AICPA Letter Urges Taxpayer Relief in Use of IPIC Method for Last-In, First-Out Inventory

Washington, D.C. (May 21, 2026) - In a letter submitted to the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) asked for guidance providing automatic consent procedures to allow taxpayers to change from the inventory price index computation (IPIC) method to an internal index method if one or more Producer Price Index (PPI) categories that was previously used was discontinued.

The letter cites recent changes made by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) to the PPI detailed report which has created significant practical and administrative challenges for taxpayers using the IPIC method to compute last-in, first-out (LIFO) indexes.

The AICPA recommends that the method change guidance provide the following:

• Provide automatic consent procedures allowing a taxpayer to change from the IPIC method to an internal index method if one or more of the PPI categories previously used by the taxpayer were discontinued by the BLS in 2025.

• Clarify situations in which a taxpayer identifies replacement PPI categories for any that were discontinued by the BLS where one or more of those replacement PPI categories falls within a different IPIC-method pool, causing the affected inventory items to move from one IPIC-method pool to another.

• Provide transitional rules for taxpayers that have already filed a federal income tax return for 2025 or 2026 tax years using the IPIC method with replacement categories.

"The AICPA's recommendations are necessary to ease the administrative burden for taxpayers using the IPIC method for LIFO inventory," says Reema Patel, Senior Manager, AICPA Tax Policy & Advocacy. "The ultimate goal of our changes would be to help improve the accuracy of tax LIFO calculations, better align LIFO computations with actual cost changes, promote consistency and reduce controversy."

About the American Institute of CPAs

The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) is the world's largest member association representing the CPA profession, with 397,000 members and a history of serving the public interest since 1887. AICPA members represent many areas of practice, including business and industry, public practice, government, education, and consulting. A founding member of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, the AICPA sets ethical standards for the profession, attestation standards, and U.S. auditing standards for private companies, not-for-profit organizations, and federal, state, and local governments. It develops and grades the Uniform CPA Examination, offers specialized credentials, partners across the profession to build future talent, and drives continuing education to advance the vitality, relevance, and quality of the profession.

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Contact: Veronica L. Vera
202-434-9215
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