Book Description
When Charles O. Rossotti became Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service in 1997, the agency had the largest customer base—and the lowest approval rating—of any institution in America. Mired in scandal, caught in a political maelstrom, and beset by profound management and technology problems, the IRS was widely dismissed as a hopelessly flawed enterprise. In Many Unhappy Returns, Rossotti—the first businessperson to head the IRS—recounts the remarkable story of his leadership and transformation of this much-maligned agency. In the glare of intense public scrutiny, he effected dramatic changes in the way the IRS did business—while it continued to collect $2 trillion in revenue. Through fascinating accounts of heated Congressional hearings, encounters with Washington bigwigs, frank exchanges with taxpayers and employees, and risky turnaround strategies, Rossotti serves up a colorful story of leadership and change against daunting odds. He also underscores why every honest taxpayer should demand reform in the broader U.S. tax system. Infused with keen wit and hard-won business wisdom, Many Unhappy Returns illuminates the perils and possibilities of leading large, complex organizations in a transparent world.
Customer Reviews:
Reforming Government is Hopeless!.......2005-12-29
Rossotti tried it as head of the IRS from 1997 to 2002, coming from outside government and without prior significant tax experience. At the time, it had the largest number of customers and lowest approval rating of any institution in America. Behind this rating was a new $4 billion computer system that could not meet requirements, callers couldn't get through, staff could not resolve many issues without added calls and letters, there were high error rates in response to caller questions, and numerous charges of staff building "success rates" by deliberately focusing on taxpayers thought least able to resist.
One of Rossotti's early acts was to have a list compiled of outstanding promises - it exceeded 5,000. He consolidated the list and focused on 157 - giving them top attention. In addition, Y2K was coming - threatening chaos unless thousands of old programs were changed before the old programmers familiar with them and increasingly uncertain about their own future left. (Resolved that problem with a temporary 10% bonus and the promise of re-training in new languages.)
The "bad news," however, is that Congressionally-imposed complexity had led to an 83,000-page manual, a prohibition on quotas, and a requirement for performance statistics. Further, MAJOR improvement would require not only simplifying the tax code but also the organizational structure. For example, the Office of Management and Budget had great control over staffing, and Treasury department attorneys determined the legal rulings used by staff - often with little concern over practicality.
Rossotti focused on having staff stop seeing taxpayers as "the enemy," moved to organize those responding to taxpayer questions by topic and providing more training. Their efforts did improve customer satisfaction ratings, but he did not provide data on what happened after leaving. (My experience in government is that after the crisis passes or the change agent leaves, things revert back to the way they were.)
Probably most helpful, though was Rossotti's suggestion for Congressional focus - that the definitions and requirements regarding dependents (different in various situations) and tax-treatment of savings accounts added the most complexity to most taxpayers situations. Therefore, revising those areas would have significant benefit in simplifying taxpaying for many, many taxpayers.
It's not just the IRS.......2005-06-15
This is a truly remarkable book. Clearly written, with many practical examples and devoid of management jargon, it describes what Charles Rossotti did to signbificantly improve IRS operations. But it's not just about the IRS, or about big, cumbersome government buraeucracies, or about how to change organizations. It's about good management! The principles that guided Rossotti and that he lays out out in this book are universal, such as focus on the customer (that's right, taxpayers treated as customers)and involvement of employees in the improvement process. Those apply to any organization at any time and make this book an extraordinary valuable read for anyone genuinely interested in good management. I highly recommend it.
Government at its best.......2005-05-07
All those interested in how the best modern management practices of the private sector can be applied to huge government bureaucracies with dramatic benefits to the taxpayer (literally) should read Charles Rossotti's book. This book should remove all doubt about whether it's possible to improve the operational performance of government. The fundamentals are all that's needed: getting one's arms around the whole problem, structural reorganization, customer focus, gathering input from all directions, using modern information technology, leveraging the frustrated talent already in the organization, constant and honest communication, and the right chief executive. Rossotti was the right executive for the IRS, and fortunately he has written a clear and lively narrative of his experiences there.
Some Happy Returns Too.......2005-03-28
This is a modest and engaging memoir from a successful businessman who, to the surprise of his own family, accepted an offer to become Commissioner of the IRS. He took the job in 1997, when the IRS was in a political firestorm, being berated as both abusive and bungling in dramatic Congressional hearings. Charles Rossotti took over this very troubled agency, and after five years of hard work, left it, well, still a troubled agency, but with somewhat more manageable problems than it had before.
