First, FTB had to start from scratch in its mission to find unregistered tax preparers. Until 2005, this type of enforcement did
not exist. The first two years of enforcement can best be compared to the search for a needle in a haystack. Second, due to state budget constraints, CTEC had no choice but to pay for FTB enforcement. To top it off, all penalty fees collected by FTB go into the state’s general fund. CTEC does not receive any financial return on its investment. Despite a few complications, a lot has been accomplished over the past four years. Last year FTB took enforcement to new heights and identified 51 percent of tax preparers it visited as unregistered. The first two years FTB identified between 10 to 12 percent as unregistered. This year FTB visited close to 900 tax preparers statewide (the most visits to date) and identified 41 percent as unregistered. To give enforcement more teeth, California Senate Bill 797 took effect in 2008 to betterdefine who should and should not be
registered with CTEC. Plans are also in the works to allow CTEC to suspend, revoke or refuse a registration if a CRTP or applicant has been guilty of professional misconduct. The goal of the revision is to help enforcement build more strength by
preventing unlawful tax preparers to register with CTEC and, as a result, give CRTPs more credibility. After all, if it is a top priority for CTEC to protect California taxpayers, then it has a duty to set standards so CRTPs are educated, bonded and ethical. |
