As part of its new oversight program of the nation's tax return preparation industry, the Internal Revenue Service announced yesterday that it will send letters to approximately 100,000 tax return preparers who prepared returns in 2011 but failed to follow new requirements. In 2010, the IRS launched an initiative to increase its oversight of the tax return preparation industry and regulate the conduct of tax return preparers. All paid tax return preparers must obtain a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN) and, when required to do so, sign their names and include their PTINs on the returns and refund claims they prepare for compensation. The full-text of the news release can be accessed on the IRS website at http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=241931,00.html . [IR-2011-74]