joelgilb

Just wrote my congressman the following letter:

The IRS citing "low usage" is planning to eliminate the 2848 input to E Services as well as the Electronic Account Resolution (EAR) products. WE will now have to either call Practitioners Hotline or fax it to CAF.

http://www.accountingtoday.com/taxprotoday/news/IRS-Closes-Disclosure-Authorization-Electronic-Account-Resolution-Apps67048-1.html?ET=webcpa:e7217:92331a:&st=email&utm_source=editorial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=tpt_061013&taxpro

http://www.irs.gov/Tax-Professionals/e-services---Online-Tools-for-Tax-Professionals


As we become more electronic e-services become of greater importance, & I expect more professionals will use them. Currently it can take days or weeks to get a POA enter via the CAF unit to allow a representative to speak with IRS and resolve taxpayer issues.

Not being able to enter POA's through eservices makes it near impossible to deal with emergency situations, & timely deal with the taxpayers' problems and issues.

When it is necessary to send a POA to an agent, revenue officer or someone in the collection system, it is not only time consuming, but it is a FINANCIAL BURDEN TO TAXPAYERS. It is especially burdensome when it is necessary to speak with and fax the POA to multiple IRS employees, something that happens more often than not.

Not being able to enter POA's directly through e-services, also makes it near impossible to deal with emergency situations for taxpayers.

IRS requires electronic means when it helps them, but has consistently discontinued electronic means to timely assist taxpayers with their tax problems (for instance some years ago one could email IRS to communicate timely and quickly, but shortly after this efficient system was put into place IRS pulled it for snail mail options).

Please Help the taxpayers of Nevada and the rest of this country to be able to efficiently deal with their tax issues, by stopping IRS from retiring a service that truly helps the citizens of this country resolve one of their most important issues - Tax Problems.

Thank you for your anticipated assistance in this matter.

I posted the same topic here after this thread but before I saw it.

KC if you can merge my post there and add it here that would help.

Also, I would suggest that anyone that has trouble with e-services POA's and transcript delivery look at CCH's product:

TaxScripts which can be purchased at CCH, ATX or Taxwise and costs $195.00. I have found that I can enter a POA, and download 20-40 IRS transcripts in about 5-10 minutes using the CCH software.

And although I am an ATX basher Taxscripts is a great tool!

The IRS citing "low usage" is planning to eliminate the 2848 input to E Services as well as the Electronic Account Resolution
(EAR) products. WE will now have to either call Practitioners Hotline or fax it to CAF.

http://www.accountingtoday.com/taxprotoday/news/IRS-Closes-Disclosure-Authorization-Electronic-Account-Resolution-Apps67048-1.html?ET=webcpa:e7217:92331a:&st=email&utm_source=editorial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=tpt_061013&taxpro

http://www.irs.gov/Tax-Professionals/e-services---Online-Tools-for-Tax-Professionals

Of course right after I purchase TaxScripts which totally automates the entering of POA's.

There are a couple of ways for us to voice our complaints:

1. Call E services 1-866-255-0654 and voice our complaint.

2. Post your comments and concerns about the IRS decision to obsolete DA and EAR from the e-services menu options here:

http://www.irs.gov/uac/Send-Us-A-Comment-About-the-Web-Site

3. Sign an Online Petition here:

http://www.beyond415.com/knowledgecenter/article/alert-online-petition-urge-irs-to-reverse-decision

4. Contact your congressman

I have written a short letter that meets the IRS website character limitation of 1044 characters below to facilitate the post of a complaint.


LETTER:

IRS intends to retire the Disclosure Authorization (DA) & EAR products August 11, primarily due to low usage.

As we become more electronic e-services become of greater importance, & I expect more professionals will use them. Currently it can take days or weeks to get a POA entered via the CAF unit. Not being able to enter POA's through eservices makes it near impossible to deal with emergency situations, & timely deal with taxpayers' problems and issues.

