Author Archives: Russ

Where Karen Hawkins Disagrees With Me…

Karen Hawkins is the Director of the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). OPR is the agency within the IRS that is in charge of preparer regulation and oversight; their vision is, “To be the standard-bearer for integrity in tax practice;” … Continue reading

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Another Nothing to See Moment

Via the Washington Examiner comes a letter from 47 Inspector Generals writing about obstructionism done by the Obama Administration on their work. Each of us strongly supports the principle that an inspector general must have complete, unfiltered, and timely access … Continue reading

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Is a “Dealer Add-On” a Tip or a House Fee?

Poker dealers are paid a low hourly wage; they make most of their money from gratuities (tips) from players. Those tips are, of course, taxable. In a poker tournament, dealers also receive tips. Some come from the prize pool while … Continue reading

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Quite a Gamble to Workout There

Runnemede, New Jersey is a small suburb of Philadelphia. Located in Camden County, the borough would be happy to let you know about its summer recreation program. The borough got some other publicity at what was once a Curves health … Continue reading

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The IRS Apparently Thinks They Won the Loving Case

Yesterday the IRS released a new version of the Power of Attorney form (Form 2848). The IRS has added the ability for a fourth representative for a taxpayer. They also noted two new matters for the POA (the Section 5000A … Continue reading

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Vacation

It’s time for my annual vacation. If something earth-shattering in the tax world happens while I’m relaxing, I’ll take time out to post on it. Otherwise, enjoy the fine bloggers listed in the blogroll on the right. I’ll be back … Continue reading

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Perhaps the Lerner Emails Still Exist (IRS Scandal Update)

There has been plenty of news regarding the IRS scandal. The most interesting is that IRS managers testified that it’s possible that Lois Lerner’s emails still exist. The Washington Post published an article on six questions that IT managers believe … Continue reading

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2:42

That’s how long I spent on hold on the IRS Practitioner Priority Service (PPS) yesterday–two hours, forty-two minutes. A client had made a payment and it was misapplied by the IRS; I needed to have the IRS correctly apply it. … Continue reading

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DC Circuit Court of Appeals Deals ObamaCare Major Blow: Federal Exchange Tax Subsidies Axed

The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia dealt the Obama Administration a major blow today when the court ruled 2-1 that only state health exchanges plans are eligible for tax subsidies. The IRS had promulgated a rule that … Continue reading

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Major Court Decision Extends Loving; IRS Enjoined from a Circular 230 Regulation

Thus, what Ridgley challenges here is the IRS’s proclaimed authority to regulate fee arrangements entered into by CPAs for preparing and filing Ordinary Refund Claims before the commencement of any adversarial proceedings with the IRS or any formal legal representation … Continue reading

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