The Ministerial Panel on Business Compliance Costs, established in October 2000 to advise the New Zealand government on ways to reduce the costs to business of complying with existing legislation, released a report in July 2001 in which the Panel, among other things, made 11 recommendations for the government to consider for reducing tax compliance costs. In December 2001, the government released the discussion document Striking the Balance: Government Response to the Ministerial Panel on Business Compliance Costs. This article focuses on the taxation issues raised during the consultation, the recommendations made in the Panel's report, and the government's response the recommendations.