Time to transform Social Security into a wealth-creating vehicle. - Instead of the IOUs that disappear when you die.


Tax & Fiscal Information for Senator John Kerry - Of course, this is rapidly becoming a moot point, as my prediction of someone else taking his place on the DemonRat ticket looks more likely every day of his totally inept and incompetent campaign.


Stop the Spree - Tax cuts don't cause deficits. Out of control spending does.


Sanford tax plan moves to Senate floor - A possible reduction in the state income tax rate for South Carolina.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/30/2004 10:14:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/30/2004 04:40:00 PM Send this post:

 
Conservative Dividing Lines
Jonah Goldberg has an interesting look at the dilemma conservatives have in supporting RINOs and other members of the GOP who are violating basic conservative principles. He voices a common concern many of us have:

Many conservatives, myself included, are fairly outraged that President Bush is spending taxpayer dollars like a pothead teenager with a stolen credit card.

However, Jonah is making the same mistake as Rush Limbaugh in assuming that there are only two choices in an election and choosing the lesser evil is the only option we have; when in fact, there is a political party that is still true to the belief in small constitutionally authorized government, the Libertarians.

People who are upset about RINOs, such as PA's Arlen Specter, would make a more powerful statement in support of conservatism by voting for the Libertarian candidate than by voting for the RINO or by sitting the election out. Otherwise, Bush and the RINOs will continue to take conservatives for granted and will see no downside to usurping even more of the DemonRat agenda.




- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/30/2004 02:44:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/30/2004 12:57:00 PM Send this post:

 
Senate OKs Bill to Ban Web Access Tax


We Don't Need No Stinkin' License - Realtors in the PRC aren't too happy about people advertising their own properties on the web. Welcome to the 21st Century.


Vote Quiets Anti-Tax Clarion Call In Virginia



House, Senate Gridlocked Over Tax Cuts



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/29/2004 06:57:00 PM Send this post:

 
IRS Mileage Rates
Back last October, when IRS established the standard rate for 2004 business miles as 37.5 cents, the price of fuel was much lower than it is now. Normally, when we have a large increase during the year, as long as it appears to not be a temporary spike, IRS issues a new higher rate for the later months of the year. They have not done so as of yet. My inquiries to IRS personnel have yielded no time frame for such a new rate. In the meantime, trucking companies and airlines have been adding fuel surcharges to their rates.

If IRS doesn't issue a new higher rate soon, it will be another perfect example of how important it is to keep track of actual out of pocket vehicle expenses so they can be claimed instead of the standard rate, if they turn out to be higher, which they could very well be for 2004.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/29/2004 04:56:00 PM Send this post:

 
Typos On New $50 Bill "Security Features," Insists Treasury



In Class, the Audience Weighs In - Interesting look at the high tech tools being used in law school and college classrooms, featuring Paul Caron, whose TaxProf blog has gotten off to an amazingly quick start. Things have changed quite a bit in the 30 or so years since my days as a college student.



Permanent tax cut OK'd - It's very premature to celebrate this as an actual victory. It's only the token marriage penalty reduction as passed by the House. While I have no doubt that Bush would sign this if it comes to him intact, the Senate has far too many RINOs (including the recently victorious PA Senator Arlen Specter) to guarantee its survival there.



Social Security Time Bomb, and the Candidates Aren't Talking - Standard operating procedure for our rulers here. Just ignore the problem and hope it goes away.





- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/29/2004 12:35:00 PM Send this post:

 
The Jersey Two-Face



McGreevey Looks to Wealthy to Fix New Jersey Property Tax



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/29/2004 09:38:00 AM Send this post:

 
Invest In Yourself
A common scenario I have seen countless times. A person leaves the employ of a large company (sometimes voluntarily and sometimes not) and has a very substantial amount of money in the former employer's retirement plan. This is a very tempting source of money to use to start up a new business or expand an existing one. Unfortunately, if the person is under 59.5 years old, there are heavy penalties (10% Federal plus something for State) for touching that money. Added to the Federal and State income taxes, I have frequently seen the effective rate on such withdrawals exceed well over 50% of the account balance. I have normally advised people to roll their retirement funds into an IRA account and then take out an equity loan against their real estate in order to avoid the huge tax and penalty hit.

