Monthly Tax Update with Ed Zollars: Internal Revenue Code Penalties, Statutory Defenses, and Administrative Relief (2 hours - afternoon) - NEW!

Overview

This two-hour advanced CPE course provides experienced Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) with a rigorous, technical analysis of civil tax penalty regimes under the Internal Revenue Code (IRC), Treasury Regulations, IRS administrative relief mechanisms, and judicial defenses. Tax professionals will explore the operational, procedural, and strategic implications of the IRS’s landmark transition from the manual, post-assessment First Time Abate (FTA) administrative waiver to the pre-assessment, systemic Automatic Exemption from Penalty (AEP) program. The program delivers advanced insights into calculating delinquency penalties, navigating concurrent failure-to-file and failure-to-pay assessments, and applying statutory stacking reduction offsets. Participants will analyze accuracy-related penalties under Section 6662, including entity-specific substantial understatement thresholds for individuals, S corporations, and C corporations. Finally, practitioners will master affirmative defense strategies, from evaluating positions against the return reporting confidence hierarchy to documenting reasonable cause defenses under landmark judicial doctrines like Boyle and Neonatology, and asserting crucial procedural protections such as the written supervisory approval requirement under Section 6751(b)(1).

OSCPA has partnered with the Idaho Society of CPAs for this event.

Highlights

• The Transition from First Time Abate (FTA) to Automatic Exemption from Penalty (AEP): Analyze the structural overhaul from a post-assessment, manual abatement process to a pre-assessment, systemic suppression model under the AEP program launched in 2026. CPAs will evaluate automated look-back windows, eligibility criteria, and strategic concerns like the automatic consumption of AEP that resets a client's three-year compliance clock. 
• Delinquency Penalty Mechanics and Stacking Reduction Rules: Learn the detailed accrual rules, monthly rates, and maximum statutory caps for Failure to File (FTF) and Failure to Pay (FTP) penalties. Practitioners will master the Section 6651(c)(1) stacking offset calculation to prevent duplicate assessments and understand the mathematical transition when delinquency caps out at 47.5%. 
• Accuracy-Related Penalties and Entity-Specific Substantial Understatement Thresholds: Master the 20% consolidated accuracy-related penalty under Section 6662, examining conduct-based triggers like negligence, disregard of rules, and substantial understatements. Evaluate the entity-specific monetary thresholds that define "substantial" understatements for S corporations, C corporations, and taxpayers claiming the Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction. 
• The Return Reporting Confidence Hierarchy and Return Disclosure Strategies: Analyze the professional hierarchy of return reporting confidence standards, ranging from a "Reasonable Basis" with adequate disclosure up to the "More Likely Than Not" standard. Learn how and when to file Form 8275 or Form 8275-R to mathematically eliminate substantial understatements and defeat IRS negligence assertions. 
• Statutory Reasonable Cause, Judicial Doctrines, and Procedural Protections: Evaluate the legal requirements for statutory reasonable cause and good-faith defenses under Section 6664(c) and the three-prong test established under the Neonatology case. Understand how to challenge invalid assessments by verifying compliance with the Section 6751(b)(1) written supervisory approval requirement and examining circuit court splits under Chai, Chai v. Commissioner, Kroner, and Laidlaw.
  

Designed For

CPAs and tax professionals

Objectives

Get Up-to-date information on a variety of tax topics