NEW YORK, Oct. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- The Tax Governance Institute will examine the likelihood of the United States adding a Value-added Tax (VAT) as a new revenue source on its live video Webcast, "Will the U.S. Adopt a Value-added Tax?" on Wednesday, Oct. 14, from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. (EDT).
Board members, audit committee members, CFOs, tax directors and other business professionals interested in attending the Webcast panel discussion can register by logging on to: www.taxgovernanceinstitute.com.
Sharing their insights on the topic will be panelists:
-- Richard Bird, professor emeritus and associate of the International
Institute of Business, Rotman School of Management, and senior fellow,
Institute for Municipal Finance and Governance, Munk Centre for
International Affairs, the University of Toronto.
-- Harley Duncan, managing director, Washington National Tax, KPMG LLP, and
former executive director of the Federation of Tax Administrators.
-- Bill Gale, the Arjay and Frances Miller Chair in Federal Economic Policy
in the Economic Studies Program at the Brookings Institution.
-- Wally Hellerstein, the Francis Shackelford Professor of Taxation, the
University of Georgia Law School.
Hank Gutman, KPMG tax principal, director of the Tax Governance Institute, and former chief of staff of the U.S. Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation, will serve as moderator of the panel discussion.
"The realities of the U.S. fiscal situation -- including an estimated $1.4 trillion deficit for Fiscal Year 09, projected deficits in excess of 5 percent of Gross Domestic Product and rising demands from entitlement programs -- are leading tax policy makers to consider additional revenue sources," said Gutman. "A value-added tax, which taxes the transfer of goods and services, will clearly be on the table as a topic of increasing discussion," he added, pointing out that VAT is one of the world's most popular taxes and is in use in more than 130 countries.
During the Webcast, panelists will examine U.S. revenue needs; discuss why a VAT, as compared to other consumption taxes, could be a likely revenue source; compare existing VAT systems in other countries; review the Canadian experience in structuring and implementing a VAT; and look at other realistic options for the United States.
The Tax Governance Institute currently comprises more than 17,000 members. Launched in early 2007, it provides a forum for board members, corporate management, stakeholders, and government representatives to share knowledge regarding the identification, oversight, management, and appropriate disclosure of tax risk.
KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm (www.us.kpmg.com), is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International. KPMG International's member firms have 137,000 professionals, including more than 7,600 partners, in 144 countries.
Contact: Robert Nihen/Deborah Primiano
KPMG LLP
201-307-8296/8495
SOURCE KPMG LLP
KPMG LLP