Once cash and stocks are rolled over from a company plan to an IRA, there is still a question as to how to invest that money. Most people think that the only options are cash and stocks. However, the options are wider than that. We have long used the concept of "prudent investments" to designate what are suitable for retirement accounts. Some things, such as collectibles, are statutorily ineligible investments. I can remember about a dozen years ago, when the prices for ostriches and emus were escalating and promoters were claiming that those birds were suitable investments for IRAs and other types of retirement accounts. As I predicted back then, the market prices for those flightless birds collapsed and anyone stupid enough to fall for that get rich quick scheme saw their retirement nest eggs fly away.

About a week ago, I received an email from a reader referring to a company in San Diego, BeneTrends, that has established a certain type of retirement account, called Entrepreneur Rollover Stock Ownership Plan (ERSOP), where the funds are invested into shares of stock of closely held C corporations. S corporations do not qualify; one more benefit to using a C instead of an S.

This actually addresses a couple of very big problems that I have discussed over the years; how to safely invest retirement funds and how to obtain working capital for small businesses.

Safe investments of retirement money. I have long ridiculed people who invest their retirement money in super risky stocks. I have frequently had the unpleasant task of informing people that, because their retirement accounts were pre-tax money, which give them a cost basis of zero, there was no deduction allowed for the losses they suffered in those accounts.

Whether it's a dot-com stock, fueled by pure speculation frenzy, or what are considered to be blue chip stocks, I have never been a big fan of playing the stock market because you have no control over the management of those companies. Recent corporate accounting scandals have illustrated how valid those concerns were. Investing in your own company fixes that problem. If you end up losing the money, you only have yourself to blame.


According to the service fee schedule I was sent, BeneTrends charges $4,000 to establish the ERSOP plus a $700 IRS User Fee to register the plan, and annual maintenance fees of $800 plus $40 per participant. While at first blush, this may seem like a lot of money, it is a small fraction of the taxes that would be payable if the money were withdrawn from the account and used directly. It is also much less than the fees routinely charged for small business loans. I have also seen small companies pay well over $10,000 to establish more conventional defined benefit retirement plans; so $4,000 is quite reasonable. BeneTrends also offers incorporation services for $800 plus the state fees; but I still think my earlier suggestions for setting up a new corporation are the best way to go.
- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/28/2004 09:42:00 PM Send this post:

 
House Pursues Permanent Tax Break for Married Couples



Senate Vote on Net Taxes Looms



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/28/2004 04:41:00 PM Send this post:

 
Bush's costly tax favors - The only bit of truth in this diatribe against tax cuts is the cost of dealing with the complexity of the tax code. Blaming tax cuts for the deficit and income disparity is just the same socialist bilge the mainstream media have been pushing on the economically illiterate for decades.



Latest state revenue-raising wrinkle: taxing services - There has always been a huge lobby industry involved in defining what products and services are subject to sales taxes. Adding things that had traditionally been exempt, such as professional services, is an easy way to raise revenue without raising the actual tax rate.


Boost in taxes OK'd in Virginia


Don't Tax the Internet


Google hype has veterans of '90s bubble a bit worried - It's no secret that the collective memory in this country can be measured in months. Just look at how many people (most of the DemonRats) have completely forgotten about the terrorist attacks on 9/11/01. Anyone so willing to ignore the history of the 1990s dot-com stock market fiasco because it was ancient history from last century will deserve to lose any money they gamble in IPOs and other speculative stocks.










- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/28/2004 11:50:00 AM Send this post:

 
States Name, Shame Tax Scofflaws Online



Brown's attorney files for discovery - The latest on the Harrison Abstract embezzlement case.



A Profile of Couples Benefiting from Marriage Penalty Relief - As I've often explained, the provisions discussed here only offset a part of the true tax penalty on married couples. Many couples still pay several thousands of dollars in additional taxes than they would if they were able to file as single. I have long advocated true marriage penalty relief by allowing married couples to calculate their taxes under various scenarios and allow them to use the most advantageous one. Liberals, who think our taxes are too low, would be free to use the higher tax method; but of course they won't so as to not disturb their innate hypocrisy.




