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An interview with Dr. Jane G. Gravelle, Senior Specialist in Economic Policy with the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress, is presented. When asked about the recent changes to the official rules on dynamic scoring of tax bills, Gravelle discusses the dynamic scoring and point estimates in determining macroeconomic effects of legislative proposals. Gravelle also talks about taxation of foreign business income, business lobbying for tax benefits, and value added tax.

An interview with 1986 Tax Reform Act participant and 1969 to 1995 U.S. Senator Bob Packwood of Oregon is presented. Topics discussed include his chairmanship of the Senate Finance Committee during the passage of the Act, his legislative consultant position in Washington, D.C. in 1998, and the Act's objective of broadening the base and lowering the rates. It also mentions the 1981 Tax Reform Act.

An interview with former U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner, Charles O. Rossotti is presented. Rossotti talks about the challenge of communicating with employees due to the absence of email and voicemail systems at the IRS in 1997. He describes the obsolescence that existed in the IRS during the mid-1990s as one that involved not just the need for computer hardware, but disorganization and outdated practices. He also notes the difficulty of modernizing the IRS.

The article presents a reprint of the article featuring an interview with tax lawyer Ward M. Hussey by Jasper L. Cummings, Jr. and Alan J.J. Swirski, which appeared in the summer 2000 issue of "NewsQuarterly." Hussey, participant in the 1986 Tax Reform Act, talked about several topics related to tax including writing the "Basic World Tax Code" with Don Lubick, the work of Dr. Laurence N. Woodworth, and his approach to drafting the U.S. Tax Code.

The article highlights the truths or fallacies embedded in the U.S. Supreme Court's rulings in the case, National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius in 2012. The court found that the Anti-Injunction Act did not preclude a declaratory attack on a federal tax before payment. The U.S. Congress pursued a Taxpayer Bill of Rights 2 and 3 in the 1990s. It is noted that the Congress was unable to focus on the inroads made on its Commerce Clause powers by the Rehnquist Court.

An interview with Mark Prater, deputy staff director and minority chief tax counsel on the Senate Finance Committee, is presented. Prater says he began as a tax counsel in January 1990. He was asked about the successes that came out of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction or Super Committee. Prater mentions that most of the fiscal issues that the Super Committee dealt with are also Finance Committee jurisdiction items.

An interview with Douglas L. Lindholm, the president and executive director of the Council On State Taxation (COST), is presented. He describes the history and activities of COST. He cites the most important trends in state taxation for multistate corporations. He also discusses efforts toward uniformity in U.S. state tax laws.

An interview with Washington, D.C.-based Americans for Tax Reform president Grover Norquist is presented. He talks about a feasible movement which advocates a flat tax, which he has been advancing since 2003. He discusses the need for an annual tax reduction, and how can it be implemented. He explains the best way to eliminate the two tier taxation.

A reprint of an interview with the late Dan Rostenkowski, a former chairman of the U.S. Committee on Ways and Means of the U.S. House of Representatives, that was published in the Winter 1996 issue of the "Newsletter" of the Section of Taxation of the American Bar Association (ABA) is presented. Rostenkowski expressed his views on the Tax Reform Act of 1986. He commented on his professional relationship with U.S. President Ronald Reagan. He also talked about value-added tax (VAT).

An interview with Gilbert Rothenberg, chief of the Appelate Section of the Tax Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is presented. When asked about his influences in tax litigation, he mentions lawyer Seymour Horowitz, a close family fiend and his first tax course teacher, the late Professor Janet Spragens. Rothenberg shares that the mission of his section is to handle all civil tax appeals, from Tax Courts to the Court of Federal Claims. He also informs about the relationship between his section and the U.S. Solicitor General's Office.

An interview with Irwin L. Treiger, tax counsel at Stoel Rives LLP based in Seattle, Washington and recipient of the 2009 American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Taxation Distinguished Service Award, is presented. He attributes his interest in tax law to courses at the University of Washington. According to Treiger, he worked for Dewey Ballantine while attending New York University (NYU) master of law (LL.M.) program. When asked about changes in practicing law in Washington, he mentions the emergence of specialization as the norm.

