Author Archives: Russ

Throwing Out the Trash

Posted on January 21, 2006 by Russ

Over ten years ago, in the nearby City of Orange, a trash magnate was born. His name was Jeffrey Hambarian, and he was a hometown hero. Mr. Hambarian had an interesting method of operating his business. He told his vendors … Continue reading →

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Ohio Is Traded…Again

Posted on January 19, 2006 by Russ

Last year residents of Ohio who made estimated payments sent their payments in the second half of the year to San Francisco (the Fresno IRS Service Center). Well, Ohio has been moved (again), now to the Kansas City Service Center. … Continue reading →

Posted in IRS, Ohio | 1 Comment

H&R Block v. Intuit

Posted on January 17, 2006 by Russ

While driving this past week, I heard a radio commercial for Intuit’s TurboTax, stating that more returns were prepared on TurboTax than by H&R Block. Well, not so fast, says Block. The Kansas City based Block filed a lawsuit against … Continue reading →

Posted in Tax Preparation | 5 Comments

All Rapped Out

Posted on January 17, 2006 by Russ

After taking a few days off for an annual convention, would I return to an in-basket bereft of the usual tax evaders? Hardly. Joe Kristan of Roth Tax Updates reported on some of the more felonius evaders, including Richard Hatch … Continue reading →

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Virtual Profits = Taxes?

Posted on January 10, 2006 by Russ

The TaxProf Blog links to an extremely interesting article by Julian Dibbell on whether virtual profits in online multi-player games are taxable under the Internal Revenue Code. There’s also a link to a second article on CNET titled “The Tax … Continue reading →

Posted in IRS | Tagged | 1 Comment

Why the Franchise Tax Board Is “Fun” to Deal With

Posted on January 9, 2006 by Russ

Let’s assume you disagree with a decision that the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) makes on your tax return. You go through the FTB appeals process, and get nowhere. California then allows appeals to the Board of Equalization (BOE). Today, let’s … Continue reading →

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Nexus, My Nexus, Where Have You Been?

Posted on January 9, 2006 by Russ

There are two concepts that tax accountants have trouble explaining to clients: basis and nexus. And this leads to two recent items that have as their basis nexus. First, on December 31st, the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled that a … Continue reading →

Posted in New Mexico | 1 Comment

BOE Flood Relief

Posted on January 6, 2006 by Russ

For taxpayers in Northern California impacted by the recent storms, the Board of Equalization has extended deadlines for filing California sales tax and fees collected by the BOE by one month. Returns (and payments) originally due on January 31st are … Continue reading →

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A Brief Note on Business Information Returns/Filings

Posted on January 3, 2006 by Russ

Now that we’re in 2006, it’s time for me to go back to work. First on the agenda will be business information returns/filings, such as W-2s and 1099s. These forms must be distributed by January 31st, but do not have … Continue reading →

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The TaxProf Blog’s Top 2005 Tax Stories

Posted on January 3, 2006 by Russ

The TaxProf Blog published its top 10 for 2005. Their top ten includes the Kanter/Ballard Tax Court case, the telecommuter tax case, and the federal tax reform initiative. There are other items on the list, of course. I could quibble … Continue reading →

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