German immigrant leaves 70% of estate to IRS - While this isn't the choice most of us would make, that was her right to do.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/27/2004 12:04:00 PM Send this post:

 
Martha's New Endorsement Deal


Courtesy of Worth1000


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/26/2004 02:43:00 PM Send this post:

 
Bush Calls for Ban on Broadband Taxes



Criminalizing business: part II - More from Thomas Sowell on why the name People's Republic of California (PRC) is so well deserved. The anti-business sentiment is even worse than it was eleven years ago, when we left there.


It's the economy, voters, but whose? - Judging the state of the economy is a very subjective undertaking.


Is Fair and Simple No Longer Possible? - Those are two words that will never be used to describe the income tax system in this country. The only way to achieve anything close to fair or simple would be to repeal the 16th Amendment, completely scrap the income and estate taxes, and use something like a national sales tax. When it comes to tax reform, the motto needs to be, "end it, don't mend it."


Not enough financial aid? Seek counseling.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/26/2004 10:38:00 AM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/25/2004 10:10:00 PM Send this post:

 
How to slash your taxes - The traditional way to reduce or eliminate income and payroll taxes is to just stop working, which becomes more attractive an option the higher and more confiscatory the tax rates are.


Criminalizing business - Another good piece by Thomas Sowell on the impossibility of every potential investor having exactly the same information as every other potential investor, and the ridiculousness of our rulers in DC trying to legislate this kind of thing from their high and mighty thrones.


Kill the Corporate AMT - As well as the idiotic AMT on individuals.


PAYGO on Tax Cuts Could Bring Back the Estate Tax - The entire way in which our rulers account for the effects of tax changes - using a static scoring system that assumes no related changes in behavior as a result - is the perfect example of the classic oxymoron, "government intelligence."




IWF Refutes So-Called 'Wage Gap' - It is true that the extent of the perceived gap between salaries of women and men is usually highly overstated and doesn't account for the extenuating circumstances that actually justify such disparities. However, the issue is not entirely fictitious. During my seven years involvement with the internal auditing profession (as an auditor, audit manager, and seminar instructor), where I examined the internal workings of a number of large businesses, I did see several very real examples of men being paid much higher salaries and given many more benefits (company cars, etc.) than women for the exact same jobs simply because of their gender. Managers even used those exact words to justify the differences. I was reprimanded on several occasions for discussing those disparities. Of course, it has been almost 20 years since I left corporate employment; so I hope such blatant discrimination has been tempered since then.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/25/2004 02:08:00 PM Send this post:

 
Virginia Schools Cut Math Classes to Increase Lottery Sales - Consistent with the classic definition of lotteries as "taxation of the mathematically ignorant (aka morons)."


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/24/2004 07:34:00 PM Send this post:

 
How to Irritate the IRS - I'm not endorsing these tricks; but showing what kind of crap IRS employees have to deal with; because people actually do these things to them


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/23/2004 11:02:00 PM Send this post:

 
How to invest in dot-com stocks, courtesy of Fark



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/23/2004 07:55:00 PM Send this post:

 
Do You Own Multiple Homes But No "Principal Residence" For Capital Gains Purposes? - Although this is from last July, I just came across it and even added a link to it on the page on my main website with the article on primary residence sales. It shows that establishing a home as a "primary residence," with up to $500,000 of tax free profit, depends on many of the same issues as are involved with establishing a particular state or country as a person's tax home; topics I deal with quite often. The number of days occupying the home aren't as important as the other indicators of intent to make it your primary residence, such as drivers licenses and voter registration.





- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/23/2004 06:15:00 PM Send this post:

 
Senate Revives Ban on Taxing Internet - They're finally doing something on this issue. It's about time.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/23/2004 05:32:00 PM Send this post:

 
When Would the President's Tax Cuts Expire? - If our rulers in DC don't get off their butts and make the tax cuts permanent, everyone will be facing huge tax increases very soon. This is why, a few months ago, I added a link to my blogroll on the right side of this page to the impending tax increases we are all facing.


