"The election and trader tax issues" (Active Trader, October 2008) looked at how the two U.S. presidential candidates could impact traders. All differences aside, Republicans and Democrats across the board are calling on the IRS to "close the tax gap" and significantly raise tax compliance, which could result in an increased number of tax exams (i.e., audits). Traders in particular are at risk for these exams.

The IRS is enhancing its software to match tax returns with 1099s, W-2s, and Schedule K-1s (from partnerships and SCorps).