BulldogTom

Where do you enter the state adjustments for the partnership K1 on the CA return. I know I used to know how I used to do this, but now I don't know why I don't know anymore. Thanks for your help Tom Lodi, CA

This is the first I heard of this. Your tax dollars at work. Tom Lodi, CA

Donny, I never filled out any special paperwork. I was mad as hell early in the season about this add on, and I still am. It is the number one reason that I am dumping ATX. They never have been straight about this charge, it was not discussed anywhere on their website nor disclosed when we signed up for bank products. I would call and ask for the paperwork to get your money now. Get a manager and ask them to make the paperwork available now so you can get your money now. I "heard" a rumor that the $4 was going to be in the form of a credit for next year's software. I thought that was just a rumor, especially when I started getting the $4 in my bank account and just forgot about it. Now I am not so sure. ATX/CCH has not been forthright on any of this. I don't do many bank products, but I have them just to say that I offer every service and more that my clients can get at any national chain. ATX is stealing a fee from my clients, and they shoved it in at the last minute with no documentation. I will never forgive nor forget what they did. I will never trust them again. Tom Lodi, CA

Cool, glad it worked for you. Tom Lodi, CA

This is a continuation of the thread from a couple days ago. The auditor has sent the closing agreements for my clients to sign. She is giving us everything we wanted, EIC, CTC, Add'l CTC, MFJ, all 4 dependents. It all looks good with one exception. She zeroed out the spouses return and it shows an amount due, which is proper. She then added the amounts to his return. All good so far. But there is $3,130 of EIC that was "Frozen" by the IRS on his original return. She is showing that amount as having been paid in the Examination Changes section of form 4549. In the "Other Information" section of the form she has a note that says "RELEASE FROZEN REFUND - EIC FREEZE - $3130" I am concerned because the net effect of the examination changes is an amount due by my client, but when the frozen EIC is released, it is a net refund. Is this the proper procedure for the agent to follow. She says it is, and I would like to believe her and wrap this up, but I don't have a great deal of confidence in this particular auditor's abilities. Is everything OK the way she is showing it on the return? Thanks very much for your time and opinion. Tom Lodi, CA

That is really weird. I have done about 6-7 bank products and each time, my fee that is deposited in my account is $4 more than my invoice to the client. I don't know why it would be different with you. I am using SBBT. What bank are you with. It should not make a difference. Tom Lodi, CA

I think you just take it into income. There should be no penalty. Tom Lodi, CA

It comes with your fees. No waiting until this summer. Watch your bank account. Tom Lodi, CA

I have never seen a railroad employee W2 before. It has no SS or med, but in box 14 it has 3 entries: RRT1, RRT2 and RRTM. I know what Tier 1 and Tier 2 are, but what is RRTM? Is it deductible? Thanks Tom Lodi, CA

Jainen is right. You will have to prove that the client is insolvent just before the cancellation of debt. Only the amount to which the client is insolvent is eligible for exclusion. For example, if the client has 2 million in assets and 2.2 million in debt, he is insolvent by 200K. If the cancelled debt is 300K, only 200K is excluded from income. A word to the wise is to do the calculations now, before you file the return. Trying to do this in 2 years when the taxpayer has forgotten about it is not going to be fun. This is where we need to educate our clients. Don't let them say they are broke, they will forget about momma's jewlery and daddy's gun collection they inherited. Make them list everything. They should have done it for bankruptcy court, so it shouldn't be too hard. Just my 2 cents. Tom Lodi, CA

Is the difference because the interest on the bonds is IRD? I have been watching this thread develope and I think that is the problem with the bonds. A home or marketable secuitites are not IRD. Step those up. Just a thought from an unresearched point of view. Tom Lodi, CA

That kid must still be in therapy. WAAAAAAAAAAAyyyy too much information. Tom Lodi, CA

Mel, My prayers are with you. I hope your life is free of complications so that you can pursue those things that are important to you without sacrificing the quality of life you wish to lead. Tom Lodi, CA

Joel, How much do you want to bet that there will be all these really good sounding releases from CCH about how then have big plans for ATX next year, and it will come right before the early renewal period begins? All the BS veiled promises will come out about how they have no plans to discontinue MAX or the other product lines. Just sign right up for next year. BTW - are you really a Rabbi? A Rabbi who does taxes, lives in Las Vegas, and has an avatar that looks like Orville Redenbacher strikes me as a funny combination. Tom Lodi, CA

