Morality and Charlie Rangel’s Taxes
It’s much easier to raise taxes if you don’t pay them.
Source: WSJ
Ever notice that those who endorse high taxes and those who actually pay them aren’t the same people? Consider the curious case of Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel, who is leading the charge for a new 5.4-percentage point [...]

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IRS Urgent Letters and Notices That YOU MUST ATTEND TO
Mike Habib, EA
IRS Audit & Examination Letters
Letter 525 – General 30 Day Letter
This letter accompanies a report giving you a computation of the proposed adjustments to your tax return. It informs you of the courses of action to take if you do not agree with the [...]

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Tax Relief
No one looks forward to the tax filing season. This period is associated with endless paperwork and sorting through receipts and other documents to get your tax accounts in order. And even with the use of tax programs, you are still at risk of encountering errors that can get you in the spot light [...]

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IRS Tax Audits and Examination
The US Internal Revenue Service organizes audits and examinations on tax returns to ensure tax compliance by both individuals and businesses. But because it’s virtually impossible to actually audit and examine every ITR for discrepancies, the audits are mostly randomized so your chances of getting picked for a particular year [...]

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IRS Reminds Taxpayers to Take Advantage of Recovery Act Benefits

WASHINGTON — With 2009 now half over, the Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers to take advantage of the numerous tax breaks made available earlier this year in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

The recovery law provides tax incentives for first-time homebuyers, people [...]

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Drywall victims could get tax relief
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Internal Revenue Service has declared that residents whose homes have been severely damaged by Chinese drywall may qualify for special tax deductions.
Homeowners may be able to claim a casualty loss on their tax returns if they have Chinese drywall that emits an unusual or severe [...]

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Hawaii Cash Economy Enforcement Act of 2009

On June 18, 2009, Governor Linda Lingle signed Senate Bill 972 SD2, HD1, CD1 into law as Act 134, the “Cash Economy Enforcement Act of 2009.”

This Act provides the department with additional resources and tools to target high-risk, cash-based transactions to shore up confidence in Hawaii’s tax [...]

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Florida Department of Revenue Administrative Collection Processing Fee Beginning September 1, 2009

Effective May 30, 2009, a new law imposes a 10 percent administrative collection processing fee on any outstanding debt older than 90 days. The fee is equal to 10 percent of the total amount of tax, penalty, and interest owed, or $10 [...]

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IRS Releases List of Transactions of Interest (Notice 2009-55)
The IRS has provided a list of transactions that have been identified by the Service as “transactions of interest.” The IRS will consider transactions similar to any of the transactions on the list to be transactions of interest for purposes of Code Secs. 6111, 6112, 6662A, 6707, [...]

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Oregon: Tax Amnesty Program Enacted
Gov. Ted Kulongoski has signed legislation that authorizes the Oregon Department of Revenue (DOR) to initiate a tax amnesty program for taxpayers subject to the corporation excise (income) tax, the personal income tax, the inheritance tax, and the mass transit district tax on self-employment. The program will begin on October 1, [...]

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Louisiana: Tax Amnesty Program Enacted
The Louisiana Tax Delinquency Amnesty Act of 2009, which requires the Department of Revenue (DOR) to develop and implement a tax amnesty program to be effective for a period not to exceed two consecutive calendar months between July 1, 2009, and June 30, 2010, at the discretion of the secretary, [...]

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 Top Seven Tips for Taxpayers Starting a New Business
IRS Summertime Tax Tip 2009-02
Anyone starting a new business this summer should be aware of their federal tax responsibilities. Here are the top seven things the IRS wants you to know if you plan on opening a new business this year.
 1. First, you must decide what type [...]

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Construction Industry Tax Issues

Accumulated Earnings Tax

Closely held C corporations are more likely to accumulate earnings and profits beyond the reasonable needs of the business in order to avoid income taxes on its shareholders than are large C corporations. Each accumulated earnings case is unique. No pro forma guide for calculating a taxpayer’s reasonable [...]

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Registered Warrants Can Pay Your State Income Tax Bill

(Sacramento) – The Franchise Tax Board (FTB) announced it accepts California registered warrants (IOUs) as payment of current and past due personal and corporate tax obligations.

To pay a tax liability with an IOU, endorse the IOU on the reverse side with the phrase “Pay to [...]

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IRS Did Not Fail to Properly Credit Checks Against Married Couple’s Tax Liability (Kovacevich, TCM)
The IRS properly credited five checks toward the outstanding tax liability of a law firm and not the individual tax liability of an attorney and his wife. For the tax year at issue, the taxpayer/husband was improperly characterized as an [...]

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