Gartner, Inc., an information technology research and advisory company, released the report Critical Capabilities for Integrated Tax System COTS Products, 2010 (ID Number: G00209433). This report serves to aid revenue agencies in understanding the current Integrated Tax System (ITS) COTS products available in the market today. As part of this process, the report compared and contrasted eight different vendors of ITS COTS products.

The Gartner report proceeds to define several “critical capabilities” (p.6) of an ITS COTS product and then “to outline some key use cases that Gartner has discussed with tax agencies around the world and to describe the role of each critical capability in performing those processes” (p.7). Fast Enterprises’ GenTax product received an “excellent” the highest-rating possible in the “Overall Use Case” finding (p.15).

The state Tax Department has been named the 2010 recipient of the Federation of Tax Administrators “Award for Outstanding Management and Organizational Initiative. “The department is receiving the award for its modern, integrated tax system. The Legislature appropriated $22 million for the system in 2006. The department has been rolling it out during the past several years.

At the 2009 Ontario Public Service Showcase, the ONT-TAXS Online (TAP) Team won the Merit Award in the area of Government Modernization. Taxpayer Access Point, or TAP, is a companion product to GenTax® that gives taxpayers the ability to file returns, make payments and maintain their accounts over the web. The “Government Modernization” category includes initiatives in which information technology has played a critical role in providing business value while enabling significant organizational transformation. Over 150 entries throughout Ontario provincial and local government were submitted.

A $22 million state tax collection system upgrade is already paying big dividends, according to West Virginia Tax Commissioner Christopher Morris. The state collected $125.9 million from past due accounts last year – an all-time record, Morris said. Before the state began installing the new system in 2006, annual past due account collections were in the $82 million to $91 million range.

Paying taxes is never an enjoyable experience, but the province is trying to make the process easier for businesses, the parliamentary assistant to the provincial Minister of Revenue told the Chatham-Kent Chamber of Commerce last Wednesday.

The Automated Wage Certification Team, led by a state compliance analyst and Heath Mickelson of FAST, won the 2008 Outstanding Service Award for Innovation. The award recognizes employees or teams that use an innovative approach to increase productivity, efficiency and service to the department.