Yesterday President Bush signed into law the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. HERA contains several significant tax cuts designed to help troubled homeowners and the equally troubled home mortgage market. The major tax provisions are: An additional standard deduction for real property taxes of those who do not itemize their taxes (those who do can deduct [...]
Tags: Deductible Expenses · Individual Taxation · Legislative Watch · News
The second quarter of 2008 showed an increase in economic growth that many economists attribute to the Bush tax rebates. According to the Associated Press, The U.S. Commerce Department reports that, [G]ross domestic product, or GDP, increased at an annual rate of 1.9 percent in the April-June period. That marked an improvement over the feeble 0.9 percent [...]
Tags: Announcements · Individual Taxation
A 2004 article that appeared in CNN Money.Com on how to choose a tax advisor is as relevant today as it was back then. In the article, Senior staff writer Jeanne Sahadi gives the following sound advice: Ask about his education in tax and accounting issues and what licenses or certifications he holds. If you’re concerned about [...]
Tags: Tax Tips
TaxProf blogger, Paul Caron, blogged yesterday’s Tax Court decision handed down in Serrato v. Commissioner. The court said that seminars and similar types of meetings are non deductible under Section 212(1) (expenditures for the production of income) even though the same expenditures might be deductible under Section 162 (ordinary and necessary business expenses). The Judge pointed out twice [...]
Tags: Court Cases · Deductible Expenses
When businesses charge sales tax to their customers, collect that tax and then fail to remit it to the Department of Revenue, the people responsible for that failure could be charged with theft of state funds. Florida Statute 212.15(2) states, (2) Any person who, with intent to unlawfully deprive or defraud the state of its moneys or [...]
Tags: Florida Sales & Use Tax · State Taxes · Tax Crimes
The Justice Department has issued the IRS’ conviction statistics for the first six months of 2008. The eleven lead charges listed below are in order of frequency of convictions: Fraud and False Statements (25) – 26 USC 7206 Conspiracy to Commit Offense or Defraud the U.S. (7) – 18 USC 371 Laundering of Monetary Instruments (7) – 18 [...]
Tags: Tax Crimes
As far as I can tell, the categorization by the IRS of sex change operations as elective cosmetic surgery doesn’t effect any of my clients. But if Rhiannon O’Donnabhain prevails in tax court and gets to deduct as a medical expense the $25,000 he paid to become a woman, I predict the flood gates will open and [...]
Tags: Court Cases · Deductible Expenses
