kcjenkins

Nuts, like pecan, cashew, etc, covered in dark chocolate. Delish.

The meals ARE, because they are kept together for the benefit of the court, so they don't have other options. Jury pay taxable but not SE taxable. Mileage just like other charity mileage.

Dark chocolate rocks.

Are you referring to a W-2 box 12 entry?

If you pay cash wages of $1,900 or more to any one household employee, you generally must withhold 6.2% of Social Security and 1.45% of Medicare taxes (for a total of 7.65%) from all cash wages you pay to that employee. You also must pay your share of Social Security and Medicare taxes, which is also 7.65% of cash wages. (Cash wages include wages you pay by check, money order, etc.) Unless you prefer to pay your employee's share of Social Security and Medicare taxes from your own funds, you should withhold 7.65% from each payment of cash wages made. If you pay your employee's share of Social Security and Medicare taxes from your own funds, the amounts you pay for your employee count as wages for purposes of the employees' income tax. However, do not count them as Social Security and Medicare wages or as wages for federal unemployment tax.

Then go with his choice. It is his call, after all. And his peace of mind is worth more than any extra tax he might pay.

oops, you are right, those are still there. That’s why AICPA, in a letter dated January 17, 2013, called on Acting IRS Commissioner Steven Miller and Chief Counsel William Wilkins to issue clear guidance as to when a taxpayer with rental real estate activity must file Form 1099-Misc. They further request that Questions A and B be removed from Schedule E. Guess it's another case of the IRS choosing to ignore Congress. People who say that there is no requirement are not just "expressing their personal opinion". They are relying on the Comprehensive Taxpayer Protection and Repayment of Exchange Subsidy Overpayments Act of 2011, passed by Congress. Sec 3.Repeal of expansion of information reporting requirements for rental property expense payments (a)In general Section 6041 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking subsection (h). (b)Effective date The amendment made by this section shall apply to payments made after December 31, 2010.

One thing I would fully agree with Tom on is that if you do decide to change the W-2, do it for the last quarter only. You can easily defend that with the logic Tom mentions.

Since they took the questions off the E on the 2013 form, I think we can safely avoid them unless the client wants to file them.

The law requiring “persons engaged in a trade or business” to satisfy information document reporting requirements when payments are made to service providers in excess of $600 has been with us for many years. The confusion started in 2010 when Congress added a section to this law dictating that “a person receiving rental income from real estate shall be considered to be engaged in a trade or business of renting property.” Section 2101 of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (“SBJA”) amending IRC Sec. 6041; P.L. 111-240 After additional consideration, the very next year, Congress retracted its position, striking the language defining receipt of rental income as a trade or business. By passing the Comprehensive Taxpayer Protection and Repayment of Exchange Subsidy Overpayments Act of 2011

Sounds like a good plan.

Tell him it's not only 'required', it's to his benefit to close it out properly, so that nothing comes up to bite him later. He does not want to be getting something from the IRS about it several years down the road.

Ok, just my gut instinct here. If he'd pay someone else 40K, not including his managerial details, then 50K - 55K sounds like a reasonable salary. He should reasonably have some ROI that is not salary. Sounds like he's going to be a great new client, since he wants to do things 'right'.

I think we've gone as far as needed, this is getting too political, even though I agree with most all of you, so I'm going to lock it now.

We all have at least one of "those days", don't we? Seems like some clients get together to plan a "time wasting" attack at our busiest points. I know they really don't, but it still feels that way this time of year.

Yes, don't make it more complicated than it is. It's just one [corrected] W-2.

February 17, 2015 Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Congressman Charles Boustany, R-La., have re-introduced a bill in Congress aimed at enabling Enrolled Agents to advertise their credential in more states. The bill, known as the Enrolled Agents Credential Act, is designed to ensure that individuals, families, and businesses across the country are able to identify and access trained specialists to assist them in filing their taxes. Enrolled Agents are tax specialists certified by the Treasury Department who have unlimited rights to represent taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service. However, despite being an exclusively federal credential, some states prohibit Enrolled Agents from using their credential when representing taxpayers or advertising for potential clients. The bill would clarify that Enrolled Agents may use and display their credential when advertising their services and representing their clients. Portman and Boustany introduced similar legislation in 2013. "The IRS estimates Americans spend 6.6 billion hours per year filling out tax forms,” Portman said in a statement. “The least the federal government can do is ensure that consumers have all the information available when choosing who to trust with their financial security—and that's exactly what this commonsense measure does.” “Enrolled Agents use their considerable expertise to help taxpayers navigate our overcomplicated tax code—but some states don't recognize their federal certification," said Boustany. “As Tax Day approaches, this bill is a commonsense reform at no cost to the taxpayer that will give these advocates their rightful recognition while Congress works on full tax reform.” California is one of the few states to have set requirements for professional tax preparers. State law requires anyone who prepares tax returns for a fee to be either an Enrolled Agent, an attorney, a CPA or a tax preparer registered with the California Tax Education Council. “There is a lot of confusion surrounding how to best file your taxes this year, in light of so many changing tax rules,” said Patricia Kappen, president of the California Society of Enrolled Agents. “With all the tax changes taking place in Congress and the state Legislature, it is more critical than ever to have a qualified tax specialist on your side when preparing your tax and financial strategy.”

Think "potato pasta".

I'm confused. Early withdrawal of what? IRA? Pension plan? The first time home buyer rules do apply to "not owned a home in last two years"

Yes, she should only be taxed on the interest earned.

Gosh, I'd totally forgotten about Swiss Colony! I used to love their petits fours. Think I will check out their website.

Gail, the real significant change is that the number and size of 'refundable tax credits' skyrocketed in the 80's. In the 50's and 60's there was nobody paying NEGATIVE income taxes. Then the geniuses in DC [both parties] decided to make the IRS part of the welfare/safety-net system. That changed the whole direction of the trends. This is not meant as political commentary, it's just the direct cause of these trend lines.

Do you have an "Edible Arrangements" store in your area? Those are lovely, healthy, and easy to eat.

The rich do not pay the most taxes, they pay ALL the taxes. Buried inside a Congressional Budget Office report was this nugget: when it comes to individual income taxes, the top 40 percent of wage earners in America pay 106 percent of the taxes. The bottom 40 percent...pay negative 9 percent. And of that 106%, the top 20% pay 93%, the second 20% pay only 13%. The top 1 percent of taxpayers pay more in federal income taxes than the bottom 90 percent. As you can see in the chart below, this is a stark change from the 1980s and early 1990s. But since the early 1980s, the share of taxes paid by the bottom 90 percent has steadily declined.