The list of problems he faced was truly daunting. The IRS was an outdated organization based on geography instead of function; its computer system for taxpayer accounts was from 1962; its customer service lines were chronically busy; and its workforce was demoralized. On his first day in office, Rossotti told his staff he wanted to send an e-mail to all employees and was promptly told it was impossible. Where to begin?
He began with the organization, removing layers of management and consolidating functions so that offices could focus on particular types of taxpayers. Rossotti was allowed to bring in his own management team, but to his relief, found that the career IRS executives he inherited were eager and able to make big changes in the agency. He accompanied IRS employees during their meetings with taxpayers so that he could watch them work. He replaced the big paper manuals that telephone assistors used with computer databases, and devised a plan to keep the old computer system updated for Y2K and tax law changes until a new system could be designed and deployed. All these changes were made after consulting with everyone from the employees' union to small business groups; Rossotti's motto is, "Engage, and then decide."
As the dour title of the book would suggest, not everything went well. Most of Rossotti's plan for "Modernizing America's Tax Agency" had only long-term benefits, but the politicians who make the rules and set the budget wanted a sense of immediate accomplishment. Congress demanded that he respond to the hearings by firing some employees. The White House hoped that a few public relations gestures could just make the problem go away. In one of book's few insider revelations, Rossotti claims that Clinton aides actually asked him to find a "happy taxpayer" for the audience of a State of the Union speech. Rossotti's budget requests were routinely cut, so he reduced enforcement to pay for the improvements he wanted in customer service. Not surprisingly, tax evaders, often assisted by prestigious accounting firms, took full advantage of the decline in audits.
So what is Charles Rossotti's legacy? The organizational and technological changes he was able to make will have lasting benefits. The IRS has caught up with such basics as fax and e-mail, and the irs.gov website is excellent. Rossotti's positive assessment of the employees he met is encouraging. His major emphasis on customer service may be threatened though. Rossotti's successor, alarmed at the level of cheating but no more successful with the overall budget, is now cutting customer service to shore up enforcement. Congress ignored Rossotti's requests to simplify the tax code, and in fact made things worse. Rossotti certainly wasn't the first businessman to go into government and find frustration, but with his modesty and his emphasis on consultation, he seemed much more poised for success than an autocratic type.
Many Unhappy Returns is neither bitter nor self-congratulatory. Rossotti doesn't criticize many people by name, and he is quick to share credit for what went right. His analysis of organizational structures certainly won't outsell books on terrorism or celebrity trials, but he does seem to be a very honest and capable man who took on a difficult job with no prospect of fame or glory. Reading his book is a small way of saying thanks. He didn't completely succeed, but thank God people like him are willing to try.
Someone had to do it.......2005-02-25
Just when you think that your own job is the pits, you encounter someone whose occupation is even worse. Actually, Rosetti volunteered - sort of, if you can call succumbing to pressure from several Washington heavies 'volunteering' - to fix something that appeared terminally broken: the IRS. But the result is a book that has more to do with transformational change in large organisations than taxation, and Rosetti is clear about the steps that were involved in bringing the IRS back from the brink to being a fairly credible organization (although he admits the process will take much longer than the five years that he held the job).
As a former businessman from the private sector, before taking the job he insisted on being able to form his own team - and he managed to assemble some good people from the private sector and from within the IRS. He also highlights the importance of keeping reform promises credible - better, he says, to only promise realistic changes, rather than promise the world and deliver nothing. Another key was the installation of up-to-date technology - astonishing to realise that the IRS was still running on a computer system from 1963.
The major problem was the micro-mandates imposed on him by various Congressmen and other stakeholders, as well as the apparently random interventions of the Clinton White House.
As a non-American, I cannot personally vouch for Rosetti's claims about the IRS lifting its game, although it sounds right from other things I have read and heard. One way or another, it makes for a pretty interesting book, and Rosetti writes with clarity and occasional humor (an ability to see the funny side of things would have been essential in this job).
I think I will send my (advance) copy to the head of the tax office in my own country.
Book Description
Taxation is a grim reality of life. But few realize the impact that taxation has had on society. This serious, but often amusing, book focuses on the enormous influence that taxation has had on the structuring of society throughout the ages and around the world. Told by an expert on taxation,
Customer Reviews:
The Role of Taxes over the Centuries.......2006-08-23
This book is a "must read" for those who want to understand how taxes have altered the rise and fall of civilizations over the centuries. The author makes the complexites of taxes and economic policies understandable and how they affect modern civilization.
