Yearly Archives: 2015

Don’t Call Us

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Russ

Today I attempted to call the IRS Practitioner Priority Service (PPS). I had an outstanding issue I needed to resolve. I didn’t get through. I’m used to being on hold for two hours when calling the IRS. Unfortunately, the IRS … Continue reading →

Posted in IRS | Tagged | 3 Comments

It Was the Sisterly Thing To Do

Posted on March 1, 2015 by Russ

Three Wisconsin sisters allegedly decided that tax fraud and identity theft should stay in the family. They’ve been accused of filing 2,000 phony returns by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue. The Staten sisters (Sharon, Tawanda, and Angela) face 22, 28, … Continue reading →

Posted in Tax Fraud | Tagged | 1 Comment

Correctly Dealing with Tip Income

Posted on March 1, 2015 by Russ

Las Vegas is full of service workers, of course. With many of the world’s largest hotels and casinos in Sin City, there’s an army of workers to man the facilities. Last week, the Tax Court looked at a bartender that … Continue reading →

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10 = 2500 ?

Posted on February 25, 2015 by Russ

Of course ten doesn’t equal 2,500. However, in the brave new world of the United States Postal Service it does. On Monday, I mailed a Tax Organizer to a client here in Las Vegas; she’s about ten miles from where … Continue reading →

Posted in Taxable Talk | Tagged | 1 Comment

Taxes Impacting the Giants

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Russ

The San Francisco Giants have been one of baseball’s more successful teams; they’re the current world champions. But they haven’t been as freewheeling in spending money as other teams. Their General Manager blames California taxes. The top tax rate for … Continue reading →

Posted in California, Illinois | Tagged | 1 Comment

“Ripping Off Your Refunds” In the Miami Herald

Posted on February 22, 2015 by Russ

There is an excellent article in the Miami Herald on the identity theft tax fraud crisis. The epicenter of this is South Florida (as noted in the article). I don’t have much to add to the frustrations of victims with … Continue reading →

Posted in Florida, Tax Fraud | Tagged | 1 Comment

Solely a Way to Go to ClubFed

Posted on February 22, 2015 by Russ

Until I became a tax professional I had never heard of a “Corporation Sole.” It’s a legal entity consisting of a single incorporated office, occupied by a single person. It’s a corporate structure used mainly for religions organizations so that … Continue reading →

Posted in Tax Fraud | Tagged | 1 Comment

Oops Gets Bigger

Posted on February 20, 2015 by Russ

Or, first California, now the United States. Last week I reported on Cover California’s error impacting an estimated 100,000 individuals who received incorrect Form 1095-A’s. It turns out that was just the tip of the iceberg. As reported by AP: … Continue reading →

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Oops

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Russ

This past weekend I saw my first Form 1095-A. That’s the form that individuals covered by health insurance through a plan form an exchange will receive. In California, 800,000 of these were mailed. Unfortunately, 100,000 of these were wrong. Oops. … Continue reading →

Posted in IRS | 2 Comments

IRS Announces Small Business Relief for Form 3115 (Property Regulation Issue)

Posted on February 13, 2015 by Russ

The IRS apparently figured out that under a literal reading of the new property/capitalization/depreciation regulations, every business would have to submit a Form 3115. The IRS determined that being buried under a tsunami of paper wasn’t a great idea. Today, … Continue reading →

Posted in IRS | Tagged | 3 Comments