Firms Grapple With Key Tax Reserve Disclosure Requirements

More than one quarter of large public companies are coming up short when it comes to FIN 48 disclosure requirements for tax reserves, with shortfalls the highest among airlines, electronic instruments and controls, insurance and energy companies, and regional banks.

The Seigel Tax Reserve Report covered first-quarter 2008 filings of more than 600 companies whose revenues exceeded $2 billion. J. Brad McGee, president of Seigel & Associates, said the greatest area of noncompliance was the “12-month lookforward rule,” where one of every eight companies provided no disclosure. The requirement concerns reporting tax positions that have a reasonable possibility of significant variation over the next 12 months.

Industries with the highest compliance levels included commodities, consumer financial and investment services, capital goods and money center banks.

Source: Seigel & Associates LLC, www.seigel-llc.com.