Wednesday, February 02, 2005

> Questions and Answers > > QuestionI have 3 stock investments held long-term that I sold during 2004. I > had tax losses as follows: Stock A, $2,160; Stock B, $2,462; Stock C $9,933. > When I entered the loss for Stock C in my tax return preparation software, > the taxable income and federal tax refund didn't change. Why? > > AnswerBecause the maximum capital losses that may be deducted in any tax > year on an individual's federal income tax return is limited to $3,000. Excess > capital losses are carried over to the next year. See line 21 of Schedule D. > > If you are going to be an investor, you need to learn the rules of the game. > At least read the section on capital gains and losses in a good tax guide. > Your stock broker might also have some booklets on tax rules relating to > investments that you can study. > > QuestionWhy aren't PBGC retirement checks tax free, since our company, which > is now bankrupt, paid PBGC insurance premiums and insurance claims aren't > taxed? > > AnswerNot all insurance proceeds are tax-free. Life insurance and most > medical insurance benefits are usually tax-free, but even life insurance benefits > are occasionally taxable. > > QuestionCan I claim items like gas mileage and books on my tax return? What > about loans? I haven't begun to pay them and will begin to pay when school is > completed. I only make the interest payments. > > AnswerYou haven't given me many details for your situation. Personal > mileage, including driving to school to earn your first college degree, isn't > deductible. > > There may be some credits or deductions available relating to your education > expenses. I recommend that you go to the IRS web site at www.irs.gov and get > Pub 970, Tax Benefits of Education, and Pub 508, Tax Benefits for > Work-Related Education. > > QuestionI have been contracted by an IT staffing company to a company that > is a 104-mile commute (round trip) from my house. The staffing company pays me > and issues my W-2. > > Can I take the mileage as a deduction because of the temporary nature of the > job? > > AnswerProbably not. The IRS has recently been "looking through" these > arrangements and finding the contracting company to actually be the employer. > > QuestionSince I started a new job a couple of years ago, I've been having > too much taken out of my paycheck to cover Federal and state taxes. We're > ending up with a big refund. I'd rather the money was in our pockets throughout > the year. Do I change my W-4 to have less income taxes taken out? > > AnswerYes. There is a worksheet on the form to help you figure the number of > exemptions you are entitled to. Watch your withholding after the change to > be sure you are at least paying in last year's tax. Consider having a tax > advisor help you with this. > > QuestionMy aunt bought a house in December, 1999. She has let my wife and me > live there from that time to the present without charging us rent. If she > wants to sell the house and buy another one, will she be charged tax on capital > gains? What is the rate? > > AnswerSince your aunt never charged you rent, it's questionable whether she > can make a tax-deferred exchange for the residence. Since she never lived > there, it won't qualify for the exclusion for the sale of a principal residence. > > The maximum federal income tax rate that applies to long-term capital gains > is 15%. State taxes can also apply. In California, net long-term capital > gains are taxed at the same rate as other income. If she lives in a different > state from the one where the residence is located, she may be required to file > income tax returns in both states. Your aunt should consult a tax advisor > about her situation. > > QuestionI was seriously injured on my job and won a settlement. They also > have to pay my medical bills for the rest of my life. Do I have to pay income > taxes for the award? It is for a physical injury. > > AnswerNonpunitive damages and other amounts received for personal injuries > are excluded from taxable income. (IRC Section 104(a)(2).) Punitive damages > are taxable, even when they relate to a physical injury. > > QuestionMy wife for 5 years is Russian and our daughter is still in Russia - > a full time student and ill. We are sending $2,000 per month for her > support, school and medicines. She has no other income. Can any of this be deducted > on our joint US income tax return. > > AnswerIn order to qualify as a dependent, the child must be a citizen, > national or resident of the United States, or a resident of Canada or Mexico at > some time during the calendar year in which the tax year of the taxpayer > begins, or an alien child adopted by and living with a U.S. citizen or national as > a member of his or her household for the entire tax year. (IRC Section > 152(b)(3).) It doesn't appear your daughter will qualify for a dependency exemption > or medical deductions unless you bring her here to live with you or > otherwise meet the requirements. (Also, remember full-time students only qualify if > they are under age 24 at the end of the calendar year.) > > 7:34:31 PM

