artificial intelligence

Busy Season 2026: IRS Problems, Staffing Issues and Client Wrangling Emerge as Top Pressures

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IRS dysfunction replaces OBBBA as top concern.

On the front lines (clockwise from top left): Woodard, Dienhart, Volk, Stitely, Tejero, Brady, Svihla.

By CPA Trendlines

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With only a week to go before the opening of filing season 2026, tax practitioners are focusing on IRS dysfunction as their biggest potential problem this year

And no wonder. The agency was already chronically underfunded, buried under a mountain of overdue paperwork, and crippled by ancient computer systems when it lost 25% of its workforce in early 2025.

JOIN the Busy Season Barometer survey here.

MORE TAX, PRICING, and THE 2026 OUTLOOK

Today 63% of tax professionals say a beleaguered IRS poses the single biggest risk to this year’s tax season, up from 54% just a couple of months ago, according to the CPA Trendlines Busy Season Barometer.

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Outlook 2026: AI, Not Layoffs, Powers PE Valuations

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How CPAs are using AI to boost EBITDA multiples.

Ilya and Victor Radzinski, TaxDome co-founders

By CPA Trendlines

Private equity investors are paying higher prices for CPA firms that deploy artificial intelligence to expand capacity, deepen professional benches, and systematize growth—rather than cut headcount.

MORE TaxDome | MORE Private Equity

“If AI were about to replace accountants and advisors, private equity wouldn’t be pouring billions into the sector,” TaxDome founders Ilya and Victor Radzinsky say in a public letter to stakeholders.

As dealmaking accelerates into 2026, the shift helps explain why valuation multiples for accounting firms continue to rise even as automation spreads through tax, audit, and advisory workflows. Private equity sponsors and strategic consolidators have completed hundreds of acquisitions of CPA firms since 2020, often at valuation multiples that would have been rare a decade ago.

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What AI CEO’s Warning Means (and Doesn’t) for Accountants

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Five reasons your work is safe … if you’re doing the right work.

By Hitendra Patil
Client Accounting Services: The Definitive Success Guide

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has issued a fresh warning: Some jobs are just going to go away. “Totally, totally gone,” as reported by Techspot. Altman was discussing the effect of artificial intelligence on customer support roles and indicated that entire categories of work could be under threat.

FOR MORE A.I.: Ask the CPA Trendlines AI Chatbot

MORE by Hitendra Patil: The DNA of Advisory-CAS | Advisory Is Not Consulting | What Exactly Is Client Advisory Services? | Review Your CAS Offerings | CAS Prospects Want Proof? You’ve Got That | What AI CEO’s Warning Means (and Doesn’t) for Accountants | Ditch the Sales Pitch | How to Get CAS Clients to Blow Your Horn | Four Questions for Choosing CAS Clients | What Is Your Firm’s Marketable Value? | Seven Tips for CAS Marketing | Twelve Things That Kill Your CAS Profits
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AI eliminating middle-class jobs immediately raises severe concerns. But what does it mean for accountants? While AI automation clearly targets customer support, accounting professionals should naturally wonder if their work is next.

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