NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Ronald Alt
(202) 624-8445

IOWA DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
WINS FTA AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING RESEARCH

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(Washington, D. C., March 6, 2017) The Federation of Tax Administrators announced today that the judges named the Iowa Department of Revenue as the winner of the 2017 FTA Award for Outstanding Research and Analysis.

Iowa entered its new Tax Credit Award, Claim, & Transfer Administration System, otherwise known as "CACTAS." It is a statewide system to collect and track tax credit award information across many state agencies.  The CACTAS database currently has information on 13 credit programs involving 17 different state agencies.

The judges noted how it was “innovative in collecting data across many different agencies.” It has “the potential to improve revenue forecasting” by providing detailed information on tax credit awards and utilization, enabling forecasters to better understand how credits are claimed in current and future years.  It is a step forward in better transparency that could be duplicated by other states.

Presentation of the awards will take place during the FTA Annual Meeting, June 11-14 in Seattle Washington. The winners have also been invited to make a presentation at the annual FTA Revenue Estimating & Tax Research Conference, September 23-27 in Omaha, Nebraska.

An independent panel consisting of Robert Cline, Retired – Ernst & Young; Norton Francis, Urban Institute; and Marcia Howard, FFIS, judged the entries.

The Federation of Tax Administrators is a nonprofit organization composed of taxation and revenue departments of the fifty states, District of Columbia, New York City and Philadelphia. Its mission is to improve the standards and methods of tax administration.

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