Tax Advisory Council has inaugural meeting

The Indiana Department of Revenue’s Tax Advisory Council convened behind closed doors for its inaugural quarterly meeting today. Created in December, the group’s mission is to “shape the future of tax administration by providing input regarding agency operations, policies and legislative proposals,” according to the department.

Commissioner Adam Krupp said he had crafted a tentative agenda for the meeting centering around Indiana’s compliance with the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and the state’s policy on payment plans for delinquent taxpayers. “Topics will be presented where we give (the council) an opportunity primarily to say, ‘Here’s what we see from the outside. Here’s what we think would be better policy.’ And, then, the department will take that into consideration and go from there,” he said.

Krupp, who was appointed as commissioner in January 2017 by Gov. Eric Holcomb, said he would update the public on the council’s progress at the department’s mandatory open annual hearing. “I will talk specifically about the items on the agenda and some of the things we have done as a result of the feedback obtained from those members,” he said.

The appointment of the group’s 14-member roster of volunteers was announced Jan. 16.

Krupp said his two main priorities when selecting committee members were geographic variety and expertise. “I did not want this to be … an Indianapolis-centric endeavor,” he said. “In terms of expertise, it was open to absolutely anybody. You did not have to be a CPA or (a) tax lawyer, necessarily, to participate. We got applications from individuals who are just interested in good government.”

The group of a dozen Hoosiers appointed to serve two-year terms includes:

• Frank DiPietro, Bloomington, director of the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic with Indiana Legal Services, Inc.
• Carol Flynn, Sellersburg, owner of Flynn Accounting, LLC
• Philip Jackson, Indianapolis, director at OnTarget CPA
• Monty Korte, Indianapolis, partner at Ernst & Young, LLP
• John Laszlo, Merrillville, CPA and attorney for Laszlo & Associates, P.C.
• Stacey McCreery, founder and president of ROI Search Group in Indianapolis
• Donna Niesen, Indianapolis, partner at Katz, Sapper & Miller’s state and local tax law group
• Mark Richards, Indianapolis, partner at Ice Miller, LLP
• Kyle Simmerman, Indianapolis, partner at BGBC Partners, LLP’s state tax services law group
• Ben Smith, president and CEO of Estep-Doctor & Company, Muncie
• Patrick Thomas, professor of the practice and director of the Notre Dame Clinical Law Center, South Bend
• Bill Waltz, Indianapolis, vice president of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce

In addition to the 12 members from within the state, two more are from outside: Jim Eads, a principal at Ryan, LLC, and Ryan Advocacy in Austin, Texas; and Lauren Hagwood, a senior state government relations manager with Intuit in San Diego, California. More information about the council and its members can be found here.