Taxes

My fantasy football season is not off to a good start. In week two, I lost by 50 points—to my daughter, who does not watch football. Fortunately, we don’t play for cash in our league, we only play for bragging rights. It is not, however, unusual for adults to gamble, even if it’s only occasionally.

Instacart is the highest-profile venture-backed company to go public since December 2021. As with many later-stage startup companies, Instacart’s initial public offering (IPO) is as much about its human capital as its financial capital. Grants of restricted stock units (RSUs) and stock options are important forms of compensation for Instacart employees—but to cash in, they

Congress is in chaos with just 10 days remaining to avert a partial government shutdown. Over the weekend, negotiators for the center-right Mainstreet Caucus and far-right Freedom Caucus agreed on a bill that would continue government funding at reduced spending levels after the fiscal year ends on September 30th. But nearly a dozen Freedom Caucus

For weeks, the IRS has been teasing new compliance initiatives—including increased hiring—to focus on expanded enforcement work on complex partnerships, large corporations, and high-income and high-wealth individuals. Today, the IRS announced plans to establish a special pass-through organization to focus on large or complex pass-through entities. According to the IRS, the new group will be

Intro In a surprising move, the IRS recently announced an immediate stop to new Employee Retention Credit (ERC) processing, citing suspicions of fraudulent activity. The ERC was established as part of the 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act and was designed to provide financial support to employers during the pandemic. However, the

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has warned five tax preparation companies that they could face civil penalties if they use or disclose confidential taxpayer data for other unrelated purposes, such as advertising, without first obtaining consumers’ consent. According to information posted on the FTC website, the five tax preparation companies are H&R Block SQ ,

Joseph Nocito, age 81, of Sewickley, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced to one year and one day in prison for conspiring to defraud the U.S.. Nocito, former CEO and President of Pittsburgh-based Automated Health Systems, will also serve three years of supervised release, which includes six months on home detention, and pay approximately $15,824,056 in restitution.

The IRS is hiring thousands of new workers. Just weeks after the tax agency announced plans to ramp up its focus on millionaires, complex partnerships, and large corporations, details about related new positions have been made public. The IRS is hiring 3,700 new employees nationwide in more than 250 locations. The hiring is focused on

The Inflation Reduction Act includes U.S. territories in the expansion of clean energy tax benefits, but only partially. The proposed elective payment regulations (REG-101607-23) define when territories and entities within them can benefit from the new regime. The proposed rules provide that applicable entities include U.S. territories and their political subdivisions, instrumentalities, and agencies, similar

Michael R. Stevenson is better known by his stage name of Tyga. Tyga is a successful rapper, who like many celebrities has found his way to Tax Court. His attorneys were pushing back against an IRS levy notice on a balance due of over $2 million for just 2019. It did not go well, in

What is taxed and what isn’t can be confusing. In the case of disability pay, whether it is taxed or not usually depends on who paid for the disability insurance coverage. Perhaps your employer paid for your disability coverage, and you were covered as a fringe benefit. In that case, when you are disabled and

As companies continue to struggle with managing remote work for their employees, many workers want at least some flexibility. But although working from home has become a semi-permanent feature of the economy, not everyone can get it. Can you? The biggest factor determining remote work is the industry you’re in; it’s highest in sectors with

Gasoline in Georgia just got a little cheaper. Governor Brian P. Kemp (R) declared a State of Emergency in the Peach State, citing inflation and unfavorable economic conditions. The declaration allows him to temporarily suspend the state’s excise tax on motor and locomotive fuel. The executive order went into effect on Sept. 13, 2023, at

Citing “rising concerns about a flood of improper Employee Retention Credit claims,” the IRS has announced an immediate moratorium on processing new ERC claims. The agency says that the pause, which will run through through at least the end of the year, is intended to protect honest small business owners from scams. No new claims

A few years ago, a neighbor of mine was having a serious problem with the Social Security Administration. The agency inexplicably denied her the retirement benefits she was entitled to — all because of a name change. Something so basic as reverting to her maiden name (after being widowed for a decade) was enough to

Professor Clint Wallace of the University of South Carolina School of Law discusses his argument for using tax policy to reinforce democracy. This transcript has been edited for length and clarity. David D. Stewart: Welcome to the podcast. I’m David Stewart, editor in chief of Tax Notes Today International. This week: tax and democracy. An

A federal jury in Detroit has found Ryan Richmond of Bloomfield, Michigan, guilty on charges including evading federal income taxes and obstructing the IRS. According to the original indictment, Richmond owned and operated Relief Choices LLC, a medical marijuana dispensary in Warren, Michigan. Warren is a short drive north from Detroit. Legality Of Cannabis Under

The Covid pandemic-induced growth in working from home (WFH) continues rippling through the economy, highlighting tensions for both employees and employers. If you work from home at least part of time, you’re part of a major shift in the professional labor market, but don’t get too comfortable—things will keep changing. Last week, Meta started requiring

As the mass proliferation of digital services taxes becomes increasingly certain, the United States may be wise to reassess its categorical opposition to them and rededicate its resources to developing multilateral DST standards. DSTs are still relatively novel tax policy instruments that have yet to win consensus acceptance and, therefore, are not subject to the

Do you pay tax on your crypto gains? The IRS wants you to. Do you claim tax losses for your crypto losses? The IRS probably cares a less about that, but you are entitled to claim your tax losses too, which can lessen the tax bite on your gains. It is hard to believe that