The Tax Law Changed. The Real Story Is What Comes Next.
When Congress passes a major tax bill, most people assume the hard part is over. In reality, that's often when the next phase begins.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service released their 2026 Priority Guidance Plan, outlining the regulations and administrative guidance they expect to work on over the coming year. At first glance, it may look like another government planning document. For tax professionals, however, it serves as a roadmap for where Treasury intends to spend its time—and where taxpayers should expect important answers to emerge.
This year's agenda is particularly significant because it focuses heavily on implementing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), one of the most sweeping tax laws enacted in recent years. The guidance plan also reflects an effort to reduce regulatory complexity by eliminating outdated or unnecessary tax regulations.
For taxpayers, however, the biggest takeaway isn't simply what's on the list. It's understanding what happens next—and why that process may take longer than many people expect.
Passing the Law Is Only the BeginningCongress writes tax laws, but Congress rarely answers every practical question.
Instead, legislation establishes the framework. Treasury and the IRS then issue regulations, revenue procedures, notices, and other administrative guidance that explain how those laws are intended to operate in real-world situations.
That guidance often determines how businesses calculate deductions, how elections are made, what documentation is required, how credits are claimed, and what planning opportunities actually exist.
In other words, the statute tells us what Congress intended. Treasury regulations often explain how taxpayers are expected to comply.
Until those regulations are issued, many taxpayers are left interpreting broad statutory language while waiting for additional clarification.
That is why we pay as much attention to Treasury's regulatory agenda as we do to new legislation itself.
Treasury's Primary Focus: Implementing the One Big Beautiful Bill ActThe 2026 agenda makes one priority unmistakably clear: implementing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Treasury expects to devote substantial resources to regulations affecting many of the provisions that business owners and investors have been watching closely, including:
- Research and development (R&D) expensing
- Bonus depreciation
- Section 163(j) business interest limitation rules
- Opportunity Zones
- Foreign tax credit changes
- Trump Accounts
- Remittance-transfer excise tax provisions
- Numerous additional technical provisions contained within the legislation
Each of these projects has the potential to affect tax planning, compliance, recordkeeping, reporting requirements, and future investment decisions.
For businesses, the practical impact is straightforward: many of the planning opportunities created by the new law will not be fully understood until Treasury explains how it intends to administer them.
That does not mean planning stops today. It simply means that planning must remain flexible as additional guidance is released.
Treasury Is Also Trying to Reduce RegulationsAnother important feature of this year's agenda is Treasury's continued emphasis on deregulation.
Alongside dozens of new regulatory projects are initiatives designed to simplify or eliminate existing regulations that Treasury believes are no longer necessary.
Among the projects identified are efforts involving:
- Eliminating unnecessary tax regulations
- Withdrawal of certain partnership-related party basis-shifting regulations
- Simplification of capitalization rules under Section 263A
- Increased information-reporting thresholds
- Other projects intended to reduce administrative burdens
While reducing unnecessary regulations is generally viewed as a positive development, it creates an important practical consideration for taxpayers.
As regulations are withdrawn, modified, or replaced, previously issued guidance may no longer reflect current law.
Advice that was accurate several years ago may not remain accurate after Treasury completes its current regulatory projects.
That's why relying on outdated internet articles, older tax planning guides, or historical advice can become increasingly risky during periods of significant tax change.
One Major Wild Card: Ken Kies' DepartureAlthough Treasury has published an ambitious regulatory agenda, one significant development could affect both its timing and its execution.
Shortly after the release of the guidance plan, Ken Kies departed from Treasury.
Outside the tax profession, his name may not be widely recognized. Within the tax community, however, his departure attracted immediate attention.
Ken Kies served as the Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy, leading Treasury's Office of Tax Policy. He also held a senior leadership role within the Office of Chief Counsel. Those positions placed him at the center of federal tax policy development and regulatory implementation.
When difficult technical questions arose, when competing policy objectives needed to be balanced, or when major tax regulations required coordination across Treasury and the IRS, he was frequently involved in those discussions.
Simply put, he was one of the government's most experienced tax policy leaders.
That experience matters.
Implementing legislation as comprehensive as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act requires more than simply assigning attorneys to draft regulations. It requires leadership capable of making difficult policy decisions, coordinating across agencies, resolving technical disagreements, and moving complex projects from concept to publication.
Replacing that level of institutional knowledge is not something that happens overnight.
What Could This Mean Going Forward?No one should assume that Treasury's regulatory agenda has changed simply because leadership has changed.
The projects identified in the Priority Guidance Plan remain important.
However, leadership transitions often affect priorities, timing, and resource allocation.
Some regulations may move more slowly than originally anticipated.
Others may require additional review before publication.
Still others could be revised as new leadership evaluates policy decisions that were previously underway.
For taxpayers, this means one thing above all else:
Patience will likely be required.
Businesses hoping for immediate answers on some of the new provisions may need to wait longer than expected while Treasury completes the regulatory process.
Guidance Will Continue to EvolveAnother important point often overlooked during major tax legislation is that guidance rarely arrives all at once.
Treasury may first issue notices.
Those notices may later be replaced by proposed regulations.
The proposed regulations may receive public comments.
After reviewing those comments, Treasury may issue revised final regulations.
Additional technical corrections or administrative guidance may follow.
As this process unfolds, interpretations can evolve.
That evolution is a normal part of tax administration.
It also means that taxpayers should periodically revisit planning strategies developed immediately after major legislation is enacted.
What appears to be the preferred interpretation today may look different after Treasury finishes writing the regulations.
Don't Assume Older Guidance Still AppliesTreasury has also emphasized reducing regulatory complexity.
As part of that effort, some existing regulations and administrative guidance may eventually be withdrawn, modified, or declared obsolete as new guidance replaces older rules.
For taxpayers, this creates an important practical consideration.
A planning strategy based on guidance issued years ago may not continue to reflect current law after Treasury completes its new regulatory projects.
That doesn't necessarily mean prior advice was incorrect.
It means the law continues to evolve.
One of the most valuable services a tax advisor provides is not simply understanding today's rules, but recognizing when yesterday's guidance no longer reflects today's regulatory environment.
Why We're Watching This So CloselyMost taxpayers understandably focus on tax laws passed by Congress.
Our job goes a step further.
We also monitor how Treasury and the IRS interpret those laws because those interpretations frequently determine how planning strategies are implemented, how deductions are documented, and how compliance requirements are satisfied.
Over the next year, we expect to see a steady stream of proposed regulations, notices, and other guidance affecting business deductions, international tax rules, investment incentives, reporting requirements, and several of the new tax benefits created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
We'll also be watching for changes to existing regulations as Treasury continues its broader deregulatory efforts.
Both developments have the potential to affect tax planning decisions.
The Bottom LineThe One Big Beautiful Bill Act changed the tax law, but the implementation process is only beginning.
Treasury has now identified the projects it intends to pursue, giving taxpayers and advisors a clearer picture of where federal tax guidance is headed. At the same time, the departure of one of Treasury's most experienced tax policy leaders introduces uncertainty regarding how quickly that guidance will be developed and finalized.
As new regulations are issued, some long-standing guidance may also be revised, withdrawn, or replaced. That means tax planning will continue to evolve over the coming months as Treasury translates legislation into practical administrative rules.
If you're considering a significant business transaction, investment, entity change, or other major tax decision, don't assume that last year's guidance reflects the most current direction of federal tax policy.
Before moving forward, let's discuss how these developments may affect your specific situation. Staying ahead of tax changes isn't just about reading the new law. It's about understanding how that law will ultimately be interpreted and applied.
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