2018 MSATA (Midwestern States) Conference PresentationsClick the title of a presentation below to download. 8:50 - 10 Life After Wayfair The Supreme Court published its landmark ruling in South Dakota v. Wayfair on June 21. This panel of experts will discuss the ruling and its impact on governments and businesses. Andy Gerlach, Secretary, South Dakota Department of Revenue 10 – 10:30 Break Ballroom Foyer 10:30 – Noon Commissioners’ Panel MSATA agency heads will discuss a variety of topics and issues. Noon – 1:30 Lunch Salon II Collections Breakout Ballroom 1AB 1:30 – 2:15 Collection Agency Use Panel Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa all use private sector collection agencies, but each uses them in very different ways. This panel will discuss different ways to use and manage collection agencies. Steven Hayes, Illinois Department of Revenue 2:15 – 3 Centralized Liens Several states have implemented fully electronic processes for docketing state tax liens. A few have developed centralized lien registries that allow them to enforce the lien statewide. States will discuss the process and enabling legislation. Steven Hayes, Illinois Department of Revenue 3 – 3:30 Break Ballroom Foyer 3:30 – 4:15 Using Data Analytics to Enhance Collection Program Results Scoring collection accounts using data modeling enhances the collection process by allowing different treatments based on the taxpayer’s propensity to pay. These speakers will discuss how the process works and how to use it to achieve better outcomes. Ted London, FICO 4:15 – 5 Collections Roundtable Learn from your fellow tax administrators as participants engage in a free-flowing conversation on collection-related topics. Brian Dischler, Wisconsin Department of Revenue, facilitator IT/Modernization Breakout Pavilion I 1:30 – 2:15 SPONSOR SOLUTION PRESENTATION
The technology exists to change when and how sales tax is remitted to taxing agencies. This presentation will provide an overview of accelerated remittance of sales tax at the point of sale, including pros and cons, challenges, impact on businesses collecting sales tax, and the contribution it would make toward reducing the tax gap. It will also draw parallels with the transformation of returns processing from paper returns to electronic filing.
Joe Milack, FAST Enterprises
2:15 – 3 Identifying Fraud and Enhancing Tax Compliance through Social Network Analysis Social Network Analysis is an analytic approach to correlate people, entities, and relationships to determine how tightly an individual or business is related to others to identify improper registrations, fraud rings, locate delinquent debtors, and find successor businesses. Ted London, FICO 3 – 3:30 Afternoon Break Ballroom Foyer 3:30 – 4:15 SPONSOR SOLUTION PRESENTATION Discussion will focus on key considerations for modernization projects, including options available to your agency, challenges that you may encounter and strategies to guide you and your agency successfully through it all. Guy Kirtley, Revenue Solutions, Inc. 4:15 – 5 Cybersecurity – Making Your Employees Your Strongest Link Cybersecurity plans are made up of a number of coordinated efforts. App security, data security, network security, operational security, and disaster recover/business continuity often get the most attention. End-user (employee) education can get lost because of the time and effort the other elements can demand. Shifting some of that demand to employee education can have as much, if not more, of a positive impact on an organization cyber security plan. Jason Fjeldahl, Minnesota Department of Revenue Management breakout Pavilion III 1:30 – 2:15 Reinventing Your Workplace Culture Without Breaking the Bank Adam Krupp became Commissioner of Indiana’s Department of Revenue in January 2017. Since that time, the Department has re-branded itself into a customer service entity thriving on the opportunity to serve the state’s taxpayers while breaking stereotypes and common misperceptions about government employees. In doing so, the Department has completely transformed its own workplace culture, featuring a staff that lives by the motto, “If you’re not having fun, you’re doing it wrong.” The cultural shift has paid dividends with taxpayers and stakeholders alike, as the Department is now recognized throughout the state for its collaborative approach, focus on customer service, and willingness to adapt based on feedback received. Adam Krupp, Commissioner, Indiana Department of Revenue 2:14 – 3 Internship Programs/ Attracting Talent Attracting top talent to work in government has never been more challenging. Agency leaders are using creative approaches to attracting talent, such as internship programs and “earn while you learn” part-time jobs for college students. We will learn about creative methods states are using to find and attract talent for key career roles. Chris Peterson, Kansas Department of Revenue 3 – 3:30 Break Ballroom Foyer 3:30 – 4:15 Management Training Programs and Mentoring Have you ever promoted a great employee thinking he or she would be a great supervisor and been disappointed? While some people are born with natural leadership skills most supervisors and managers need to be developed. We are going to share some of the training we have been developing for supervisors within the South Dakota Department of Revenue. Bobi Adams, South Dakota Department of Revenue 4:15 – 5 Management Roundtable Learn from your fellow tax administrators as participants engage in a free-flowing conversation on management related topics. Bob Grennes, Indiana Department of Revenue, facilitating Tuesday, August 21
