The Super Committee – more formally known as the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction – is expected to announce soon that its members were unable to reach an agreement, according to several reports, including this one from CNN. If committee members are unable to reach consensus today – this the deadline to bring a plan to the CBO for its analysis – some $1.2 trillion in spending reductions will kick in, beginning in January 2013.

While it’s still possible (as of mid-morning Monday, November 21, 2011) that failure may be averted, the Super Committee had a number of obstacles to overcome from the start. A significant one was the accelerated schedule under which the Committee worked, says Marc Gerson, partner with the law firm of Miller & Chevalier, and an expert on federal tax policy. “Tax reform is a long, complicated process,” he says. “Doing tax reform in an accelerated time period is exceptionally difficult.” more

Two recent surveys by Experian, an information services company, show companies taking longer to pay. However, as they point out, the trend may or may not be an indication of the state of the economy. Instead, some firms may be slowing their payments as a cash management strategy.

Experian’s Q3 Business Benchmark Report, released October 18, showed that all companies paid their bills in September an average of 7.1 days after the contracted terms. That was a jump of more than 16 percent from September 2010. What’s more, the average percentage of dollars delinquent by up to 90 days rose by 11.9 percent, while the percentage of dollars considered severely delinquent – that is, more than 90 days past due – jumped 15.8 percent.

The increases are most pronounced at the two ends of the size spectrum. The percentage of delinquent payments jumped by 20.5 percent among businesses with no employees, and by 28 percent by businesses with 1,000 or more employees. more

If your firm recently has been visited by an IRS or state tax auditor, you’re not alone. More than three-fifths of corporate tax execs surveyed in October by KPMG LLP indicated that activities stemming from federal tax disputes had increased over the past year. In addition, 37 percent indicated that the number of state tax audits had jumped.

The IRS’ own numbers, as presented in its Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Request, confirm the increase. The Service increased the number of large corporation audits by 8.1 percent, and the number of foreign corporation audits by nearly 48 percent, between fiscal year 2009 and 2010. (Individuals didn’t get off any easier, as the number of individual returns examined rose 11 percent, to 1.58 million, between fiscal 2009 and 2010.)

From the IRS’ perspective, the heightened enforcement activity is working. In fiscal year 2010, revenue from enforcement sources topped $57 billion, up 18 percent from fiscal 2009. more

Given the ongoing upheaval in the banking sector – indeed, 87 have closed so far this year, compared to 24 in 2008, the FDIC reports – it shouldn’t be surprising that corporate treasurers are keeping an eye on their banks’ health. According to the recently released AFP Treasury Benchmarking Program 2011 Survey, more than two-thirds of corporate treasurers consider a bank’s health to be a significant factor in initiating or maintaining a business relationship. What’s more, nearly one in five changed banks last year due to concerns about a bank’s health.

Other survey findings: on average, the typical treasury department manages five banking relationships, although this varies by organization size and industry. Organizations with annual revenues of $500 million of $999 million typically work with five banks, while those with annual revenues of between $5 billion and $10 billion have relationships with 15. The majority of bank relationships last an average of ten years. more

In Congressional testimony he delivered in September, Postmaster General and chief executive officer Patrick Donahoe said that the U.S. Postal Service was forecasting a net loss of up to $10 billion for the fiscal year, which ended September 30. On top of that, the Service likely would reach its statutory borrowing limit of $15 billion by September 30, as well.

To remedy this, the USPS is proposing a range of solutions, ranging from a move to five-day delivery, to the consolidation of post offices. Some, such a proposal to allow the Postal Service to determine the frequency of mail delivery, require Congressional action. Others, such as enlarging the geographic areas supported by each processing plant, don’t require legislative approval, says Lex Litton, senior vice president of operations with consultancy, Phoenix Hecht. As a result, they’re likely to move forward.

A brief on the Phoenix Hecht website outlines the changes being proposed and the probable impact to remittance mail. For starters, the USPS likely will reduce its network of processing facilities from about 460 to roughly 200. In addition, because the overnight delivery of first class mail means that sortation equipment is used inefficiently, the USPS will propose new first class service standards that eliminate the overnight delivery category and reduce two-day delivery somewhat, Phoenix Hecht predicts. more