Adam Smith's Principles of a Proper Tax System - I've always admired the "invisible hand" concepts in his book, "Wealth of Nations."



FTB double-dips into taxpayers' accounts - I have always been against electronic filing of tax returns because of the inability to properly explain the info on the returns and thus avoid audits and other problems. This snafu in the PRC shows another danger to e-filing.


Pat Boone Fights the Death Tax - We all need to exert more pressure on our rulers to permanently eliminate this evil confiscation.




Giving by Affluent Is Less Generous On Basis of Assets - This is an interesting idea; to compare charitable donations as a percentage of a person's net worth versus as a percentage of annual income. I do have serious doubts as to the results because, as they admit, the people doing these calculations, New Tithing Group, had to use a lot of SWAGs *Scientific Wild Ass Guesses) for net worth figures. IRS statistics on income and donations are anonymous and grouped together; so it's not even possible to match them up with specific people for whom net worth figures may be available. Even there, as with the annual Forbes list of the wealthiest people, a lot of SWAGs are used.

Here are direct links to New Tithing's research report and their press release.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/22/2004 07:23:00 PM Send this post:

 
Unclear on the concept.

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/22/2004 05:34:00 PM Send this post:

 
John Frugal Kerry - Going back to his 1991 tax returns, it looks there is a definite trend upwards in his charitable donations as he got closer to running for President.


Linder's Fair Tax dream gaining steam


Plotting the John Kerry tax curve


Laffer Lines - Good look at the relation between tax rates and revenues. Contrary to popular wisdom, tax rates are very powerful motivators and lower rates produce actual higher tax dollars, as shown by the Reagan tax cuts of the 1980s.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/21/2004 08:10:00 PM Send this post:

 
Is this any way to select a tax preparer?

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/21/2004 05:27:00 PM Send this post:

 
Middle-Class to be Burdened by Hidden Tax in 2010 - More people become ensnared in the idiotic AMT every year.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/20/2004 10:22:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/20/2004 01:59:00 PM Send this post:

 
An IRS Promotion for Bush at Tax Time - Contrary to what many tax protestors claim, the IRS is a part of the Treasury Department, which is part of the Executive Branch of the Federal government. Having them in synch with the top executive (Bush) is the right way to have things. The Dems just don't like facts getting in the way of their lies about taxes and the economy.




Eric Rasmusen has some more analysis of John Kerry's tax returns. He has an interesting conclusion: "If Kerry can't find someone competent to fill out his tax forms, how can he run a government?" He has a good point that, being in high level politics, John Kerry knows full well that the media and the public will be checking over his personal income tax returns. Just as with Al Gore's miniscule charitable donations, it doesn't show a lot of brain power on their part to see that they didn't spruce those kinds of things up; especially when they (DemonRats) are always claiming to be the most compassionate people on Earth.

A good tax preparer should be aware of the intended audience for the returns s/he works on. It's not always just the IRS who will be using them. For decades, I have made a point of asking clients if they expect someone other than IRS to be looking at their tax returns, such as a lender for a loan application or an investor or buyer of a business. If so, we may go lighter than normal on some of the deductions in order to paint a better picture.

Thanks to Paul Caron for the link to this on his very useful new TaxProf Blog. He also has an interesting review of the recent book critical of the USA tax system, Perfectly Legal, on his blog.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/20/2004 10:13:00 AM Send this post:

 
Agency may redefine what a family farm is - Just as with the definition of evil rich for tax purposes, it varies program by program and agency by agency.


A house fit for a cat - Leaving an estate to one's pets requires some special estate planning techniques.


A Better Mutual Fund Reform - If the various governmental regulatory agencies carry out their (promise) threat to issue new rules to protect investors, we can expect it to be just as successful as Tax Reform has been. The wise move (unfathomable to our rulers) would be to let the market take care of itself.


Single Women in Retirement Peril - It always scares me when news stories start using terms like "crisis" and "peril" because that means some kind of new government program is in the wings to solve the perceived problem.