Rabbi Joel, I appreciate your point of view, but I am not buying it. CCH will want to keep us because they paid for us, but they have not shown any inkling that they will treat us with respect. Negative comments about the software, if listened to, result in better software, because the company takes the situation that caused the criticism, examines it, and tries to improve the software experience for the customer. CCH has not even acknowledged their backhanded add on charges for bank products. They screwed up the MyATX login without telling everyone what they were doing. They changed bundled packages without telling anyone. And they cut support staff for our product, which is our livelyhood, right at the beginning of the tax season. Remember how they put on the William Tasker dog and pony show on this board to calm the masses after they fired all the MAX support techs? Where is sweet willie now? On his way to the unemployment office! They used him to keep all of us from asking for our refunds. You think they did not know that they were still in the 30 day window and a ton of us would have jumped? The management of CCH is going to have to do much more than "say" they are going to keep the product and add a shell of a monitored board to earn any type of redemption for the mountain of distrust they have created. I don't believe a single word that comes from them. I am really holding out for Mel to pull off the miracle for next year. I want a company I can trust to partner with. I am not drinking any of the CCH kool Aide. Tom Lodi, CA

Perhaps you forgot that they SHUT DOWN THE BOARD BECAUSE OF NEGATIVE COMMENTS ABOUT CCH. That was a pretty good sign that they were not allowing negative comments. That is, after all, why we are all right here. How soon we forget. Tom Lodi, CA

I caught that too. And given the "swiftness and decisiveness" of the CCH managment team, this decision could be changed at a moment's notice. That bulletin board is going to be useless if they put it up. There is no way they are going to let anyone put a negative comment about the product on that board. I for one would be kicked off within hours, I am sure. Tom Lodi, CA

The clients relied on JH to prepare their returns. Believe me, these clients are not the sharpest knives in the drawer. They went into a storefront and said "get us the most we can get." JH got the most out of them they could. That is the real crime. Using those who are uneducated to take a clip off the top of a tax credit for the poor. Enough of defending the client. As for the agent. The point was, we went through the first half of the audit proving they were eligible for EIC. Why would we do that if we wanted to file MFS? We would lose the EIC we fought to get? I guess it seems obvious to me, but not to her. The letter is written and will be faxed over today. So she got to beat me down. Big deal, my client wins. But why does she not respect the POA? I have the right to represent and bind my clients to an agreement that I make with the IRS while representing them. It is within the scope of practice to agree to the filing status that is best for the client. She had no right to go around that POA. But I guess it made her feel big and strong. So petty. Just like the IRS. Until you get to the appeal level, the knowledge and professionalism of the staff is severely lacking. Hope that doesn't offend, but it is my observations from dealing with the service for 12 years. Tom Lodi, CA

I agree with Indyscott that the taxpayer should not deduct in 07. No business activity looks like business not started yet. Take them in the year he starts business. Look at his LLC election. He should have checked the box to be disregarded if he is the sole member of the LLC. Tom Lodi, CA

Are you asking about a schedule C? Are you taking the §195 election to expense in the first year of business? Tom Lodi, CA

I have a client under audit for 2006. EIC disallowed on his return. He also married his longtime girlfreind and mother of his 2 kids. She has 2 kids from a previous marriage. Filed single and his wife did too. Gotta love those national preparation companies getting 2 returns out of one. He took 2 kids, she took 2 kids. When they came to me, his return was being audited for EIC. I tell the auditor that there is more, he is married and we want to fix the returns. Fine. Present to auditor POA for him, her, and both. Give auditor all the proof for EIC and copy of the marriage cert. She wants to "study" the returns and will get back to me. That was 6 weeks ago. I called last week to get an update, and this morning the auditor calls me back. EIC looks like it is resolved and that issue will go away. Fine. Then the auditor asks me for a letter signed by the clients that they want to combine the returns. I tell her I will provide the letter under the authority of my POA. She insists that it has to be signed by them. I ask why. She say "I need to make sure they don't want to file Married Filing Separately." I try to assure her that the clients do not want to file MFS, and I will send the letter today to her fax machine indicating that position. Her response "Are you sure they won't change their mind?" Lets see, I have just had the client go through all the trouble to get all the records from doctors, schools, birth certs, rental leases, etc to prove that they qualify for EIC, and then they are going to change their minds, file MFS and lose EIC? What was this lady smoking? Tom Lodi, CA

Yes I did and it is not cheaper than NY. I forget how much the difference was, but I think it was like $100 per ticket. Thanks for the suggestion. Tom Lodi, CA

Is Lenny the Pirate going to be the best man? Oh - maybe we should wait to find out if she says "yes" before we ask about the wedding. Good Luck to both of you. Tom Lodi, cA

Monkeyman, Don't think we can make it that far north in the short time we have. I would love to just go driving up there for a week or two in the fall. Is Kennebunkport a good place to stop for a afternoon and lobster on a wharf? I looked a few webpages and it looked interesting and they said it was a fishing port. Is this all true? And Patty does not drink, so I will be solo on the cocktails, but I have a permanent designated driver. How are the girls? Tom Lodi, CA

And it is a shame that our posturing pols out here will not get off there a$$ and conform. They seem to think they will come up with a better idea. Jerks. Tom Lodi, CA