Provides a broad overview of taxation in various societies over the centuries.......2005-09-26
This is a very interesting book that will probably give you a better understanding of the ways in which taxation has been used in the past. As in our time, the purposes have been to raise revenue for the government, but they were also used for other purposes. They were used to keep a given people in servitude to another, to shape social policy, to control markets, and so on.
The title of the book notes that taxes can be used for good and for evil. When used judiciously, the public can benefit from our shared contribution to certain good projects. What those are depends on what a given society values, and that is why democratically elected governments and therefore democratically controlled taxation are of real benefit. Unfortunately, we are moving away from such taxes to certain kinds of indirect fees and countless other hidden taxes. These have always ended up badly for a society, as they likely will for us.
However, being a republic, if we become educated about these things and demand our government sweep things clean, we can force it done. We should become more educated about these things and exert more control over government expenditures and on the way revenues are raised to cover them.
This is not a perfect book. Some of the anecdotes are told a bit glibly and others are shaded a bit to make a point. However, you will get the idea. Just don't run out and think that what you read here is settled historical fact. There are often subtleties that are left out in order to make a stronger point. Even with this caveat, this is still a useful book for everyone to read.
A must read for every citizen.......2002-09-12
It's unfortunate that so many American citizens are guilty of imposing willful ignorance upon themselves, otherwise our political leaders would be subject to a tighter leash. Charles Adams wrote this most informative book in the early 1990's and it has resonated with me ever since. He covers the history of taxation from the time of the first recording of history. Indeed the Rosetta stone was a tax document, and like the rest of the book it's a follow-the-money theory of history.
As Adams points out, figurative "mafia families", who have always run countries, have managed to compensate their armies by taxing the productive capacity of their subjects. Adam's central theme is that governments who overtax their citizens are nearly always "hoisted on their own petard." He cites ancient Greece, Rome, indeed governments from all over the world. His end game is to warn America's political elite that they've gone too far in a game where all great cultures have collapsed from within i.e. rotted at their moral core. And, he's right!
This book has many pages of cites and a long bibliography. It's a bit repetitious to read as he covers so many examples to make his point, but it's well worth the attention of every citizen if only they would spare the time.
A sweeping historical narrative of taxation since Babylon.......2001-05-03
I read this book sometime ago, but still recall it quite vividly. For good and evil- taxes seem like there here to stay. Adams, a tax attorney by trade, offers an intriguing narrative history of taxation since ancient times. Moreover, he illustrates how their is a fine line of how much sustained taxation a civilization can endure before it collapses, (hence the Laffer Curve.) He points out the pitfalls the befall ancient Rome and Egypt when they engaged in confiscatory taxation policies.
Additionally, he shows how high taxes feed a vicious cycle of statism, corruption and more taxes and economic collapse as demagogues rise to the power. Indeed, this book makes it clear that taxation has "the power to destroy" as it has brought mighty empires to their knees. (Granted, some might say its the effect, not the cause of a debased culture. Morality and tradition play a role as well in the collapse of civilizations.)
Also recommend: When Nations Die by Jim Black.
Many of the other reviews miss the point.......2000-10-10
Many of the reviews posted are so obviously biased for and against taxes or big governement as to make their review worthless.
The book has 38 chapters, nearly every one discusses taxation in a different society starting in ancient Egypt and disucsses taxation by the Greeks, Roman, Russians, French, English, and finally Americans among others. The point is not that taxation is bad, but that corrupt systems of taxation are bad and that taxation above a certain level is bound to fail since people will find ways to avoid it. This is not made up history, there are 23 pages of endnotes and a twelve page bibliography.
There are a number of illustrations, as well as, well written stories from the Rosetta Stone (it was actually a grant of tax immunity); to how Muslims taxed infidels more in order to get them to convert; to Lady Godiva (she made her ride get the King, her husband, to remit the heavy taxes he imposed on the Coventry);, to taxation as one cause of the Civil War that few are aware of (there are 16 endnotes on this chapter alone, many from articles written during the Civil War).
This is a facinating book that should be required reading for every member of Congress.
