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Even tax bloggers need good records for their 1040s
Nobody has been blogging taxes longerthan Kerry Kerstetter. Before the TaxProf started his blog in 2004, his “Tax Guru” blog was about all there was for some time for company after the 2001 beginning of the Tax Update. Much of what...
A Step Away from the Fiscal Cliff?
Huge parts of the tax law either have technically expired already or will do so at year end, thanks to our congresscritters habit of enacting tax breaks “temporarily.” This looming calamity is variously called “Taxmageddon” or the “...
Obamacare: It's a Tax!
Flickr image of “The Ultimate Swiss Army Knife” by redjar The Supreme Court surpisedjust about everybody today by holding that the Affordable Care Act was not a permitted exercise of C ongressional Commerce Clause power, but it was still valid as...
Should We Dump the Corporate Income Tax?
The current corporation income tax is ugly. It imposes two levels of tax on the same income while creating all sorts of distortions. The TaxProf explores the issue in "Should We Abolish the Corporate Income Tax?" The post links an argument by...
You Get What You Pay For, Refundable Tax Credit Edition
Refundable credits give rise to fraud schemes like day follows night. When you can get a check just for making up numbers and sending a form in, that's irresistable to scammers. A plea agreement in an Iowa case shows how it's done; The Des Moines...
What is the Right S Corporation Salary?
By affirming yesterday that a West Des Moines CPA had to pay FICA taxes on about $91,000 of his earnings from his professional S corporation -- instead of the $24,000 he put on his W-2 -- the Eighth Circuit helped make the first marks in the big...
Why You Don't Want to Ignore Taxes in Other States
When you live in a high tax state like Iowa or Minnesota, it can seem that there is little risk in failing to file returns in other states where may have taxable income. After all, you probably will get a full credit on your home state return for...
Year-End Tax Tip: Pay More Self-Employment Tax?
Should self-employed taxpayers try to move income up from 2012 to 2011 to pay taxes sooner? That's an intriguing and counterintuitive suggestion from tax blogger William Perez, who explains: What I have in mind here is the lower self-employment tax...
Today is the Final 1040 Deadline, Barring a Hurricane
Today is the final extended due date for 1040s. There are no second extensions. You need to file today, or face late penalties. There is an exception. If you are "lucky" enough to live in an area affected by Hurricane Irene, you have until...
There Goes Warren Again, a Look at Warren Buffett's Taxes
The Oracle of Omaha is back in the news for revealing glimpses of his tax situation. Janet Novack reports: According to a letter Buffett sent to Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kansas) that the Congressman posted here, the billionaire had adjusted gross...
Why Would You Be a 'C Corporation'?
While most new businesses are set up as pass-throughs nowadays, C corporations still have a following. Martin Sullivan ponders why taxpayers voluntarily run a business in a way that they know will be subject to two taxes: Graduated corporate rates...
Economic Development Incentives: Why Not 'Disarm'?
Brian Gongol accurately describes the state of play in corporate wellfare in the form of state "economic development incentives": Unilateral disarmament in the economic-development battlefield isn't likely to happen, since nobody wants to be the...