When it is necessary to send a POA to an agent, revenue officer or someone in the collection system, it is not only time consuming, but it is a financial burden to taxpayers. It is especially burdensome when it is necessary to speak with and fax the POA to multiple IRS employees, something that happens more often than not.

Not being able to enter POA's directly through e-services, also makes it near impossible to deal with emergency situations for taxpayers. I am therefore requesting that IRS reconsider its decision to retire the DA & EAR service.

I do have a separate depreciation program that I use for my accounting work that requires more detail than is found in any tax program. I've had it for years and plan on keeping it in the future. It is the old Creative Solutions DS II that is now part of Tompson Reuters and is called Fixed Assets CS. It would integrate with Ultra Tax if I ever used that. Too expensive for my little practice, but the fixed asset module is excellent and will give any kind of report I need.

What is the pricing of the Fixed Assets CS?

All the income and other forms that have depreciation lines also have links to the 4562. Also the 4562 input is fairly intuitive once you get used to it.

While it would be nice if the 4562 input were grouped by entity, the fact that it doesn't isn't a problem. Further a quick view of the return, which takes seconds I might add, groups the 4562 reports and detailed reports by schedule and entity or property.

Additional 4562 and asset reports also exist, and while this is not a full fledged FAM, neither is the built in FAM in ATX. Yet I personally find that the Drake FAM is sufficient for me to stop buying the Full ATX FAM. Just takes a little getting used to the differences is all.

Have not seen you much on the boards this year, but, wanted to say Happy Birthday

I have been around this year (was MIA I think last year and maybe the year before) with the ATX fiasco.

Thx to all for the B-day wishes!

My suggestion, Delete ATX and install another tax software!

Don't hold your breath for a discount. If you miss the May 31st discount of $1095, expect to pay more later! That said, Drake is fully refundable till late Nov or early Dec. I think Dec 1st this year, but don't quote me on that.

In general, due to Drakes already competitive price, Drake does not give any additional discounts to jump ship. I switched mid-season and fought hard for an additional discount and was told that the best they would do was $1,395.00 ($100 off the $1495 price).

Possible exceptions for multi-office discounts.

BTW, I already renewed.

BTW, Parker includes regular newsletters, just like CCH, and the old Kleinrock

I currently use Parker Tax Publishing which was developed by the former developer of Kleinrock and is very reasonably priced.

http://www.parkertaxpublishing.com/

Parker includes:

Parker's Editorial Content

Parker's Explanation & Analysis
Quick Reference Library
Parker's Federal Tax Bulletin
ATRA - Complete Analysis (New!)
Sample Client Letters
Tax Elections and Declarations
Practice Aids and Checklists

Core References

Internal Revenue Code
Regulations (Temp. and Final)
Regulations (Proposed)
Federal Tax Legislation (New!)
U.S. Tax Treaties

IRS Materials (1954-present)

IRS Publications
Revenue Rulings
Revenue Procedures
IRS Notices
IRS Announcements
PLRs, TAMs, CCAs and
Other Written Determinations
IRS Circular 230
T.D. Preambles (New!)
Penalties Handbook
Internal Revenue Manual
IRS Settlement Guidelines
Audit Techniques Guides
Actions on Decisions
Court Decisions (1942-present)

Tax Court Reported
Tax Court Memoranda
Tax Court Summary
Supreme, Circuit, District, and
Claims Courts

Also you can get a pretty good reference for free at:

http://www.legalbitstream.com/

.

which includes:

All Tax Cases
US Supreme Court
US Circuit and
District Courts
US Federal Circuit and
Court of Federal Claims
US Tax Court
IRS MATERIALS

All IRS Materials
Revenue Rulings
Revenue Procedures
Announcements
Notices
Delegation Orders
Executive Orders
News Releases
Private Letter Rulings
Actions on Decisions
General Counsel
Memoranda
Technical Memoranda
Treasury Decisions
Proposed Regulations
Legislation Links

IRS Regulations
(Title 26 C.F.R.)
Internal Revenue Code
(Title 26 U.S.C.)
Public Laws
US Income Tax Treaties
IRS Forms & Publications

Not sure about the search functions there as I never used it though.