> Ford Escape qualified for tax break. > > The IRS has certified the 2005 Ford Escape sport utility vehicle as a hybrid > gas-electric automobile eligible for the clean-burning fuel deduction. (IR > 2004-147.) The deduction is up to $2,000 for tax years 2004 and 2005. This is > the first SUV model and the first vehicle manufactured by a U.S. company to > qualify for the deduction. > > 7:34:29 PM

Monday, December 27, 2004

This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0003_01C4EACB.66D8C740 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_NextPart_001_0004_01C4EACB.66D8C740" ------=_NextPart_001_0004_01C4EACB.66D8C740 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable 10 insurance policies you don't need Illustration by Bob Eckstein If you're like most people, you don't relish spending money on insurance. Sure, you need it, but it's not bright and shiny, you can't drive it, and no one is going to admire it. So it's all the more galling when you find out you've purchased insurance that you don't need. "Fear sells a lot of insurance," says Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, a nonprofit consumer-advocacy group of which Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, is a founding member. "A good rule of thumb is to purchase insurance only from an insurance provider. And buy policies that are comprehensive." Insurance should cover catastrophic losses that you'd be hard-pressed to cover on your own. So what do you need? A term-life policy to cover your contribution to the family's expenses; a comprehensive health policy (or membership in a managed-care plan); disability coverage to provide income when you can't work; and homeowners and auto insurance to replace lost property. If you've got those, you don't need the following 10 policies. 1 Mortgage life insurance. This policy, generally purchased from a lender, will pay off your mortgage if you die. The cost can be three to five times as much as comparable term-life insurance for a benefit whose value declines as the mortgage is paid down. Instead: Rely on term life. 2 Credit-card-loss protection. It pays off losses if your card is stolen and the thief goes on a spending spree. Plans cost $7 to $15 a month. But federal law limits your loss to $50 per card. Instead: Put credit-card numbers in a safe place, and report lost cards ASAP. 3 Car-rental insurance. For $8 to $11 a day, it covers damages to cars and people if you are in an accident while driving one of the rental agency's vehicles. Check to see if your credit card or your own auto policy has such coverage, says Sandy Praeger, insurance commissioner for Kansas. Instead: Don't bother. 4 Flight insurance. Specialty travel-insurance companies sell life-insurance policies that pay a benefit if you die (or are dismembered) in a plane crash. Depending on the amount of insurance you buy, you pay $15 to $60 per flight. Instead: Skip it. Term life will cover you if you die in a plane crash, and health insurance should cover medical expenses. 5 Cancer insurance. Marketed by specialty-insurance companies, these plans supplement health insurance for cancer-care costs. Annual premiums range from $200 to $3,000. Despite their high cost, the policies may not cover outpatient care. Instead: Chances are that your existing health insurance already covers cancer expenses, so forget about it. 6 Credit-life insurance. Credit-card companies, banks, and other organizations that finance a purchase or lend money offer policies that repay a loan if you die. Average payout is $4,500 for a yearly cost of $23, says William Burfeind, executive vice president of the Consumer Credit Insurance Association. That's a lot of money when a healthy, nonsmoking man of 40 can buy $100,000 of 10-year level term coverage for about $100 a year. Instead: Make sure you have enough term life to cover loan payments. 7 Credit disability insurance. This policy will pay minimum installments on a loan, typically up to 36 months, if you are disabled according to the terms of your policy. A policy may cost $21 per $1,000 of coverage. Instead: Make sure that your disability plan will cover your expenses, including any loan payments. 8 Involuntary unemployment insurance. Credit-card companies and other lenders market this policy which makes minimum payments on a credit card or car loan for 6 to 12 months if you lose your job. The cost: $0.70 per $100 of your credit-card balance. Instead: Create an emergency fund that will cover 3 to 6 months of your expenses. 9 Accidental-death insurance. Your heirs collect a benefit if you die in an accident. Cost runs about $600 a year. Only about 5 percent of those who die each year do so in accidents, however. Instead: Stick with term-life insurance, which pays regardless of cause of death. 