Robert D. Flach, a New Jersey tax preparer and blogger, is a supporter of the IRS preparer regulation initiative. I asked him how he would be able to tell whether the effort was a success. He responds here:
It will be difficult to truly measure the success of the regulation concept until the issuance of the RTRP designation is fully phased in
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JK-
But what do you think of my suggestion about an independent AIRTRP to manage the RTRP creditian (as AICPA does with CPA) instead of having it maintained by the IRS?
TWTP
TWTP: I’m perfectly happy with an independent accreditation agency, but not on the condition of it being the gatekeeper for a government-enforced credential for tax preparation. I actually think a private self-enforcing accreditation function would be a more credible credential.
In the spirit of making lemonade out of lemons, one positive unintended consequence of the TPID/RTP is that it allows undergraduate students a chance to show their tax skills to employers by passing the Competency Exam.