An interview with Mel Thomas, a former staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation, is presented. When asked how he came to work at the Joint Committee, he states that when he got out of high school, he knew that he was going to be a tax lawyer. He notes that his major regulations project was writing the regulations on charitable remainder trusts under section 664.

An interview with Mike Friel, director the Graduate Tax Program of the University of Florida Levin College of Law, and law professor Marty McMahon, about the university's graduate tax program is presented.

An interview with Buck Chapoton, assistant secretary of the Treasury for Tax Policy under U.S. President Ronal Reagan is presented. Chapoton described the tax policy environment when the Reagan administration started working on tax reform and identified major tax cuts as the principal ingredient of the first economic package on 1981. He discusses Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982, Deficit Reduction Act (DEFRA) of 1984 and the fundamental tax reform in 1986.

An interview with the principal counsel and justices in the case Pollock v. Farmers' Loan and Trust Co. is presented. When asked about the reason behind the decision of the plaintiff to file a lawsuit against the income tax of 1894, plaintiff counsel Joseph H. Choate mentioned the alleged communism of the act of the U.S. Congress in its purposes and tendencies. Defendant counsel James C. Carter talked about corporate tax. U.S. Justice Stephen Field expressed his views on income tax issues.

An interview with N. Jerold Cohen, recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from the Tax Section of the American Bar Association (ABA) in 2011, is presented. When asked about his experience of working as chief counsel of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS), he explains the responsibility of the chief counsel. He talks about being appointed by U.S. President Jimmy Carter to replace Stuart Siegel in the IRS. He also expresses his views on litigating attorneys.

An interview with Kees van Raad, director of the International Tax Center (ITC) Leiden at Leiden University in The Netherlands, is presented. Van Raad says he was given a scholarship by the Washington, D.C. Chapter of the Netherlands-American Foundation to attend the LL.M. program at Georgetown University. He discusses the origin and history of the ITC. He adds that around 25 percent of their students come from Asia.

An interview with Wilmer Hale partner William J. Wilkins is presented. When asked about his appointment by U.S. President Barack Obama as chief counsel of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS), he mentioned his experience of working for the U.S. government at the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. He talked about his involvement in a leadership group within the IRS. He also offered information on U.S. National Office attorneys.

An interview with the late U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, based on his views on taxes, taken from his public statements is presented. President Lincoln talks about topics including his thoughts on the tariff in late 1859, his economic theory of tariffs in 1847, and whether he stretched the truth about the benefits of protective tariff. He also discusses his being a tax litigator in Illinois in 1853, his view on relative merits of capital and labor taxation, and first U.S. income tax law.

An interview with economist and author Roy Blough is presented wherein he talks about the federal taxing policies. When asked about the basic problem of tax policy formation, Blough said it is the resolving of widespread, persistent, fundamental disagreements about federal tax policy makers. When asked about the meaning of federal tax policy, Blough said tax policy in practice means identifying desired objectives or purposes and determining whether tax law provision will reach that objective.

The article features Paul H. Frankel, a senior counsel with New York-based Morrison and Foerster. It explains that Frankel graduated from law school at the University of Virginia in 1961 and his first reported case in 1964 involved a 237.13 dollar deficiency. It also discusses Frankel's private and his work in federal tax cases at W.R. Grace & Co.

An interview with tax professional R.J. Ruble about his conviction at Lewisburg, Pennsylvania related to legal advice on tax shelters is presented. Ruble says he was convicted of defrauding the U.S. government related to tax opinions that he wrote for clients. He relates that he was not aware of any other tax attorneys or any other attorneys convicted of defrauding the government as he was. He adds that only a small proportion of those imprisoned at Lewisburg are white collar criminals.

An interview with Steven A. Musher, associate chief counsel international (ACCI) at the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS), is presented. Musher says he was appointed ACCI in April 2006 after acting in the said position since November 2005. He relates that the Advance Pricing Agreement Program is committed to multi-year, prospective resolution of transfer pricing issues. Musher also describes the relationship between his office and the IRS operating divisions.

An interview with Mabel Walker Willebrandt, the U.S. assistant attorney general from 1921 to 1929, is presented. When asked about her life before joining the U.S. Department of Justice, she talked about having graduated from law school and having worked as a defendant of prostitutes. She offered information on her opportunity to head Prohibition enforcement. She also expressed her views on handling tax cases.