Author Archives: Russ

California Tax Revenues $528 Million Under Budget in January

Posted on February 11, 2012 by Russ

In what must be considered to be a complete non-shock to all but officials of the Brown Administration, California’s tax revenues came in $528 million under budget. According to Bloomberg, most of this is from a $525 billion shortfall in … Continue reading →

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FATCA Regulations Issued

Posted on February 11, 2012 by Russ

Earlier this week the IRS issued proposed regulations to implement the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). The press release from the Department of the Treasury states, After many months of intensive discussions with foreign governments, the Treasury Department today … Continue reading →

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Burning Down the House

Posted on February 11, 2012 by Russ

Let’s say you own a fixer-upper of a home. Let’s suppose you find that home in another part of town, so you decide to donate your home to the local fire department so they can burn it down. You get … Continue reading →

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Good Riddance: Reconciliation of Credit Card Deposits on Tax Returns Won’t Happen

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Russ

As I noted last week, the problem of entering 1099-K’s for recipients of those forms was deferred until 2012. It turns out that the IRS acquiesced to complaints from tax professional and other groups, including the Retail Industry Leaders Association … Continue reading →

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New York State Street Addresses

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Russ

Earlier, I published a list of IRS Service Center Addresses. New York State has just published its list of street addresses to be used for FedEx, UPS, and DHL. The New York list is by form, and has 15 different … Continue reading →

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New FBAR Requirement that Applies to Everyone

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Russ

I’ll be transmitting my first few tax returns to the IRS this coming week. As I looked at Schedule B, I noticed a change in the questions at the bottom of Schedule B: 7a At any time during 2011, did … Continue reading →

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A Problem Deferred: 1099-K’s

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Russ

This year sees the introduction of Form 1099-K. This form reports merchant and third-party payments you’ve received. We were supposed to note these on separate lines on our tax returns, but not any longer: For tax year 2011 the IRS … Continue reading →

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Hiding a Golf Course and Millions

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Russ

It’s one thing to hide a few dollars. It’s quite another to hide a few million dollars. The IRS’s assault on UBS, the Swiss bank, has reaped some more indictments. This time, three individuals involved in venture capital are alleged … Continue reading →

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Out of the Swamplands

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Russ

Over the years, I’ve referred to New Jersey as the swamplands. Their politics, corruption, and tax policies left a lot to be desired. But something unusual happened in 2010: Chris Christie, a Republican, was elected governor in the historically Democratic … Continue reading →

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IRS Street Addresses (Updated)

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Russ

Most taxpayers use the Postal Service to send their returns to the IRS. However, you can use Federal Express or UPS. The problem is the IRS hides the street addresses of their service centers on their website if you need … Continue reading →

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