Ballroom 1AB 7:30 – 8:30 Breakfast Ballroom Foyer 7:30 – 8:30 Commissioner’s Breakfast Hospitality Suite 217 (Commissioners or their representative only) 8:30- 9:15 Regional Economic Forecast An overview of the economic health of the MSATA states and a forecast of what’s to come. Dr. Joe Haslag, University of Missouri 9:15 – 10:15 ISAC Update Many states, the IRS and private sector partners participate in the Identity Theft Tax Refund Fraud Information Sharing and Analysis Center or IDTTRF-ISAC. This session will provide an update on the ISAC and highlight successes realized by the program. Courtney Kay-Decker, Director, Iowa Department of Revenue 10:15-10:45 Break Ballroom Foyer 10:45 – Noon Process Improvement This session will provide insights into how four different states are using process improvement methodologies to enhance efficiencies and streamline processes in their tax agencies or to identify unnecessary activities that could be eliminated. While there may be different processes used, the goals are the same. Dan Hall, Illinois Department of Revenue Noon – 1:30 Lunch (on your own) Audit Breakout Ballroom 1AB 1:30 – 2:15 Audit Selection Panel In this session, Illinois and Missouri will discuss how they are using data analytics to improve the audit selection process in their states. Dan Hall, Illinois Department of Revenue Rachelle Forbes, Missouri Department of Revenue 2:15 – 3 Nexus Projects The Wisconsin Department of Revenue has engaged in projects around nexus for various tax types. During this session, we will learn about the project, its goals, and findings. Christine Wynn, Wisconsin Department of Revenue 3 – 3:30 Afternoon Break Ballroom Foyer 3:30 – 4:15 Understanding the New IRS Partnership Rules The Multistate Tax Commission (MTC), along with several interested parties (ABA SALT, AICPA, COST, IPT, MLPA and TEI,) are working on a model to address the reporting of federal audit changes. Specifically, most states will need to make legislative changes to address the new federal partnership audit regime. This session will review the federal changes and discuss the workings of the model that interested parties have been working on with the MTC. This session is especially geared to all who work in the tax policy area, partnership area, or the processing/auditing area dealing with federal adjustments. Fred Nicely and Nikki Dobay, COST 4:15 – 5 Audit Roundtable Learn from your fellow tax administrators as participants engage in a free-flowing conversation on audit related topics. Caroline June, Michigan Department of Revenue, Facilitating Tax Policy Breakout Pavilion I 1:30 – 2:15 Federal Tax Reform – How Have the States Reacted So Far? The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act not only constituted the single biggest change in federal corporate income tax laws in 30 years but also in state corporate income tax laws. This panel will provide a broad overview of state conformity and non-conformity with federal tax reform provisions during the first nine months since enactment. The panel will discuss the state-specific issues raised by the new international tax provisions, interest deduction limitation and other key personal income tax and corporate income tax provisions. Finally, the panelists will discuss the short-term and long-term state fiscal impacts and how these will influence the direction of state tax policy. Karl Frieden, COST 2:15 – 3 Court Case Round-up – Important Cases Affecting State and Local Tax Administration While Wayfair was big, it is not the only court case that will have impacts on state and local tax administration. Review the rest of the year’s big cases. Maria Sanders, Missouri Department of Revenue 3 – 3:30 Afternoon Break Ballroom Foyer 3:30 – 4:15 Streamlined Sales Tax Many states across the Midwest have been engaged in the Streamlined Sales Tax Program. This session will provide an update of the program and how the Wayfair decision may affect it. Craig Johnson and Pat Reynolds, Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board 4:15 – 5 Certified Service Providers While the Internet created a brand new world for retailers, it also created a brand new world for how retailers manage their sales tax compliance. Gone are the days of manual sales tax compliance. Come listen to how retailers automate their sales tax compliance. Scott Peterson, Avalara Customer Service Breakout Pavilion III 1:30 – 2:15 Social Media Having a strong social media presence is no longer a plus – it’s a requirement. As revenue agencies, we should be capitalizing on using social media to our advantage to educate and communicate with our customers – the taxpayers. Learning how to easily setup and use social media will help accomplish your agency’s goals. Emily Landis and Michelle Cain, Indiana Department of Revenue 2:15 – 3 LinkedIn - Tax Administration Dialogue via Social Media “If we’re not engaged, the conversation is going on without us.” Join us for a one-year tax-topical journey on LinkedIn. We will explore the use of this social media platform for wider engagement with tax professionals in other tax agencies and the private sector (CPAs, tax attorneys and technology consultants) through participation in the conversations relevant to state taxes. Kevin Milligan, Pennsylvania Department of Revenue 3 – 3:30 Afternoon Break Ballroom Foyer 3:30 – 4:15 Call Center Management Learn about different strategies and approaches to ensure efficient and effective call center operations. Amanda Mosel, Wisconsin Department of Revenue 4:15 – 5 Customer Service Roundtable Learn from your fellow tax administrators as participants engage in a free-flowing conversation on customer service related topics. Brenda Towers, Illinois Department of Revenue, facilitator Wednesday, August 22 7:30 – 8:30 Breakfast Ballroom Foyer General Session Ballroom 1AB 8:30-10 What Tax Administrators need to know about CryptoCurrency 10 – 10:30 Morning Break Ballroom Foyer 10:30 – Noon Missouri’s Organizational Health Initiative In the summer of 2017 an Organizational Health Index (OHI) survey of all State of Missouri government employees was completed to assess strengths and weaknesses across all state agencies. In the Department of Revenue, we identified five key areas where we needed to improve and created teams made up of a cross section of employees from across the department who presented recommendations to leadership. Those recommendations are now being executed with very positive results. We would like to share this journey and how we think we are making a real difference in our department.” Joel Walters, Director, Missouri Department of Revenue |