I'm a little late to this discussion, but here's the blog post I did for Intuit about why i switched from ATX to Lacerte:

https://blog.accountants.intuit.com/?p=23325

My three big takeaways discussed were (1) after the ATX experience this tax season, people in my office were happy to switch, (2) the Lacerte training time (free training!) was quicker than ATX customer service hold times, and (3) if I count any of the indirect costs of using ATX, Lacerte wasn't any more expensive.

BTW, we switched mid-tax-season as noted at the myatx forum (I see many familiar names here)... and I also need to say here that when I got my Lacerte invoice (and looked at the big number it shows) my only reaction, my only reaction, was to think, "Gee I am happy to have good tax software."

Steve:

What a great write up! Even though I switched to Drake mid-season, which was cheaper, I had a similar experience in my office. I can't agree with your assessment more, your points were spot on.

... I also noticed this year that when I password protect a return, that does not protect the information from anyone with access to the software looking at it in the Tax Warehouse. That may have been the case all along, but sort of makes password protection useless. I feel sure there are features that I would miss if I wasn't so frustrated so early in the season that all i wanted to do by the end was just get the blasted return to open!

WOW, Great Point!

...

Tax season was a whole year long, wasn't it?

Gail

LMAO, Think so Gail!

On the other hand, by the end of tax season the only issue I was really seeing was that the software s still slow to open, close and input. ...

Gail:

Did you not use any of the features that ATX removed, such as: the Excel Spreadsheet module (and outside Excel is not the same as there is no linking ability), QuickBooks import features, W-2 import features, inline cell formulas and the many other features that they removed?

Situations at different tax offices are different. Changing software for you may be a speed bump. For us, it is a HUGE mountain.

Jack:

I know it is not always easy to switch, but it is really not as hard as you perceive.

As a consultant I used to assist small to medium (medium up to about 100 staff) sized CPA offices in setting up in-house systems. Although, every office is different, changing software and the learning curve during the off season is really less grief than you believe. I helped offices start in-house systems (ok that was years ago) and switch tax software vendors, all with success.

What I would suggest is to test the free versions of other software without making the commitment to switch and see how your staff handle it. You may find your staff surprise you and are more capable than you think.

And now is the time to do this, not December, January or February, when season is once again upon us.

What a surprise!

Got to say after all the problems this season, the removed enhancements and the latest issues with vers 12.15, I am amazed any of you are considering renewing, regardless of price.

Personally I would stay away from TaxWise. Not much better than ATX, less forms, still owned by CCH and it is planned that it will run on the same engine as ATX in the future.

But if you are considering it, demo it before you make that mistake!

Two that I can think might fit your needs are:

1. Office Tools which includes everything you are looking for and more, and does billing. Bit more that I was looking for when I tested it, but it is still on my list of possibles

http://www.officetoolspro.com/

2. Sage Act! - Very sophisticated, very customizable, little more reasonably priced and they have been around for forever (although not always owned by Sage). 2 versions as well; Pro and Premium. Pro may be enough and is only $222.

http://na.sage.com/sage-act

Joel, I assure you I have not removed ANY of your posts.

SLC, no one can see anyone's warning post except their own. It's a private thing.

wasn't suggesting you did KC, must have been a burp on my end.

I don't have to program my own software, reinvent the wheel, write macros. I can configure my program any way I want by checking a box for all returns or just this return (and, if I had other preparers, by preparer or by office or by other groups I designate or by types of return or combinations of those or...). It knows my PIN and my company info. I can have template returns (but I don't have a typical return, so don't; besides most are continuing clients and roll over with the forms I typically need). It can answer questions, assign e-file PINs, whatever I want it to do. The programmers have done the heavy lifting, so all I have to do is check or uncheck a box, answer yes or no. When I install a new year, I'm ready to work on returns, not work on the program! And, yes, I pay for that privilege, but my expertise is in tax preparation. My clients don't pay me for programming.

