -- Marketing-Oriented Activities - Federal/State Panel
Pat Howarth, Functional Mgr., Channel Management and Marketing
Jerry Wingate, Missouri Department of Revenue
Debbie Coombs, Pennsylvania Department of Revenue

2:30 p.m. -- Proposed Federal/State E-file Cooperative Marketing Partnership Plan
Carolyn Yaw, IRS

2:50 - 3:10 p.m. Break

3:10 p.m. -- New IRS Account Management System
Mark Pursley, National Director, Account Management Division

3:40 p.m. -- RFA-RFP Partnerships - Panel Discussion
Pat Howarth, Functional Mgr., Channel Management and Marketing
Carolyn French, Michigan Bureau of Revenue
Lynn Tenney, Laser Systems Tax Works

7:30 a.m. -- Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:30 a.m. -- Electronic Commerce and Tax Administration--The Future
Whitney MacDougall, Intuit

9:15 a.m. -- E-filing Business Models
Kevin Richards, Illinois Department of Revenue

10:10 - 10:30 a.m. Break

10:30 a.m. -- Signature Pilots
Mary Ellen Corridore, Functional Manager, Infrastructure Function

11:00 a.m. -- Credit/Debit Cards - Panel Discussion
Keith Wicker, South Carolina Department of Revenue
Representative, American Express Govt. Services
Mark Castro, Orrtax

12 noon - 1:30 p.m. Lunch (on your own)

1:30 p.m. -- Developing Additional Filing Channels - Panel Discussion
Skip Carlson, Minnesota Department of Revenue
Representative, New York State, invited
Industry Representative, invited

2:30 - 2:45 p.m. Break

2:45 - 5:00 p.m. -- Breakout Discussion Groups organized by computing centers. To involve software developers, states, IRS, service/computing center representatives.

• Martinsburg Computing Center
• Tennessee Computing Center

7:30 a.m. -- Continental Breakfast

8:30 a.m. -- Reports from Breakout Groups

9:00 a.m. -- E-filing Ancillary Services - Panel Discussion

Topics may include refund inquiry databases, calculation engines, email customer service, ERO locators, etc.
Laurie Barrett, Functional Manager, Communications Products
Representative, North Carolina, invited
Representative, New Mexico, invited

9:45 - 10:00 a.m. Break

10:00 a.m. -- CERCA ERO Survey
Whitney MacDougall, Intuit

10:30 a.m. -- Business Filing Issues
Sherrill Fields, National Director, Diversified Filing Division
Industry Representative, invited
STAWRS Representative, to be determined

11:30 a.m. -- IRS Telefile/FedState Telefile
Portia Bingham, Program Analyst, Federal/State TeleFile
Nancy Ebersole, IRS Cincinnati Service Center

Return to FTA Home Page