Web‐based tax research services in academic libraries

Tax research services are now available on the Web. Other formats include print, online, and CD‐ROM. Academic librarians are faced with choosing between the formats in the face of decreasing budgets and competing institutional needs. This article first examines the changes in format of tax services and outlines those services available to academic libraries. Next, the Web‐based products of the two major publishers, CCH Internet Tax Research Network and RIA Checkpoint, are compared on a number of factors. Differences in the needs between professional and academic subscriptions are evaluated. Finally, several issues are outlined that need to be considered before implementing a Web‐based tax service in an academic library.