10 Identity-theft insurance. Sold by banks, credit-card issuers, and specialty insurers, it covers the cost of repairing your credit and sometimes attorney's fees. Policies cost $20 to $180 a year for up to $25,000 in coverage, which does not include unauthorized charges or funds siphoned from accounts. Instead: Check your credit reports regularly. The FTC anticipates issuing a final rule this summer that would give consumers the right to order one free credit report a year from each of the three main credit bureaus. ------=_NextPart_001_0004_01C4EACB.66D8C740 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable 10 insurance policies you don't need Illustration by Bob Eckstein If you're like most people, you don't relish spending money on insurance. Sure, you need it, but it's not bright and shiny, you can't drive it, and no one is going to admire it. So it's all the more galling when you find out you've purchased insurance that you don't need. “Fear sells a lot of insurance,” says Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, a nonprofit consumer-advocacy group of which Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, is a founding member. “A good rule of thumb is to purchase insurance only from an insurance provider. And buy policies that are comprehensive.” Insurance should cover catastrophic losses that you'd be hard-pressed to cover on your own. So what do you need? A term-life policy to cover your contribution to the family's expenses; a comprehensive health policy (or membership in a managed-care plan); disability coverage to provide income when you can't work; and homeowners and auto insurance to replace lost property. If you've got those, you don't need the following 10 policies. 1 Mortgage life insurance. This policy, generally purchased from a lender, will pay off your mortgage if you die. The cost can be three to five times as much as comparable term-life insurance for a benefit whose value declines as the mortgage is paid down. Instead: Rely on term life. 2 Credit-card-loss protection. It pays off losses if your card is stolen and the thief goes on a spending spree. Plans cost $7 to $15 a month. But federal law limits your loss to $50 per card. Instead: Put credit-card numbers in a safe place, and report lost cards ASAP. 3 Car-rental insurance. For $8 to $11 a day, it covers damages to cars and people if you are in an accident while driving one of the rental agency's vehicles. Check to see if your credit card or your own auto policy has such coverage, says Sandy Praeger, insurance commissioner for Kansas. Instead: Don't bother. 4 Flight insurance. Specialty travel-insurance companies sell life-insurance policies that pay a benefit if you die (or are dismembered) in a plane crash. Depending on the amount of insurance you buy, you pay $15 to $60 per flight. Instead: Skip it. Term life will cover you if you die in a plane crash, and health insurance should cover medical expenses. 5 Cancer insurance. Marketed by specialty-insurance companies, these plans supplement health insurance for cancer-care costs. Annual premiums range from $200 to $3,000. Despite their high cost, the policies may not cover outpatient care. Instead: Chances are that your existing health insurance already covers cancer expenses, so forget about it. 6 Credit-life insurance. Credit-card companies, banks, and other organizations that finance a purchase or lend money offer policies that repay a loan if you die. Average payout is $4,500 for a yearly cost of $23, says William Burfeind, executive vice president of the Consumer Credit Insurance Association. That's a lot of money when a healthy, nonsmoking man of 40 can buy $100,000 of 10-year level term coverage for about $100 a year. Instead: Make sure you have enough term life to cover loan payments. 7 Credit disability insurance. This policy will pay minimum installments on a loan, typically up to 36 months, if you are disabled according to the terms of your policy. A policy may cost $21 per $1,000 of coverage. Instead: Make sure that your disability plan will cover your expenses, including any loan payments. 8 Involuntary unemployment insurance. Credit-card companies and other lenders market this policy which makes minimum payments on a credit card or car loan for 6 to 12 months if you lose your job. The cost: $0.70 per $100 of your credit-card balance. Instead: Create an emergency fund that will cover 3 to 6 months of your expenses. 9 Accidental-death insurance. Your heirs collect a benefit if you die in an accident. Cost runs about $600 a year. Only about 5 percent of those who die each year do so in accidents, however. Instead: Stick with term-life insurance, which pays regardless of cause of death. 10 Identity-theft insurance. Sold by banks, credit-card issuers, and specialty insurers, it covers the cost of repairing your credit and sometimes attorney's fees. Policies cost $20 to $180 a year for up to $25,000 in coverage, which does not include unauthorized charges or funds siphoned from accounts. Instead: Check your credit reports regularly. 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Monday, October 04, 2004

