There is a perception that academic conferences for tax educators are filled with arcane terminology and jargon that only an Internal Revenue Service agent could love. But not if California State University, Northridge’s Monica Gianni has her way.

CSUN Accounting and Information Systems professor Monica Gianni. Photo Credit: CSUN website.

Gianni, a professor in CSUN’s Department of Accounting and Information Systems, hopes for a more vibrant and stimulating discussion by inviting students, alumni, educators and the public to share their proposals, ideas and suggestions at the second annual Tax Development Conference next month.

The conference is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, May 4, at CSUN’s Orange Grove Bistro, located near the corner of Zelzah Avenue and Nordhoff Street in Northridge. International scholars, alumni, five CSUN professors and six professors from around the nation are expected to attend and present their research at the conference.

“Alumni and other practitioners come to provide a different perspective [from] what professors are writing and proposing,” Gianni said. “We’re trying to open the conference to more of the community and graduates because they’re what makes this [conference] outstanding.”

Keynote speaker Mark Hoose, Intel Corporation’s senior director and counsel for international tax and adjunct professor at Portland State University, will discuss the international tax provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Before the closing presentation, Gianni will discuss how base erosion and profit shifting affects taxation in a digital economy. She will talk about how business is done online, how tax laws have not changed and how to bring the laws up to date.

The event will cover topics such as, “An Evaluation of a University-based, Pro Bono Tax Services Program for Low-income Taxpayers,” “Auditors and the Predictive Power of the Deferred Tax Valuation” and “‘Oh, I See’: Suggestions for Greater Tax Transparency.”

“This conference will evolve into something not typical, but something better,” Gianni said.

Attendees must RSVP for the event at CSUN’s alumni events website. The price for the event is $50 per person.

A reception sponsored by Central Washington University’s Hoops Tax Institute will follow the conference. The conference is co-sponsored by CSUN’s Bookstein Institute for Higher Education in Taxation and Central Washington University.

Accounting & Information Systems, Bookstein Hall, tax