Archive for the ‘Minnesota’ Category

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April 15th Deadlines

Tuesday, April 14th, 2020

Yes, the tax deadline for the IRS (and federal estimated payments for the first two quarters) is July 15th. However, not all states conformed to this–especially for estimated payments. The following states all have first quarter estimated payments for individuals that are due tomorrow, April 15th:

  • Arkansas
  • District of Columbia
  • Hawaii (due April 20th)
  • Illinois
  • Iowa (due April 30th)
  • Kentucky
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • North Carolina
  • Oregon

So if you need to make estimated payments for 2020 for one of these states, do so. If you are mailing your payment, use certified mail (but not return receipt requested–there’s a possiblity no one is there to pick up the mail).

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Posted in Arkansas, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon | Comments Closed

Former Mayor (and Current CPA) Learns of Tax Fraud, Joins the Conspiracy

Friday, January 16th, 2015

This is for the don’t do this at home file for tax professionals. Kenneth Harycki is the former mayor of Stillwater, Minnesota. He’s also a licensed CPA in Minnesota (but probably not for much longer). Mr. Harycki will provide an interesting lesson the next time I teach ethics.

Mr. Harycki provided accounting, tax, payroll, and bookkeeping services to clients. Back in 2007, he provided services to Model Health Care. From the Department of Justice press release:

Within the first few payroll cycles for Model Health Care (Model), a company controlled by the two separately charged co-conspirators, the defendant concluded that while payroll taxes were being withheld from the wages of employees, those taxes were not being paid over to the government. The defendant learned that these co-conspirators had directed that the withheld taxes not be paid to the government and, instead, the taxes would be used for other purposes, including compensating the co-conspirators and their family members and funding other businesses operated by the co-conspirators.

Now, let’s assume you’re a tax professional and you learn that a company is withholding payroll taxes and not paying them to the IRS. Would you:
(a) Tell them that the taxes aren’t being paid, that’s violating the law, and you need to fix this (which could include setting up payment plans with the IRS and Minnesota, or just paying the withheld funds);
(b) Tell them that if they don’t start remitting the withheld funds that he would need to quit the engagement; or
(c) Join the conspiracy.

Choice (c) is not one that most of us would consider. It is, though, the one that Mr. Harycki not only considered but did:

According to the defendant’s guilty plea, on February 18, 2010, HARYCKI created the entity MKH Holdings, Inc., to assume control over bank accounts used to fund businesses operated by the co-conspirators. The entity was used to cause funds falsely reported on income tax returns to be paid to the co-conspirators and others. During the course of the conspiracy, HARYCKI also incorporated other businesses, obtained employer identification numbers, paid for personal expenses, filed false tax returns, and opened and used numerous bank accounts for the benefit of the separately charged co-conspirators in order to avoid payment of taxes.

Given that the tax loss is between $1 million and $2.5 million, Mr. Harycki will be heading to ClubFed.

There’s not much to add to the press release. If I discover a defalcation while preparing a return, it’s my responsibility to tell the client. And if my client tells me he’s going to continue the actions, I’m required to quit the engagement. I’ve had to do this once in my career; if I discovered such a fraud I’d make the easy decision to get out the engagement. Apparently Mr. Harycki’s ethics were a bit different than most CPAs and EAs. My. Harycki has received a nomination for the 2015 Tax Offender of the Year, though.

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Posted in Minnesota, Tax Fraud | 1 Comment »

1700 Miles and a 7% Difference

Sunday, April 28th, 2013

One of the most difficult things to explain to a non-tax practitioner is the tax concept of domicile. For most individuals, your domicile is your residence. I reside in Las Vegas, Nevada. It’s my only home. In my case, my domicile and residence are identical (as is the case for most people).

However, some individuals have multiple residences. Take Ken Mauer. Mr. Mauer has a home in Afton, Minnesota (just east of the Twin Cities). He also has a home in Fort Meyers, Florida. They’re both residences, so which is his domicile? If Mr. Mauer’s had residences in Nevada and Florida, this wouldn’t be a big issue (neither state has a state income tax). However, Minnesota has a state income tax so being considered a Florida resident would save Mr. Mauer thousands of dollars in state income tax.