Questions and Answers QuestionAre awards received in a wrongful death case taxable? AnswerMy condolences for your loss. I will only discuss the federal tax rules for your issue. You should be working with an attorney and a tax return preparer in settling your father-in-law's estate. Amounts received for physical personal injuries (including wrongful death) are excludable from taxable income. Punitive damages are taxable income. (Internal Revenue Code Section 104(a)(2).) However, if only punitive damages may be awarded under a state's wrongful death statutes, which were in effect on or before September 13, 1995, the damages are excludable (§ 104(c)). The CCH Federal Tax Service cites the Conference Committee Report to P.L, 104-188 (1996) H,R. Rep. No. 104-737 in concluding that nonpunitive damages received for wrongful death are excluded from income under Internal Revenue Code Section 104. The clarifying language under § 104(c) and Letter Ruling 200029020 also support this conclusion. Damages received under a wrongful death statute are excludable from the taxable estate of the deceased person, but amounts that person would have been entitled to during his or her lifetime for pain and suffering or as reimbursement for medical expenses, etc. are includable in the taxable estate. (Revenue Rulings 69-8, 54-19, 75-127, 75-126, 83-44.) QuestionI want to buy the home next door to mine, fix it up and sell it 2 or 3 months later. What kind of taxes and fees will I have to pay? What are the negatives in selling so fast? AnswerI don't know what fees you will have to pay. There will probably permits for the repair work. There may be commissions to real estate brokers. If this is an isolated transaction, any gain will be a short-term capital gain, subject to regular income tax rates (maximum 35%). If you held the house for more than one year, you could qualify for long-term capital gains rates (maximum 15%). Holding the house for a longer period of time exposes you to more market risk. If mortgage interest increase dramatically, the value of the house could go down or it could be harder to sell. If you do a lot of "rehabs", you will probably have a trade or business, not qualifying for capital gains treatment and subject to self-employment taxes in addition to regular income taxes. Good luck! QuestionCan I file Chapter 7 for an S corporation that has no assets and no money, but owes 2004 (California) minimum tax of $800 plus penalties? AnswerI'm not a bankruptcy attorney. It seems to me it would cost less to pay the tax and terminate the corporation before the end of this year to stop the expense. QuestionWe lost $2 million in the stock market over the last two years. I need money to pay bills. I have money in my wife's Roth IRA, my Roth IRA, or my SEP IRA. Can I take the money from the IRAs tax-free? Would it be better to get a home equity line of credit? Would it be better to get a home equity loan? AnswerI don't have enough details to answer your questions. I am assuming you are under age 59 1/2. The SEP-IRA is the worst candidate for funds, because withdrawals will be subject to income taxes plus penalties. There is an exception when the withdrawals are made as a series of substantially-equal payments over your life expectancy. (§ 72(t)(2)(A)(iv).) The amounts contributed to the Roth accounts can be distributed tax-free. Amounts in excess of the contribution amounts are subject to regular tax plus the 10% early-distribution penalty. The equity line of credit has the advantage of being able to take funds as you need them, but will probably have a higher interest rate and annual fees as compared to the equity loan. I know you are short on funds, but you should seek more detailed help to solve your problem. Good luck! QuestionMy husband and I bought a home in Palmdale, CA on June, 2003. We want to sell the house now and buy a new home. We were told we could avoid the tax if we bought the replacement residence within a certain time frame. Is that right? AnswerYour friend is thinking about an old tax law that has been repealed and replaced with the new "more than two years holding period" rule. If you sell your home with the facts you gave me, any gain will be taxed as a long-term capital gain. Remember California taxes long-term capital gains at the same rates as other income and will require income tax withholding for the sale of 3 1/3% of the sales price. 3:01:53 PM

2:51:51 PM

Friday, October 01, 2004

