2012 Taxpayer Advocate Annual Report to Congress National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson released her annual report to Congress today. The reports says that the combination of the IRS’s expanding workload and declining resources is the most serious problem facing taxpayers. The Advocate said that the IRS’s expanding use of automated processes to adjust tax liabilities is causing harm to taxpayers and [...]...

Credit Scoring to be Updated The New York Times is reporting that a company called CoreLogic introduced a new type of credit file, which is based on the giant repository of consumer data it maintains on just about everything that most of the traditional credit bureaus do not: missed rental payments that have gone into collection, any evictions or child support judgments, as well as any applications for payday loans, along with your repayment history. The new report also contains property tax liens, past due homeowner association dues, whether or not you owe more on your home that it's worth and mortgages from small lenders....

1 in 7 Depend on Food Stamps. Wow! The Economist reports today that  1 in 7 Americans depends on the Food Stamp program to have enough to eat. There’s a lot of pain out there with unemployment in the 9%+ range. The Economist also reports that the Food Stamp program is also a good economic stimulus, producing $1.73 in increased economic activity for [...]...

IRS Warns of New Scams The Internal Revenue Service has warned of new tax related scam, frequently involving people with no filing requirement. The scams are an attempt to persuade people to file false claims for rebates or credits. There’s no shortage of thieves and unscrupulous people. Taxpayers should be wary of anyone promoting fictitious claims or refunds or advice [...]...

Non-Cash Charitable Contributions Many people recycle their clothing and household goods by donating them to various charities.  Goodwill Industries, MUST , American Kidney Services and many others accept or pickup contributed items and the tax code allows a tax deduction for these contributions if they are in good or better condition. A household good that is not in [...]...

IRS Delayed Processing of Returns The IRS has announced that because Congress passed a major tax bill late in December, they are unable to reprogram computers to process returns before mid-February.  Taxpayers that itemize deductions, claim the educator expense, the tuition deduction or repayment of the 2008 homebuyer credit are affected.  These are returns that include Schedule A, Form 8917, [...]...

Extended Federal Tax Due Date The Emancipation Day holiday in Washington, DC , which is April 16, is being celebrated on April 15 this year. By law, a local holiday in Washington is a tax holiday as well.  All individual tax returns without extension and estimated tax payments for the first quarter of 2011 are due on April 18 as [...]...

2011 Mileage Rates The IRS published the 2011 mileage rates a few weeks ago. The new rate for business mileage is $.51, up from $.50 in 2010. Medical and moving mileage is now $.19 per mile, up from $.165 and charitable mileage is $.14 per mile, which is unchanged from 2010. A contemporaneous mileage log is required to [...]...

Credit Card Clearing 1099′s The result of the Housing Assistance Tax Act of 2008, bank and other merchant service providers must begin issuing a Form 1099-K to anyone whose total gross receipts from credit card transactions exceeding $20,000 and 200 transactions in a calendar year. This will no doubt be a painful time for many online sellers that haven’t [...]...

IRS Disbars CPA Have you ever wondered why your CPA keeps digging for answers until he understands a transaction or nitpicks you for the right details of a deduction? The IRS released IR-2010-82 on July 6, 2010, announcing the disbarment of a CPA. Here’s the announcement from the IRS website: IR-2010-82, July 6, 2010 WASHINGTON — The Office [...]...