Tax Appeals Assistance Program – first semester recap June 2021 Tax News

The Tax Appeals Assistance Program (TAAP) is a two-member team run by a Supervising Attorney, Mengjun He, and a TAAP administrator, Jenny Vu. TAAP offers free legal assistance to eligible taxpayers of limited means who have filed an appeal to the Office of Tax Appeals on an action taken by the Franchise Tax Board. Taxpayers accepted into the program are assigned a law student who writes briefs and represents them in the appeal.

In the December 2020 Tax News, we announced Mengjun He as the new Supervising Attorney for TAAP. We are pleased to announce that TAAP just wrapped up its first semester and had 30 students under its supervision and guidance.  Additionally, Mengjun, Jenny, and the law students resolved more cases this semester than in any prior semester! In most of these cases, TAAP student representatives were able to work and negotiate directly with FTB Tax Attorneys for quick and efficient case resolution, which benefitted both taxpayers and the State.

The summer semester just started and TAAP is always screening and accepting new clients and cases. In circumstances where you feel TAAP's assistance may be beneficial for your client, please consider referring them to TAAP. TAAP can assist with appeals cases where the amount at issue is $30,000 or less for certain tax issues. Please refer taxpayers to our TAAP webpage for more information or have them email ftbtaap@ftb.ca.gov.

Also, our TAAP students are always eager to hear guest speakers share their career stories as well as any tax practitioner tips and advice. If you are willing to help inspire the next generation of tax professionals and have 10-15 minutes of your time to spare, please send us an email.