Tax Consequences of Temporary Support A divorce frequently takes months, and sometimes years, to resolve from the date of separation or filing until the divorce is final. Usually, the lower income spouse needs to receive support until the final decree occurs. Court-ordered spousal support payments that are made between the date of separation and the final decree are known as temporary support payments. Temporary support payments qualify as taxable alimony (taxable to the recipient and deductible to the payor) only if they are paid because of a decree by a court. These decrees include interlocutory decrees and other decrees except final decrees of divorce or separate maintenance. Voluntary payments that have not been ordered by a court do not qualify as taxable alimony. If the parties have not completed the divorce or become legally separated by December 31 of a particular year, they do not qualify as single for tax purposes and are still eligible to file a joint return. If they file a joint return for a year in which temporary support has been paid, the temporary support will not qualify as taxable alimony. Thus, for the alimony to be taxable their filing status must be married filing separately. If the divorce is final by December 31 of a year, the temporary support paid under a decree will be taxable to the recipient and deductible to the payor for the tax year. Temporary support payments that qualify as taxable alimony are not subject to the alimony recapture rules. To qualify as taxable alimony, the temporary support payments must be made in cash or cash equivalents (i.e., checks or money orders payable on demand). Transfers of services or property will not qualify as alimony or separate maintenance payments. Likewise, a debt instrument for the benefit of the spouse receiving support or use by the receiving spouse of property does not qualify as alimony. Payments to third parties can qualify as alimony. Payments by the provider of support for such expenses as a spouse’s rent, mortgage, taxes, or tuition qualify as alimony. However, payments of the mortgage, real estate taxes, or insurance on property owned by the provider of the support are not payments on behalf of the spouse and do not constitute taxable alimony even if they are made under a judge’s decree. Payments of premiums on whole or term life insurance on the provider’s life will qualify as alimony paid to the spouse only if the spouse is the owner of the policy. Payments by a provider of support to any third party under a written request, consent, or ratification by the receiving spouse also qualify as alimony. 12:43:44 PM

Family CPA Has Conflict Taking Sides In Divorce. Federal Law Prevents Harassing Calls. Question: When my husband and I decided to call it quits, he hired the CPA who had advised us and filed our personal and corporate tax returns for the past ten years to help him in our divorce case. This CPA is now valuing our business, tracing the purchase of assets, and giving tax-related opinions in court – most of which are very detrimental to me. Throughout the years, I have had many conversations with this CPA and have delivered personal information to his office about my inheritance and gifts from my family, but he refuses to make any information available to my lawyer without a court order or subpoena – even though I gave him the only copies I had. This does not seem right to me. How can a professional who worked for both of us choose sides and what can I do? Answer: In our view, a certified public accountant who has prepared joint income tax returns for and given advice to a married couple has a serious problem choosing sides at divorce and becoming adversarial to one of his clients. As a client, you are entitled to not only the returns and all schedules, but also all work papers, notes, and every piece of information in that CPA's files. In court, financial experts can be attacked on cross examination in four areas: qualifications, independence, the assumptions used, and subjective judgments. Here, it appears that if this CPA testifies or gives affidavits, his lack of independence will surely taint his opinions in the eyes of the court. We believe that he should be given one last opportunity to remove himself from participating in your case. If he refuses, we suggest that your attorney seek an order from the court requiring the CPA to turn over all of the records and disqualifying him from participation in the case. If he persists, we believe he is leaving himself open to a lawsuit. Question: My husband's former wife, who moved to another state after their divorce, calls me constantly, cursing and berating me and threatening to do harm to me. I receive "hang-up" calls at all hours of the night. I have been to local law enforcement and although my state has a law against harassing and threatening telephone calls, since this woman lives in another state, law enforcement tells me that nothing can be done. Is