Average customer rating:
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Being Self-Employed: How to Run a Business Out of Your Home, Claim Travel and Depreciation, and Earn a Good Income Well into Your 70s or 80s (Series 100: Individuals & Families)
Holmes F. Crouch
Manufacturer: Allyeartax Guides
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Self-employed Tax Solutions: Quick, Simple, Money-Saving, Audit-Proof Tax and Recordkeeping Basics for the Independent Professional
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Keeping Good Records: Self-Discipline & Tax Life Reality Require Clear Separation & Purging of Personal, Business, Investment, & Family Matters (Series 500: Audits & Appeals)
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Tax Deductions A to Z for Home Office & Self Employed (Tax Deductions A to Z series)
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Capital Gains & Losses: How to "Exact Match" Your Broker Reportings, Revamp Your Cost Basis, & Optimize the 15% Tax Rate on Long-term Gains (Series 200: Investors & Businesses)
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Rental Real Estate (Series 400: Owners and Sellers)
ASIN: 0944817734 |
Book Description
Designed for navigating through the tax code, this guide helps the self-employed keep a greater percentage of their income. The importance of keeping up-to-date records, measuring net profits and losses, and handling the "SE tax"—a flat tax which every self-employed person is subject to—is discussed. Particular attention is paid to preparing for audits, changing tax status after marriage or divorce, and becoming financially confident through better knowledge of the tax code.
Book Description
The preparation of tax records is the most important paperwork duty of occupationally active citizens and residents; this book offers guidance on what to keep and what to throw away so that the right information and necessary proof is readily available if needed. As the IRS increasingly encourages e-filing of tax returns, taxpayers become lazier regarding hard-copy records. Detailed are which records need to be kept for more than 15 years, which need to be kept for five to 15 years, and which need to be kept for five years or less. Tips are given on how to select and organize records properly.
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Keeping Good Records (Series 500: Audits and Appeals)
Holmes F. Crouch
Manufacturer: Allyear Tax Guides
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ASIN: 0944817459 |
Average customer rating:
- Some great tax suggestions here.
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Bad Tax Idea, Good Tax Idea
Kim, Isaac Greenblatt
Manufacturer: Kim Greenblatt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Personal Taxes
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ASIN: 0977728269 |
Book Description
This book is full of great tips for legally saving money and avoiding potential problems when filing U.S. Federal income taxes. Some of the suggestions have never appeared in print before. Kim Greenblatt, a tax professional, shares his observations of both bad and good tax ideas that he has encountered in his preparation of U.S. tax returns for his clients. Taking advantage of at least one of his suggestions might save you hundreds or thousands of dollars in taxes or in aggrevation when filing your U.S. Federal income tax returns.
Customer Reviews:
Some great tax suggestions here........2007-08-15
As a tax preparer myself, I always look for little tidbits that I can pass on to my clients. This small book as a lot of interesting points - some presented elsewhere and some just here. The author points out in a "bad idea" versus "good idea" mode some of the tax situations that he has encountered. Some of them are tax status in regards to marital status, should a person incorporate or be a sole proprietorship, how to know if you are really running a business from home or a hobby. Some of this information can be found on the web however the author has the gist of it here in nice spot. I am going to get some extra copies to give to clients just to remind them and gently get them thinking about taxes year round instead of five minutes before they come in and see me! Worth getting this book!
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Canadian goods & services tax reporter
Manufacturer: CCH Canadian Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
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ASIN: 0887966845 |
Book Description
Consolidated to June 2001 - includes ammendments from Bills C-23, C-25, and C-32, as passed, and C-24 and C-28, as proposed. The only Guide available that includes GST and HST commentary and legislation, as well as a GST.HST comparison. Written by a team of Ernst & Young specialists under the direction of Peter Wood, VCA, National Director of Commodity Tax. The Complete Guide to the Goods and Services Tax helps you find everything you need to know about GST and HST, quickly and easily. Updated to June 2001, it ensures you are current with the latest legislation and adminstrative policy. Comprehensive and thoroughly indexed and cross-referenced, this ninth edition of Canada's most popular GST reference source is a must-have for your library. Product Number 09630009
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The Complete guide to the goods and services tax
Manufacturer: Ernst & Young
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ASIN: 0888004028 |
Book Description
The Please Teacher Anime fanbook is here! Included are pages of beautiful digital images, an original short story, sketches, creator commentary and loads of extras. A must-have for any true anime fan!
Customer Reviews:
Just a little more Information.......2007-08-28
if you even somewhat like this series you need to get this "art" book and I use the term "art" loosly. It has so much more than art. The best way to describe it would have to be a Statagy guide for the series. Do not get me wrong the art in this book is breath taking from one page to the next. it also gives a full rundown of each character, each episode and then on top of all of that it give a short story for each primary character giving us just that extra little information that we didnt need but it helps expand the world by inmesasureable amounts. Please pick this up it is worth the money. Enjoy!
Fanbook Artwrok.......2007-05-08
If you are a fan of the series then this is definetly worth the price the artwork is supurb. The layout in the book is brilliant. Loads of art not seen in the series.