Shock of shocks, Mr. Mauer declare himself a Florida resident and didn’t file Minnesota tax returns for 2003 or 2004. After the Minnesota Department of Revenue objected, he filed a part-year 2003 return. Mr. Mauer was audited by the Department of Revenue and lost. He appealed the decision to the Minnesota Tax Court and lost. He then appealed to the Minnesota Supreme Court. That court upheld the previous decision.

I’m not going to into Minnesota’s 26-factor test, or the factors that led to Mr. Mauer being considered a resident of the Gopher State rather than the Sunshine State. One factor, though, is key: Mr. Mauer spent more time in Minnesota than Florida. Few tax agencies will consider you a resident of the other state if you continue to spend a lot of time in their state. Suffice to say, it you are in such a situation it’s best to cut all ties to your old state…or at least spend 183 days in your new home. In Mr. Mauer’s case, he’s liable for Minnesota state income tax for 2003 and 2004.

Hat Tip: How Appealing

Posted in Florida, Minnesota | 3 Comments »

Bad States for Gamblers

Monday, October 22nd, 2012

It’s been a while since I’ve listed out the bad states for gamblers. Here’s an updated list. Make sure you read the notes because while all of these states have tax systems that are problematic for gamblers, some impact amateurs while others impact professionals. Note that I do not cover the laws that impact gambling here (such as Washington State’s law that makes online gambling a Class C felony).

Connecticut [1]
Hawaii [2]
Illinois [1]
Indiana [1]
Massachusetts [1]
Michigan [1]
Minnesota [3]
Mississippi [4]
New York [5]
Ohio [6]
Washington [7]
West Virginia [1]
Wisconsin [1]

NOTES:

1. CT, IL, IN, MA, MI, WV, and WI do not allow gambling losses as an itemized deduction. These states’ income taxes are written so that taxpayers pay based (generally) on their federal Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). AGI includes gambling winnings but does not include gambling losses. Thus, a taxpayer who has (say) $100,000 of gambling winnings and $100,000 of gambling losses will owe state income tax on the phantom gambling winnings. (Michigan does exempt the first $300 of gambling winnings from state income tax.)

2. Hawaii has an excise tax (the General Excise and Use Tax) that’s thought of as a sales tax. It is, but it is also a tax on various professions. A professional gambler is subject to this 4% tax (an amateur gambler is not).

3. Minnesota’s state Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) negatively impacts amateur gamblers. Because of the design of the Minnesota AMT, amateur gamblers with significant losses effectively cannot deduct those losses.

4. Mississippi only allows Mississippi gambling losses as an itemized deduction.

5. New York has a limitation on itemized deductions. If your AGI is over $500,000, you lose 50% of your itemized deductions (including gambling losses). You begin to lose itemized deductions at an AGI of $100,000.

6. Ohio currently does not allow gambling losses as an itemized deduction. However, effective January 1, 2013, gambling losses will be allowed as a deduction on state income tax returns. Unfortunately, those gambling losses will not be deductible on city or school district income tax returns, so Ohio will remain a bad state for amateur gamblers.

7. Washington state has no state income tax. However, the state does have a Business & Occupations Tax (B&O Tax). The B&O Tax has not been applied toward professional gamblers, but my reading of the law says that it could be at any time.

Posted in Connecticut, Gambling, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New York, Ohio, Washington State, West Virginia, Wisconsin | 1 Comment »

I’m Envious

Monday, September 3rd, 2012

Two stories related to one of my favorite topics appeared over the weekend. The first comes out of Michigan, where the state legislature passed a law to ban “tax zappers.” The only zappers I ever heard of were these:

Bug Zappers, Courtesy of Wikipedia

That’s definitely not what Michigan banned. No, these zappers are used to skim cash from registers in cash-basis businesses so that sales could be under-reported. Who were the customers in Michigan? According to this story, Detroit area strip clubs. It appears that sales of the “Journal Sales Remover” may have been better than thought of. I wrote about this product in 2010; it wasn’t a bright idea then and it’s not one today.

Of course, the new Michigan law is overkill. Anyone violating the new law is also violating various sales tax laws, committing tax fraud against both the IRS and Michigan, and likely violating local ordinances, too.