Fair Tax would live up to its name - Unfortunately, fairness is the last thing most of our rulers want for a tax system that they use for their social engineering projects, especially wealth redistribution.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/19/2004 04:28:00 PM Send this post:

 
Tax Compliance Costs - Good look at the increasing costs to our society just to stay in line with the ever changing tax rules. It echoes a sentiment I have long discussed on how unfair it is to require victims of the IRS research projects, with their line by line dissection of every item on their tax returns, to pay for their representation or take time off from work to handle it themselves.



A Taxation Policy to Make John Stuart Mill Weep - While I obviously don't accept the judgment of this piece, it does have an interesting look at tax policy in regard to "horizontal equity" and "vertical equity."



Recapping the Benefits of a 529 Plan - There is a lot of confusion regarding these education savings plans, including the misconception that there is a tax deduction allowed for contributions to these accounts. Having different rules for the various state plans also makes it tougher to know what to do.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/19/2004 12:54:00 PM Send this post:

 
John Kerry's Tax Hypocrisy - In typical liberal fashion, JFK is always calling for higher taxes on the evil rich. His state of Massachusetts actually has two ways of computing its income tax; at 5.3% or at a higher 5.85% for those who want to help out the state government some more. Guess which rate John Kerry paid. Higher taxes are only appropriate for everyone else, and when given a chance to pay more, in true selfishness, he does what 99.97% of his fellow MA taxpayers do, and pays the lowest rate available.

As those of us who believe in lower taxes have always said to liberals, they are free to send in every penny they have to support their beloved Big Government programs. It's a very different story when they push to have the government use its awesome power to forcefully take money from other people who don't believe in Big Government.



Special-Interest Add-Ons Weigh Down Tax-Cut Bill - Our rulers are hopelessly addicted to pork.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/19/2004 10:04:00 AM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/19/2004 01:16:00 AM Send this post:

 
"Bling Bling" Not Deductible, Says IRS

Anyone who lists the costs of purchasing or maintaining bling-bling as a tax deduction might as well write "Audit Me Please" in big red letters on their tax returns.

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/18/2004 11:17:00 AM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/18/2004 11:15:00 AM Send this post:

 
Ten Ways Income Taxes Violate Civil Liberties - As I've long said, the fastest way a President could restore some faith in our tax system would be to issue an executive order removing the IRS's power to ignore all of the constitutional protections that we have under the normal criminal system of law and force them to treat citizens with the same level of respect as mass murderers have, which is much more than taxpayers receive. It's always been a travesty that killers such as O J Simpson are afforded more rights and protections than someone who makes a tax mistake.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/18/2004 11:14:00 AM Send this post:

 
Who allows what?
This is not the way our rulers see things. According to their logic, we are blessed by every dollar of income that they deem to allow us to keep and we should be eternally grateful for their benevolence.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/18/2004 11:04:00 AM Send this post:

 
Iowa House advances citizen tax-vote measure - Letting voters have some power over large tax increases - what a concept.
- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/18/2004 10:44:00 AM Send this post:

 
Taxes are a-maze-ing

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/18/2004 10:36:00 AM Send this post:

 
Busted
The analysis of John Kerry's income tax return by Texas CPA Bob McCombs has achieved a quick response from the John Kerry gang.

John Kerry Files Amended Tax Return, Pays More


Whoops! John Kerry antes up $12G



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/17/2004 05:36:00 PM Send this post:

 
Millions of Americans Don't Pay Federal Taxes - Another look at the people who drop off the tax rolls at the bottom end of the income spectrum.


Why do average Americans seem to favor policies that reward the wealthy? - The tone of this article is the same disgusting "hate the rich" class envy that permeates much of our society and most of the media. They want us to all believe that it's inherently wrong for the people who actually pay the most taxes to receive the largest amount of savings from tax cuts. Of course, this shouldn't be a surprise from a communistic group such as this, that feels it is wrong for anyone to have any more than anyone else.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/17/2004 01:22:00 PM Send this post:

 
Texas CPA Claims John Kerry Owes Extra $12,000 in Capital Gains Tax - There appears to be an error in how JFK or his tax preparer reported the gain on the sale of a collectible, which has a higher tax rate than other kinds of capital gains. Interesting analysis by Bob McCombs.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/16/2004 11:46:00 AM Send this post:

