Tax Bill Tele-Conferences Planned by CPAs, Realtors

The new income tax reforms reached by a joint congressional committee last week already have spurred into action the two groups that stand to gain the most and the least from the new bill.

One call to action was sounded by certified public accountants. The CPAs, who may reap record revenues from an anticipated increase in customers, will broadcast a live, eight-hour nationwide tele-conference Oct. 1 via satellite from Washington on what was described as the “technical content and practical implications” of the measure.

The other alarm was sounded by California Realtors and real estate developers who stand to lose giant tax benefits if the bill is passed into law. They have set up an 8 1/2-hour, statewide tele-conference Sept. 12 entitled “Tax Reform ‘86: The Effect on Real Estate.”

The CPA seminar is the industry’s most ambitious effort to reach accountants nationwide and will probably be used as a model in setting up future seminars, said Norman A. Barker, a lawyer and tax partner in the Newport Beach office of Ernst & Whinney. Barker, chairman and moderator of the conference, said CPA groups from 21 states have signed up so far to take part in the seminar.

Sponsored by CPA groups in California, New York, Texas, Florida and Illinois--the states where half the nation’s accountants work--the tele-conference will have experts from a dozen accounting and law firms on hand to discuss such topics as tax changes for individuals, tax shelters, income shifting, fringe benefits and deferred compensation.

The statewide seminar on the tax bill’s effect on real estate will cover a host of topics, including tax deductions, property depreciation, investments and capital gains and losses. The seminar is being sponsored by the California Assn. of Realtors, the Real Estate & Land Use Institute, California State University and the Ernst & Whinney accounting firm.