So from Michigan lets head west to Minneapolis. Last Friday night Envy was raided. That’s Envy, the nightclub. Minnesota State Department of Revenue officers raided the club; the DOR alleges that the owners of the club, James and Susan Beamon, may be skimming cash, grossly underreporting withholding taxes, and not paying all their sales tax. This news story notes that per the search warrant the owners of the club reported negligible income for 2009 and haven’t filed 2010 or 2011 returns. And conspicuous consumption may have gotten the owners in trouble:

“Normally, persons with the income levels reported by the Beamons could not afford a high-priced Cadillac,” the search warrant said.

As a reminder, income is taxable whether you make it in cash, checks, or credit cards. That said, the idea that businesses that deal in large amount of cash would be tempted to skim is normal. That’s why cash businesses such as strip clubs and nightclubs are far more likely to be audited than, say, a jewelry store.

[Image from Wikipedia]

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Posted in Michigan, Minnesota, Sales Tax | Comments Closed

Vikings Score Late TD; New Stadium Appears Certain

Thursday, May 10th, 2012

Pity the poor football fans in Los Angeles. They’re stuck watching the NFL on television, or watching USC at the L.A. Coliseum. The latest team that was looking at possibly heading west was the Minnesota Vikings. Earlier today, the Minnesota State Senate approved the Vikings new stadium; Governor Mark Dayton has promised to sign the measure. The Minneapolis City Council must also approve the measure within the next 30 days, but that approval is expected.

The Vikings didn’t get everything they wanted. The Vikings will have to contribute about $50 million more than they wanted to ($477 million in total) for the $975 million facility. But the Vikings overall share of the cost (49%) tells you that the citizens of Minnesota will be paying for this in one way or another.

The state’s share ($348 million) will come through an expansion of charitable gambling. Gambling may be a “sin” in the view of many but when it comes time to raise money it’s always one of the first things looked at. Minneapolis must also contribute to the stadium ($150 million); that will mainly come from sales tax. Of course, as the Wall Street Journal points out, new stadiums rarely pay for themselves.

The Vikings currently play in the Metrodome, an aging facility whose roof collapsed a couple of years ago. The new stadium (to be build on the site of the Metrodome) is expected to open in 2016. It’s likely the Vikings will play for three seasons at the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium.

News Stories: Star-Tribune, Wall Street Journal

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Posted in Minnesota | 1 Comment »

Damiani Turns on Wirth

Sunday, May 6th, 2012

Holly Damiani was married to real estate developer Jeffrey Wirth. They were divorced and then the roof fell in: Mr. Wirth, Ms. Damiani and their accountant, Michale Murry, are accused of various tax evasion charges. Ms. Damiani pleaded guilty in a plea bargain on Friday. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

[She] admitted that from “at least” 2003 through October 2006, she conspired with Wirth and their tax return preparer Michael James Murry to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by failing to report and pay their true income and tax obligations.

I’d say Mr. Wirth’s defense just became a lot more difficult: Ms. Damiani is working with the US Department of Justice. The trial of Mr. Wirth and Mr. Murry is scheduled for May 29th.

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Posted in Minnesota, Tax Evasion | 1 Comment »

Vikings May be Tossed for a Loss

Sunday, April 29th, 2012

The Minnesota Vikings play at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. The Vikings have played in the stadium since 1982, and the stadium used to host the Minnesota Twins and the University of Minnesota football team. Before playing at the Metrodome, both teams played at Metropolitan Stadium. The Twins now have their own new ballpark, Target Field and the Golden Gophers have their own new stadium, TCF Bank Stadium.

The Vikings want a new stadium, too, and have periodically threatened to move to Los Angeles or anywhere else that doesn’t have a professional football team. The Vikings also want to have their stadium built in part with public (taxpayer) money. And therein lies the rub.

Minnesota has a Democratic governor (Mark Dayton) [technically, he’s a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, or DFL] and Republican leaders in the state legislature. The two parties appear to mirror the problems in Washington: They don’t agree on much. The Vikings want a nearly $1 billion stadium. They’d contribute around $427 million. The remaining funds would come from the city of Minneapolis (where the stadium would be located) and from the state of Minnesota.

Vikings fans want a new stadium, of course. The problems include:

– The GOP wants a reduction in the state business property tax (Governor Dayton opposes this);
– Democrats want a bond measure (the GOP opposes this);
– Minneapolis would like other cities (e.g. St. Paul) to help pay for the Vikings’ stadium;
– Rehabilitation of the Target Center (where the Minnesota Timberwolves of the NBA play) is somehow in the middle of this;
– The deal includes exclusivity for the Vikings to bring in a soccer team to the new stadium; and
– Rarely do new stadiums pay for themselves.