this true? Answer: No. Federal law prohibits obscene or harassing or threatening telephone calls that are made in interstate or foreign communications. Under this law, it is illegal for a person to use the telephone (a) to make obscene, indecent, or lewd comments; (b) to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass a person whether there is conversation or not; and (c) to cause another person's telephone to repeatedly or continuously ring. The penalties can be a fine of up to $50,000, six months in prison, or both. We suggest that you contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation or United States Attorney in your area and seek enforcement of your rights under this federal law. Question: My wife and I are completing a settlement which includes alimony and child support. I am willing to pay her more money during the first several years when she will need it most in consideration of paying lesser amounts after she gets on her feet. Try as I might, I can't understand why we can't do what we want to do and still keep the payments deductible. Isn't there a simple explanation that can satisfy my basic need for information? Answer: Unfortunately, nothing is "simple" when it comes to the taxation aspects of marital settlements. Assuming they qualify under the tax law, alimony payments are deductible by the payor in the year paid and includible in the income of the recipient in the year received. Child support payments, on the other hand, are neither deductible nor includible. To qualify as alimony, each of the following requirements must be met: (1) Payments must be made according to a divorce decree or separation agreement signed by the husband and wife; (2) Payments must be in cash; (3) Payments must terminate at the death of the recipient; (4) Husband and Wife can't file joint income tax returns with each other; (5) Generally, Husband and Wife must live separate and apart; (6) Payments can't be designated as "child support" or as not being alimony; and (7) Payments may not be made from alimony trusts. Regardless of the reasoning behind you wanting to make larger payments during the first few years, there are rules that prevent what is known as "front end loading" -- that is, where, as you have described, the payor makes larger payments during the first few years after the separation or divorce -- which increases the deduction -- and then decreases or terminates the payments. In these situations, a part of the large payment in the early years may later be treated as property settlement which is not deductible by the payor and is not taxable to the recipient. This means that if you deducted -- and your wife reported -- the large payments, you might be required to "recapture" previously deducted amounts into your income and pay additional taxes. At the same time, your former spouse would receive a refund. Since this result is certainly not what you intended, we suggest that you "leave the driving" to an experienced matrimonial lawyer and certified public accountant who can make sure your intentions are carried out. Jan Collins Stucker is an award-winning writer and editor. Jan Warner is a matrimonial, elder law, and tax attorney. Both are based in Columbia, South Carolina. Flying Solo is distributed nationally by Knight-Ridder/Tribune Service. 12:43:44 PM

Alimony Payments and Tax Deductions Question: During our three-year marriage, my wife incurred a lot of debt – more than $15,000 on credit cards, charge accounts, etc. Thankfully, we do not have any children. We are in the process of divorce. Although my wife works, she doesn’t make a lot of money and can’t afford to make the payments and still support herself. My lawyer tells me that I may be responsible for some of these debts because we were married. I am willing to pay part of the debts if the payments are tax deductible to me and if I make the payments directly to the creditors because I do not trust my wife. My lawyer tells me there is no way to do this. Can this be accomplished as part of our divorce settlement? Answer: We disagree with your lawyer. If all requirements for alimony are met, your payments to a third person "on behalf of" your spouse according to a divorce or separation agreement will qualify as tax deductible alimony. Therefore, if you agree to pay a debt for which your spouse was obligated according to the terms of your divorce or separation agreement, these payments would be tax deductible to you and taxable to your wife – assuming the agreement was worded properly. But to the extent the debt might be yours, your payments would not be deductible alimony because they would not be considered to be payments made “on behalf of a spouse” -- even if made according to the terms of a divorce agreement. Therefore, the first order of business is to determine which obligations are yours and which are hers. You and your wife might consider