Absolutely beautiful.......2007-05-03
First off this book is translated into English. The photos, bio's, and stories are all absolutely beautiful. It's a great read, but let's face it... you're probably not buying it for the text. It offers enough fan service, but nothing graphic or anything to worry about children finding.
For the otaku in you!.......2004-11-01
Although I am a fan of anime, I have never read the Onegai Teacher! manga. I had bought this item as a gift for a friend of mine who is a die-hard fan of the series. She was completely thrilled! After much cooing over the book I got a chance to look through it, and was very impressed. This fanbook has great pictures, detailed bios, and lots of extras for those who want to know everything about this anime. This item is a must for any Onegai Teacher! fan.
Do you have it all?.......2004-02-15
Do you have the anime and manga? Well, how about the Fanbook? It's just not an art book, it has everything. Tons of art from the anime, from pinups and magazines, as well as rough drafts. It also has character files, a story guide, original short stories, art from scenes that were never made, interviews, comments and so much more. Get it for yourself or a fan of the series. Only for age 13 and up.
Book Description
Texas and Texans have been known to boast of having the best or the worst, the most or the least, the largest or the tiniest of just about everything. Join author Bill Cannon as he reveals facts that depict the colorful bravado unique to the Lone Star State. For instance, not six but seven flags flew over Texas. In 1832 the composer of The Star Spangled Banner, Francis Scott Key, was the counsel hired by Sam Houston to defend him on assault charges. And someone other than Sam Bass may be buried in his grave. A Treasury of Texas Trivia is complemented by newspaper accounts, photographs, and other documentation of these and other little-known bits of Texas history.
Customer Reviews:
Refreshing Book about Texas.......1998-11-05
I found this book to a very interesting book on Texas tidbits. I read a lot about Texas that I never imagined. I recommend this book as a refreshing book to read.
Refreshing.......1998-11-03
I found that this book was very interesting and I learned a lot about Texas and Texans. I recommend this to everone who is interested in Texas, trivia and even to those who are not. Very enjoyable reading.
Very interesting book about Texas. Great reading........1998-10-30
I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. It was hard to put down. Many extremely interesting facts about the great state of Texas. I recommend this book for everyone to read, even non-Texans.
Turly enjoyable!.......1998-10-30
This book by Bill Cannon is a book that can be enjoyed a little at a time or read until complete. I truly did feel that I learned a lot about Texas and Texans.
Fascinating, fun, and humorous facts about Texas history........1997-06-11
A Treasury of Texas Trivia by Bill Cannon is a great read. It's the kind of book you can pick up in the middle and read just a story or two (of course you'll want to read more)
Book Description
Author Bill Cannon has been collecting jokes and humorous stories about the antics of fellow Texans for literally years. Once he began this book people started sending him their own special favorites. This delightfully funny book covers every facet of Texas humor from life on the range to church, politics, Texas women, history, and hysterics. And it's a book your kids can read.
Customer Reviews:
Wonderful reading for a good laugh!.......2000-05-03
In A Treasury Of Texas Humor, Bill Cannon has distilled the best of the jokes and humorous stories he has been collecting over the years. A Treasury Of Texas Humor showcases the antics of his fellow Texans in such diverse areas as life on the range, religion, politics, Texas women, Texas pride, Texas fish tales, marriage, money, history, culture and a great deal more. A Treasury Of Texas Humor is wonderful reading for a lazy afternoon or anytime other time a good laugh would be well appreciated.
Book Description
A Treasury of Texas Trivia ranked in the top ten best sellers for Republic of Texas Press last year. It's one of those little books that fascinate and amuse readers for many reasons and just keeps on selling. Now author Bill Cannon has gathered a new collection of new facts and fun tidbits relating to the state, the people in it, and the ones who have left to make their mark on history. This book is a great conversation starter, useful for trivia game players and anyone else who enjoys trivia.
Books:
- Marshfield Dreams: When I Was a Kid
- Matt Urban: America's Most Decorated Soldier in World War II
- Memoirs of the public and private life of Napoleon Bonaparte
- Memories of the Jing Bao and Beyond
- MOONLESS NIGHT (Pen & Sword Military Classics)
- My Longest Night
- Newcastle Out of Toon: The Insider Story of Newcastle at War
- No Ordinary Man: The Life and Times of Miguel de Cervantes
- Offshore Money Book, The : How to Move Assets Offshore for Privacy, Protection, and Tax Advantage
- Patton And Rommel: Men of War in the Twentieth Century
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