The Minnesota legislature is set to end their session tomorrow, but there’s a good chance they’ll head to overtime. There’s probably less of a chance of the Vikings getting their stadium this year.

News Stories:
Star-Tribune, Pioneer Press, MinnPost, and Bemidji Pioneer.

Posted in Minnesota | Comments Closed

Best States for Entrepreneurs: South Dakota, Texas, and Nevada Lead the Way

Sunday, April 22nd, 2012

The Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council released last Monday their 2012 Business Tax Index. There aren’t many surprises when you look at the list of best and worst (at least, for regular readers of this blog). The top seven states have no income tax on individuals. Meanwhile, the usual suspects (with one exception) are on the list of the bottom ten.

First, the top ten:
1. South Dakota
2. Texas
3. Nevada
4. Wyoming
5. Washington
6. Florida
7. Alaska
8. Alabama
9. Ohio
10. Colorado

The bottom ten has a lot of the usual high-tax “Blue” states:
42. Connecticut
43. Hawaii
44. Vermont
45. California
46. Maine
47. Iowa
48. New York
49. New Jersey
50. Minnesota
51. District of Columbia

I was surprised to see Minnesota so low on the list. Minnesota has a high capital gains tax rate; that, combined with its relatively high personal income tax rate, inheritance tax, and the state’s AMT, led to it being near the bottom of the list.

I also need to compliment Michigan. I’ve been down on the state–at times, saying it has been worse than California–but the SBEC ranks the Great Lakes State number 12. Under a Republican governor, Michigan has improved its tax policies.

For those wondering why I’m now in Nevada rather than California, this is just another measure of the problems with the Golden State. Governor Brown and Democrats in the state are discussing measures to further increase the state’s taxes. Well, there are six more spots to go before reaching the top (worst) position!

The SBEC has a nice interactive map showing the 50 states (plus DC); you can view the map here.

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Posted in California, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, South Dakota | Comments Closed

A Question of Wirth

Monday, August 22nd, 2011

Jeffrey Wirth was the sole owner of the Wirth Companies, a Minnesota commercial real estate company. Mr. Wirth developed numerous trophy properties in the Twin Cities, including the Grand Hotel in Minneapolis, the Grand Rios Hotel & Waterpark in Brooklyn Park, and the Grand Lodge Hotel & Waterpark in Bloomington.

The problem is, according to the IRS and the US Attorney’s Office, Mr. Wirth began building a mansion on one of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes (an island on Lake Minnetonka). There’s nothing wrong with a successful businessman building a mansion, of course. However, there is a major problem with paying for personal expenses (such as a mansion) out of your business and not reporting it on either a corporate or individual return. And that, along with paying personal expenses out of his business, is one of the charges against Mr. Wirth.

Additionally, Mr. Wirth and his ex-wife, Holly Damiani, are accused of understating their wages.

From the indictment: From 2002 through 2006, while they actively managed the business and received substantial distributions from [The Wirth Companies], Wirth and Damiani each claimed wages of $12,000 per year or less…As a result of the understatement of wages reported on their Forms W-2, on the TWC income tax returns, and on the income tax returns for Wirth and Damiani, the amounts of employment taxes paid by TWC, Wirth, and Damiani were far less than should have been paid.

I suspect that the Wirth Companies were organized as an S-Corporation, and this charge in the indictment relates to not paying a reasonable salary. The understatement of wages is part of a conspiracy charge against the defendants (which also include Michael Murry, the tax preparer for Mr. Wirth and TWC). Mr. Wirth also allegedly filed false corporate tax returns for 2004 and 2005.

The three individuals face one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Mr. Wirth was charged with two additional counts of filing a false individual tax return and two counts of filing a false corporate tax return. Ms. Damiani was charged with two counts of filing a false individual tax return. Mr. Murry was charged with two counts of procuring a false individual tax return and two counts of filing a false corporate tax return.

Speaking of Mr. Wirth’s mansion, it’s for sale. The home has four bedrooms, six bathrooms, a 15-car garage with a total of 18,000 square feet, and is the largest in the Minneapolis suburb of Greenwood. It is, though a fixer-upper: It’s unfinished.

Posted in Minnesota, Tax Evasion | 1 Comment »

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