 
Another Tax Scam Under Attack By The Feds


The Audit Defense Network, which used to run a lot of ads on the Rush Limbaugh show, is being charged with tax crimes. I first saw this in the paper Wall Street Journal and found the following coverage via a search in Google News

DOJ Files Suit Against Audit Defense Firm



Sham Websites And Home Businesses Allegedly Sold To 100,000 Customers For Obtaining Improper Tax Benefits-Bilking Treasury Of An Estimated $324 Million



Justice targets alleged tax scam



In a Lawsuit, U.S. Accuses a Tax Adviser of Fraud



Tax Business Accused of Bilking 100,000 Customers



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/16/2004 11:15:00 AM Send this post:

 
Just Missed
An interesting visual analogy for us taxpayers from the very creative Jay Dyson.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/16/2004 09:57:00 AM Send this post:

 
Dave's Top Ten
Once again, David Letterman failed to invite me to be part of his annual Tax Day Top Ten. Of course, my being 1,200 miles away from the Ed Sullivan Theater does make it a bit more difficult.

Top Ten Things You Don't Want To Hear From Your Accountant

10. "Listen, I'm not good with math"

9. "The good news is you're getting a huge refund -- the bad news is you'll have to hide in Costa Rica for a while"

8. "I'll gladly waive my fee for a night with your wife"

7. "Hey, get me a drink!"

6. "Do you have any dedemptions or exuptions or whatever?"

5. "Relax, everything here will be fine -- I used to work for Enron"

4. "Screw the computer -- I do all my work on an Etch-A-Sketch"

3. "What's your rush? The deadline is June 15th, right?"

2. "You can't claim yourself as your own spouse"

1. "I was late filling your return so I could appear on Letterman"


And the Extras that didn't make it on the show, but are on the website.

"If I go down, I'm taking you with me"


"Are you cool with tax evasion?"


"Mininum-security federal prisons are actually pretty nice -- just ask my other clients"


"What do you call that squiggly number between 7 and 9?"


"If the IRS calls, you've never heard of me, okay?"


"Your paperwork might say 1040-ES, but that dress says 1040-EZ"


"Isn't White-Out delicious?"


"I have this little quirk where I can only fill out tax forms if I'm naked"


"Would you mind if I list my imaginary friend Curtis as one of your dependents?"


"If only there was a machine that could add numbers for you"


"I'm allergic to ink, so I'm going to fill out your form in my own blood"


"See you in six months for the audit"


"For legal reasons, we should probably take a few minutes to get our stories straight"



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/16/2004 09:44:00 AM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 08:13:00 PM Send this post:

 
Ordinary & necessary business expenses
This reminded me of a professional wrestler client I had back in the Bay Area. We deducted huge amounts for his food in order to maintain his 400 plus pound fighting weight, and IRS never had any problems with any of that.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 07:38:00 PM Send this post:

 
Tax Scammer Irwin Schiff, who is still amazingly able to attract gullible followers with his ridiculous claim that taxes are completely voluntary:

In a Lawsuit, U.S. Accuses a Tax Adviser of Fraud

Anti-tax author appears in Vegas federal court on tax charges

Linder attempts to sell "Fair Tax" approach to Bush administration - Replacing the income tax with a national sales tax is too fair and rational an idea to ever become a reality. Such a radical change would remove far too much power from our rulers to ever be acceptable to them.


How Did He Make That Money? - Some analysis of John Kerry's 1040. I will have more on this in the next few days.


Civilize the Tax Code


A Tax Code Report Card


The Taxman's Dirtiest Secret


Bush: Tax Cuts Boosting Economic Growth - A simple basic fact that the Left wants to ignore.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 02:56:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 01:30:00 PM Send this post:

 
28 Hours Needed to Fill Out Tax Forms - Why I have no sympathy when clients complain about how long it takes us to prepare a tax return. If we were to charge based on the amount of time IRS itself estimates it takes to prepare the various forms, our fees would be hundreds of times higher.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 12:31:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 11:45:00 AM Send this post:

 
Teresa Fights To Keep Her Tax Returns Private - One of the prices to pay for being in or seeking high office, or married to someone who is, is the requirement to give up the privacy the rest of us have.

