Per Diem Meals Air Traffic Controller

[cpabsd]

Is the per diem expense allowed to be utilized for an air traffic controller for meals incurred while on the job?  They are by law not allowed to leave the building.   I know they fall under the DOT rules for 80% of the deduction.  Please provide a cite.  Not having much success locating specific allowable deduction.  Having a  "co-worker" who takes it is not good enough.  

[kcjenkins]

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-wd/02-0020.pdf

 

Generally, meals at the taxpayer’s regular work location are not allowable under § 162.  
The courts have held that daily meals are an inherently personal expense. See Moss v.
Commissioner, 80 T.C. 1073 (1983), aff’d 758 F.2d 211 (7th Cir. 1985), cert. denied 474
U.S. 979 (1985), (deductions for frequent lunch meetings taken by a law firm
disallowed).
You drew our attention to the instructions for Form 2106, specifically the instructions for
Line 5 and Line 9. These instructions use the terms “allowable meals” or “business
meals.” An expense for meals is allowable only if it meets the requirements of § 162
described above.

[Max W]

Meals are only deductible for W-2 employees if they travel out of town.

 

There is one exception, however, for fireman and police.

If they pay into a common mess fund and are required to stay on the premises for 24 hours, the mess fund pmts are deductible.