* Rob Teuber has begun a series on Hobby Loss Rules at his blog TAX LAW FORUM. The series begins with the Thursday, August 27, 2009 post “Is Your Business A Hobby? The IRS Might Think So”.
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* Speaking of blog series, NYC Enrolled Agent John Sheeley has a series on the recent IRS Nationwide Tax Forum in NYC that begins with “IRS Nationwide Tax Forums “.
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I did not attend the IRS Tax Forum this year. I have been to the NYC Forum for the past two years and because of the heat and the long walk from Port Authority on 41st St to the mid 50’s I usually give up after the first day. Besides, they have been getting more and more expensive each year. I seem to recall the first one I attended, in Chicago, was extremely reasonable.
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* Byron York of the Washington Examiner reports on H.R. 735, also known as the "Rangel Rule Act of 2009" (after Charlie Rangel, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and, according to York, “a financial wheeler-dealer, a serial asset-hider, and a tax offender”) in “The Clock is Ticking on Tax Cheat Charlie Rangel”.
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Under the H.R. 735, introduced by Rep. John Carter, a Texas Republican who spent two decades as a judge before coming to the House in 2002, “if you're caught cheating on your taxes, you would pay what you owe, then write ‘Rangel Rule’ at the top of your return, and you wouldn't be charged any penalty or interest”.
.
Under this bill, according to Carter, ordinary taxpayers would be "treated with the same courtesy that, it seems, the IRS is treating the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee."
.
This is an actual bill introduced in Congress – not an online joke.
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The article points out that the bill's title is modeled on what is known in Texas as the "Hobby Rule", which has nothing to do with stamp collecting. Check out the article to learn about the “Hobby Rule”.
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* The CCH daily email newsletter reported that “GAO Report Recommends Procedures to Enhance Enforcement of Home Mortgage Interest Deduction”.
.
The report recommends that “the IRS make several changes in procedures and forms to better detect taxpayer noncompliance with the home mortgage interest (HMI) deduction rules”.
.
CCH correctly states-
.
“The rules for the HMI deduction are quite complex and involve many steps for taxpayers to determine whether they can take the deduction. Taxpayers must be able to document and account for various issues such as acquisition debt limits, home equity loan limits, use of loan proceeds, prepaid interest and alternative minimum tax (AMT) implications. The complexity of the rules makes compliance difficult for taxpayers.”
.
It is more than just transferring the mortgage interest amount from the Form 1098 to the Schedule A, although this is exactly what most taxpayers, and I expect most tax preparers, do.
.
* Oi vey! Kay Bell tells us that Schedule A is now a 2-page form, with a new “worksheet” on the back instead of Schedule B in “Breaking up Schedules A and B” at DON’T MESS WITH TAXES. As long as I have been doing taxes (began with the 1971 Form 1040) Schedule B has been on back of Schedule A.
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Click here to check out the draft 2009 Schedule A.
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* Another great post from the perspective of a professional tax preparer by Trish McIntire at OUR TAXING TIMES – “Why I Don't Want Your Business”.
.
As for me, I don’t want any partnership or corporation clients (although as Mick told us “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” and I do have a few corporations left). And I actually don’t want any more 1040 clients. I have more than enough to keep me busy during the tax season.
.
TTFN
.
* Speaking of blog series, NYC Enrolled Agent John Sheeley has a series on the recent IRS Nationwide Tax Forum in NYC that begins with “IRS Nationwide Tax Forums “.
.
I did not attend the IRS Tax Forum this year. I have been to the NYC Forum for the past two years and because of the heat and the long walk from Port Authority on 41st St to the mid 50’s I usually give up after the first day. Besides, they have been getting more and more expensive each year. I seem to recall the first one I attended, in Chicago, was extremely reasonable.
.
* Byron York of the Washington Examiner reports on H.R. 735, also known as the "Rangel Rule Act of 2009" (after Charlie Rangel, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and, according to York, “a financial wheeler-dealer, a serial asset-hider, and a tax offender”) in “The Clock is Ticking on Tax Cheat Charlie Rangel”.
.
Under the H.R. 735, introduced by Rep. John Carter, a Texas Republican who spent two decades as a judge before coming to the House in 2002, “if you're caught cheating on your taxes, you would pay what you owe, then write ‘Rangel Rule’ at the top of your return, and you wouldn't be charged any penalty or interest”.
.
Under this bill, according to Carter, ordinary taxpayers would be "treated with the same courtesy that, it seems, the IRS is treating the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee."
.
This is an actual bill introduced in Congress – not an online joke.
.
The article points out that the bill's title is modeled on what is known in Texas as the "Hobby Rule", which has nothing to do with stamp collecting. Check out the article to learn about the “Hobby Rule”.
.
* The CCH daily email newsletter reported that “GAO Report Recommends Procedures to Enhance Enforcement of Home Mortgage Interest Deduction”.
.
The report recommends that “the IRS make several changes in procedures and forms to better detect taxpayer noncompliance with the home mortgage interest (HMI) deduction rules”.
.
CCH correctly states-
.
“The rules for the HMI deduction are quite complex and involve many steps for taxpayers to determine whether they can take the deduction. Taxpayers must be able to document and account for various issues such as acquisition debt limits, home equity loan limits, use of loan proceeds, prepaid interest and alternative minimum tax (AMT) implications. The complexity of the rules makes compliance difficult for taxpayers.”
.
It is more than just transferring the mortgage interest amount from the Form 1098 to the Schedule A, although this is exactly what most taxpayers, and I expect most tax preparers, do.
.
* Oi vey! Kay Bell tells us that Schedule A is now a 2-page form, with a new “worksheet” on the back instead of Schedule B in “Breaking up Schedules A and B” at DON’T MESS WITH TAXES. As long as I have been doing taxes (began with the 1971 Form 1040) Schedule B has been on back of Schedule A.
.
Click here to check out the draft 2009 Schedule A.
.
* Another great post from the perspective of a professional tax preparer by Trish McIntire at OUR TAXING TIMES – “Why I Don't Want Your Business”.
.
As for me, I don’t want any partnership or corporation clients (although as Mick told us “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” and I do have a few corporations left). And I actually don’t want any more 1040 clients. I have more than enough to keep me busy during the tax season.
.
TTFN
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