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 11:10:00 AM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/15/2004 12:30:00 AM Send this post:

 
Many Taxpayers Deduct Too Little



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/14/2004 09:26:00 PM Send this post:

 
<

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/14/2004 08:30:00 PM Send this post:

 
It's Tax Day, let's party
- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/14/2004 08:10:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/14/2004 07:38:00 PM Send this post:

 
Tax politics - Using tax stats to promote various, often diametrically opposed, agendas.


Bushes Pay Over $225,000 in Federal Taxes


John Kerry Releases His 2003 Income Tax Returns


You Are What You Tax


Beyond April 15: How Washington Spends Your Taxes


The School-Spending Racket - This kind of abuse of taxpayer dollars by the New York public school system is repeated around the country. The public has been brainwashed to believe that more money always equals higher quality education and that anyone opposed to additional spending on schools is anti-child and inherently evil. Just as with any program with growing amounts of money, the opportunities for corruption and fraud increase in synch.


Best & Worst Tax-and-Spenders in 2003


The Growing Class of Americans Who Pay No Federal Income Taxes - People dropping off the income tax radar on the bottom end of the scale; not the top end, as many stories want to focus on.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/14/2004 10:39:00 AM Send this post:

 
Out of sight, out of mind
Why most people have no clue as to how much they pay in taxes. If everyone had to write a check on April 15 for the full amount of the prior year's taxes, there would be massive support for controls over government spending.




- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/14/2004 06:34:00 AM Send this post:

 
Few Fear An IRS Audit Anymore - This just isn't true. Most people are so scared of getting into trouble with IRS that they intentionally overpay their taxes. I see it all the time.


- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/13/2004 03:31:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/13/2004 02:10:00 PM Send this post:

 
Why Must Tax System Be a Burdensome Fear?
Good letter to the editor in today's Wall Street Journal

Why Must Tax System Be a Burdensome Fear?

It should be alarming to every beleaguered, taxpaying American that the IRS recently reported its accuracy rate in answering telephoned taxpayer inquiries fell to 76% so far this year from 84% two years ago (Tax Report, April 1). I suspect the reason is the increasing complexity and breadth of the Tax Code. This is the unintentional consequence of tinkering with tax law, while maintaining the empire and dominion of the IRS and the influence it wields in our lives.

Would we tolerate a 24% error rate by a surgeon? Would McDonald's be in business today if errors were made in 24% of its orders? Of course not. Why is there not a plan to do away with a system of taxation that makes miserable the lives of honest Americans, fearing an audit and April 15 each year? How can Americans be expected to suffer a system in which we cannot be assured of securing correct information as we navigate our way through the tax maze?

Will we ever elect a president who not only talks a good game about being a friend to the taxpayer, but who places his or her words into deeds, exerting political capital to end a system of tax law that even its administrators can't comprehend and interpret?

Oren M. Spiegler
Upper Saint Clair, Pa.

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/13/2004 12:12:00 PM Send this post:

 
The Blue-State Tax - A new name for the insipidly ridiculous AMT.


Nearly 1 million signatures for new phone tax in the PRC



The Deadly Third Rail of Politics - Social Security

The FICA slush fund


Proving personal accounts work

Why Housing Is About to Go "Pop!" - It is true that the historically low mortgage interest rates have helped pump up demand and prices of real estate. As has happened before, this will reverse when interest rates rise and fewer people can afford to make their payments. It's a natural cycle and doesn't mean that real estate is a bad investment; just that you need to take it into account and not overpay for properties that are too sensitive to interest rate fluctuations.



- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/13/2004 11:28:00 AM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/13/2004 03:26:00 AM Send this post:

 
Study: IRS Audited More Individuals Last Year
- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/12/2004 10:40:00 PM Send this post:

 

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/12/2004 10:31:00 PM Send this post:

 
Newsweek Misses Tax Freedom Day
- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 4/12/2004 08:45:00 PM Send this post: