I’m pleased to announce the 4th International Taxpayer Rights Conference to be held May 23 and 24, 2019, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A. Convened by the National Taxpayer Advocate, the conference will be hosted by the University of Minnesota School of Law and is sponsored by Tax Analysts, with technical assistance from the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (IBFD). In this year’s conference, we’ll explore the role of taxpayer rights in the digital age, and the implications of the expanding digital environment for transparency, certainty, and privacy in tax administration. How will “big data” impact the right to privacy in the context of tax administration?  What is the effect of increasingly digital delivery of taxpayer assistance on vulnerable taxpayer groups?  What is the role of “whistleblowers” in tax administration, including access to tax information?  These are just a sample of the issues we’ll address at this year’s gathering. Early registration for the conference will open in early 2019.

We’re currently seeking presentation and paper proposals for the conference on a range of topics. In developing proposals, the conference encourages proposals from multiple disciplines (e.g., from the fields of law, economics, psychology, anthropology, sociology, and computer science, as well as from government officials, ombuds, and taxpayer advocates). You can find a list of topics and submission procedures in the Call for Conference Papers and Presentations. The deadline for submission of abstracts is December 1 and participants will be notified of their selection by January. Conference fees for presenters will be waived. Travel and accommodation assistance also may be available for academic presenters, courtesy of co-sponsors.

Since November 2015, I’ve convened three international conferences with the purpose of bringing together government officials, scholars, and practitioners from around the world, and providing a forum for a multi-disciplinary discussion of the operation of taxpayer rights in theory and practice. The 3rd International Conference on Taxpayer Rights, held in 2018 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, was fully subscribed by 160 attendees from 42 countries. The agenda and abstracts provide the scope of the 2018 conference and the videos, hosted on the Tax Notes YouTube site, provide excellent examples of the caliber of our panels and the depth of the presentations on topics such as Burden of Proof in Tax Disputes, Taxpayer Protections in Cross-Border Taxation, and Good Governance & Remedies: Taxpayer Rights in Application.

Taxpayer rights serve as the foundation for effective tax administration. Whether expressed through a charter or taxpayer bill of rights, or a declaration of human rights, governments have long recognized that providing taxpayers with assurances of fair treatment and respect, and protections against government overreaching, further voluntary compliance. Please don’t miss your chance to be a part of this global taxpayer rights discussion.

Here’s where you can stay up to date about the 4th International Conference on Taxpayer Rights.