her assuming all debts and you making payments of some accounts as alimony. In this way, the creditors would receive the sums due them, you would receive a tax deduction, your wife would pay a part, and your wife would pay the taxes on what you pay on her behalf. But remember, if your payments to your wife’s creditors do not terminate on your wife’s death, they will not qualify as alimony. You might want to maintain a policy of life insurance with your wife as beneficiary to handle this contingency, but take no action without the advice of qualified attorneys and certified public accountant. Question: When my wife and I signed an agreement in 1999, it was on the condition that the payments I made to her were tax-deductible as alimony. But my deduction has been disallowed – even though there is a court order approving our agreement which classified the payments as "alimony." I called my lawyer and found that there was a clerical error made in one of the drafts which had deleted the provision that my obligation would terminate when my now ex-wife died. My former wife’s lawyer has refused to correct the error. What can I do? Answer: The removal of the "termination-at-death" clause -- by accident or otherwise -- has converted what may otherwise have been taxable - deductible payments into what may are non-taxable and nondeductible payments. Your remedy: Ask the family court to correct the error which was made due to inadvertence, neglect, or mutual mistake and to change the agreement and court order retroactively to conform with your agreement. If the time limit has expired based on the law of your state, you might be out of luck and may have to look to your lawyer for the difference between what your after-tax cost would have been and what it is now. 12:43:41 PM

Friday, September 24, 2004

--=====================_260429203==.REL Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii" IRS Tax FAQ Zack Urlocker Monday, April 05, 2004 Related News: Buy, Sell or Hangup? Recession Cancelled Telecom Depressed Support this site! 1040 Or Fight! <img src="cid:6.1.2.0.2.20040924091409.01c07f00@mail.cpatax.net.0" width4 height4 alt="f85c43d.jpg">In order to help those who have not yet completed their taxes, the Internal Revenue Service (official motto: "You make it, we take it") has create a special set of Frequently Asked Questions to help with last minute tax chores. While it may not reduce the amount of tax you are required to pay or the length of your jail sentence, it will definitely take your mind off a pending audit. Why are taxes due on April 15? Don't even start down that path. Your taxes are due on April 15. No ifs ands or buts. Congress passed this act way before you were born and our budget depends on it. So get ready to pay up. What time on April 15 are taxes due? If you owe taxes, you must submit your completed and signed tax return by midnight April 15. On the other hand, if you are expecting a tax refund we don't mind if you wait a couple of years. We'll take good care of your money during the interim period funding some fancy new offices we're building in Washington, DC. So let's say I live in Chicago and I'm running a bit behind schedule on this whole tax scene. If I fly to, say, Honolulu on business, then I would have an extra five hours to complete my taxes. Would I be able to deduct the cost of the flight as a tax preparation expense? Since the flight time to Honolulu is greater than the time difference, you would need to prorate the deduction. Also note that in-flight liquor would not be considered a tax preparation expense unless you buy a round for everyone on the plane and form an S corporation by filing "Form WD40 Extreme Lubrication." Last year, I received stock options from my company which I exercised and paid taxes on. I held the stock and now it's worthless and I have no money. There's a million stories in the naked city and this is just one of them. Since I never made any money from the options, can I get a refund for the taxes I paid last year? It turns out the IRS did pretty well on the whole dot com boom the last couple of years by getting our cut up front. So we'll let you declare a tax loss to offset any further gains this year. Remember the expression "Buy low, sell high?" Next time, don't forget to sell. But I didn't have any gains this year and I had to sell my house in Fremont just to pay taxes. Not only that, I lost my job and my wife left me for an investment banker. On average the economy continues to improve, but statistically speaking there are always a few outlyers. Get with the program, mac. No one wants to hang out with a complainer. My accountant says I should declare bankruptcy. How does that work? We don't recommend bankruptcy. Strictly speaking, there's no percentage in it for the government. Look, whatever you have, just send it in. I'm sure we can work something out. We'll take a chunk