* Tax pros – the November 1, 2015 issue of
my free email newsletter TAXPRO BUZZ is available. If you would like a copy email me at rdftaxpro@yahoo.com with “Taxpro Buzz” in the subject
line.
* A few BUZZ installments ago I told you
about the Tax Glossary compiled by Kay Bell, the yellow rose of taxes. Jason Dinesen also has a blog series on tax definitions
– click here to check out his Tax Glossary series.
* The TAX FOUNDATION has published an
online “Income Taxes Illustrated: A Visual Guide to Income in America and How it is Taxed”.
* Have you ordered my “2015 Year-End Tax Planning Guide” yet? Why not! It will help you to make sure you pay the
absolute least amount of federal, state, and local income tax for 2015.
* The WASHINGTON POST gives us some news we
don’t need – “IRS customer service will get even worse this tax filing season, tax chief warns” -
“Internal
Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen said Tuesday that taxpayers should
expect customer service to ‘get worse’ during the upcoming filing season unless
Congress boosts the agency’s budget — worse, that is, than the new low set last
year.”
During this past tax filing season –
February 1 through April 15 for me – I received more emails from clients about
delayed federal refunds than all past tax seasons combined! I will need to warn clients that refund
delays will increase for the February – April 2016 season.
The members of Congress sure are idiots,
aren’t they?
* Speaking of the idiots in Congress, Kay
Bell tells us “U.S. House plans to work 111 days in 2016”.
As Kay puts it – “Nice work, or not, if you can get it”.
FYI –
“The
House's calendar for the upcoming second session of the 114th Congress includes
the fewest amount of days the House has been session since 2006, according to
those who track such numbers.
Nine
years ago, Representatives were gaveled into session on 101 days.
That
makes the 2016 calendar the second fewest scheduled House work days since 1975.”
* Russ Fox explains “Where I Agree (In Part) With IRS Commissioner John Koskinen” at TAXABLE TALK –
“Commissioner
Koskinen is correct. Congress should get off its duff and pass the extender
legislation. That said, the calendar hasn’t hit December so I don’t expect
anything to happen for four weeks.”
Russ also agrees that budget cuts hurt IRS
taxpayer service. But he blames the IRS
itself – mismanagement (I certainly agree here) and illegal behavior - and not the idiots in Congress
for the budget cuts. Russ does make a
point – Congress should act to stop IRS FUs.
But the words “Congress” and “act” are rarely used together.
I do believe that the idiots in Congress
must take a lot of blame for reductions in IRS taxpayer service – since they
continue to add social benefit and other non-tax administration duties to the
IRS by using the Tax Code wrongly to distribute government benefits. This alone is bad – but they do not provide
the appropriate funding to cover the erroneous additional duties.
As a fellow tax preparer said in response
to the excessive due-diligence requirements for tax pros – “The IRS didn't ask to redistribute wealth,
enforce and monitor healthcare, and alike.”
* Before I leave the subject of the IRS
budget cuts – USA TODAY reports “IRS audit rates at more than decade-long low”
–
“The
audit coverage rate, the percentage of federal tax returns the IRS examined
either in person or by mail correspondence, dropped to 0.84%, the IRS said. The
rate was the lowest since 2004, and the decline marked the third consecutive
year with audit coverage below 1%.
IRS
personnel audited just over 1.2 million individuals during the fiscal year, the
preliminary data shows. That marked a 1.1% decline from 2014, and a nearly
22.3% drop from fiscal year 2010.”
Why the drop in audits?
“The
declines came amid cuts in IRS budget funding and employee headcount, as well
as a rise in the number of individual federal returns filed for three of the
last four years.”
* ICYI – I will send you free of charge as
an email attachment my “What’s New In Taxes for 2016” (FYI, it is included in
the “2015 Year-End Tax Planning Guide”).
Email rdftaxpro@yahoo.com with “2016 Tax Info” in the subject line.
* A 2014 post from Jim Blankenship at
GETTING YOUR FINANCIAL DUCKS IN A ROW list “Types of Rollovers Not Subject to the Once-Per-Year Rule”.
* Tax pros – check out the new THE TAX PROFESSIONAL website revisions.
* Small business owners - ever wonder “How Do I Do My Own Payroll and Payroll Taxes?”
Jean Murray tells you how.
Doing payroll “in house” is not difficult,
especially with the help of Quickbooks or a similar program.
* Jason Dinsesen begins a blog discussion
on “Taxation of Railroad Retirement Benefits”.
Because of the two-tiered system RR
benefits can indeed be, as Jason suggests, “confusing
to the uninitiated”. I look forward
to reading his ongoing series.
* And finally, the CCH week-day daily
Federal News Headlines e-letter reports “Brady to Head Ways and Means Committee”.
TTFN
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