Lion:

You seem to have the type of practice that can support the high end priced packages, like Pro System FX and I would expect Jack's office does as well. He and his firm should most certainly consider the high end tax software, as you have done.

I wish I was in the position to be able to do the same, use one of the more sophisticated programs and find that it was cost effective for a practice like mine. For many of us though, ATX was a unique product that let us get high end features through its extreme ability to be customized, while at very affordable for the small office.

ATX also had something I don't think even ProSystem FX has; Tons and Tons of forms that are only available in packages like SuperForms.

For me, as an Attorney, I used the other forms in ATX almost more than the tax preparation forms. For instance, I have incorporated clients all across the country and the forms in ATX made that much easier and faster than downloading forms from the various States.

Through ATX's flexible structure prior to 2012, I created my own forms, and documents to include: Corporate Books, Stock Certificates, 2553's, State registration forms, etc all in custom templates that I could auto-fill in literally minutes; letting ATX do the work, so I could use my time to provide my clients the legal expertise they needed.

No other software had this ability, NONE! And now ATX does not have this ability either.

Also, my primary business is practice before the IRS and the U.S. Tax Court, something the extra forms in ATX supported extremely well.

Now that I have left ATX, I will almost certainly need to buy a forms product to supplement the tax preparation software. And nothing will quite meet the flexibility and sophistication ATX had prior to 2012.

KC:

I have noticed that several of my posts are missing, primarily the ones from the last few days.

Was there a burp in the system?

Could you let me know why please?

and one more thing.

If you choose to not consider a 2nd software package or changing software in your firm and have a similar experience with ATX 2013 as you and many of us had this year with ATX 2012; and have the same experience next year, you have only yourselves to blame. Not CCH/ATX.

Every preparer will have different needs for software. There is NO "one size fits all" fit for software. Either way, at the firm, it is a very difficult decision to make with the volume of clients we have. It is NOT an option to re-enter all from scratch. Changing software will mean conversion. Conversion means "mostly correct." Conversion means that most carryover information won't. Conversion means scrutinizing every detail of every return.

We are going to have to scrutinize every return if ATX fixes its software. Do we add conversion and a learning curve that is far more than just how to input information. Since 2002, we have learned how ATX transfers information, all the nuances of the worksheets for certain fields, the "put it here, not there" things. If we only had 500 or less clients, much different issues.

Staying with ATX is still a viable option for our firm. We have many clients with lots of assets and carryover infromation from many years. Unless you are a firm with over 1,000 clients, you cannot relate to this set of circumstances to consider.

Jack, while I agree with you that "There is NO 'one size fits all' firt for software."

I strongly disagree that even for a firm of your size that it is that difficut to change software when the next tax season is a good 8 months away.

A firm your size has to have additional preparer resources that can test software and then convert your client base to a software of your choosing without great difficulty.

As JKLCPA posted above:

... There are other large firms that posted on the official ATX forum about being successful at converting from ATX to Proseries, Lacerte, Drake, and ProSystem Fx. While small, my conversion to Drake was easy and the only thing that really didn't convert well was related to business returns that had additional details on the worksheet for "other expenses" such as line 26 of a Form 1120. ...

and

We all know that the firm you work for does 2900 returns, but how many preparers does that include, 7,8,9? It might be a lot of returns, but spread over that number of preparers, that volume isn't more than some others on here prepare. Spread those returns over the next 8 months and checking the conversions, or preparing some in another program, isn't the insurmountable task that you make it out to be. It just isn't! You and the owner should test out a couple of the programs and pick one as a backup. Just because the 2011 or 2012 files are converted does not mean that the original file is changed and never to be accessed by ATX ever again. I still have all of my 2011 ATX files intact, but I also have them in 2011 for Drake. I could prepare a 2012 return in either program. ...

And I totally agree with her. It's just not as difficult as you think!

Agree with Stephens, ATX is not going to offer the software for free, My guess, the discount will be similar to prior years.

ATX believes they did the right thing in rewriting the software and does not see all the issues many of us have had. They never will unless they see the user base dwindle to virtually nothing.