of your paycheck for a few years and call it even. Think of it as government alimony. We'll still be friends and you can come visit the capital whenever you're in town. Just don't call after you've been drinking. My accountant says there's nothing left. He won't return my calls anymore. I'm basically living in the streets. Bankruptcy just doesn't have the social stigma associated with it that it used to have. So if you want to go that route, we also need to declare insanity, shave your head and join the Hare Krishna. Be sure to fill out "Form 9985 Schedule L - Hare Krishna Hare Krisha Krishna Krishna Hare Hare." What is ATM? ATM, it's like an instant teller machine. You put your bank card in, you take money out. Where the heck are you from anyways? Sorry, I mean, AMT. Oh, that. AMT is the Alternative Minimum Tax. Harry in Marketing came up with AMT a few years ago, when were trying to figure out how to raise revenues without hire more collections goons. We never thought it would fly, but it's turned into one of our biggest money makers. We're still shocked at how long we've been able to keep this one going. Harry got a big raise and a promotion out of it. Who needs to be concerned with AMT? The AMT was designed to make sure that the rich always had to pay some taxes and couldn't get out with loop holes tax shelters and all that. So unless you're in the top 60% of all wage earners, you don't need to worry about it. Well if AMT was designed to tax the rich and now it's taxing the middle class, isn't that a problem? Not for the IRS. We're very flexible. Of course, now even Harry in Marketing has to pay AMT, which is kind of funny, when you think about it. I used TurboTax to prepare my return, but when I was just about to save it gave me the error message "Federal Individual 1040 Update Canceled: Invalid Patch File C:Tax01Updateswfdixxx.rtp." What does this mean? You will need to administer emergency first aid procedure. First, file "Form 8849-PC - Computer Moron." Be sure to send us a copy of your Autoexec.bat, config.sys and any MP3 files you've downloaded. Note, please do not send any unsigned metal bands from MP3.com. However, any bootleg Elvis Costello songs would be greatly appreciated provided they are itemized on "Schedule EC-0423." If necessary, turn off your PC, count to three, uninstall TurboTax, reformat your hard disk, re-install Windows and get out the scotch. It's going to be a long night. I did all this and then it said "A required .DLL file, MSVCIRT.DLL, was not found." I've lost all my work and now my computer won't even start. It just keeps making a beeping noise when I turn it on. What should I do? Oh yeah, before you reformat, be sure to make a backup. Just in case you get an error message about a missing DLL file. Sorry about that. You can request the DLL by sending in "Form 1225 (Schedule 3) Missing DLL, Possible Low IQ." Or you can call us directly at 1-900-MORE-TAX to order a new DLL for only $39.95. If you use Microsoft Passport to log in to your financial institution, we've already transferred any taxes due directly to our account along with a preferred customer surcharge. People should really read those on-line agreements more carefully. What happens if I don't pay my taxes on time? Because we've cut back on the number of auditors you might just get away with it. For a while. And then you'll start wondering if your neighbors are going to rat you out. You'll see tax men everywhere. You'll start to sweat whenever anyone even refers to taxes. Next thing you know you'll be like that guy in the Edgar Allan Poe story. Alternatively, you can flee to Switzerland or another country that does not authorize extradition for tax purposes. Be sure to complete the itemized list in "Form 2044 - Campaign Donations." If your donations are larger than your phone number you can save time by also filing a separate "Form 8669 Request for Presidential Pardon" before leaving the country.  Note that while pardons are normally issued in the last 10 minutes of a presidential term, they last a life time. My grandmother is 90 years old. She doesn't even remember where she lives. What if she "forgets" to file her taxes? Unfortunately, the IRS has gotten wise to this ruse. Congress has recently passed the "Unfiled Grandmother Amendment" also known as "GranTax" closing this loophole. Any unfiled grandmothers will be held in a newly constructed Grandmother Detention Center for 90 days. This seems awfully cruel. No, not at all. The staff love it. The grandmothers are all baking cookies and knitting macrame wall hangings. It really helps with morale during the busy season. A friend of mine claims a home office deduction, but all he ever does is play video games on his PC. How likely is it he will be audited? You can increase those odds by calling 1-800-4SNITCH. Plus you can win a free set of steak knives. What if this friend also writes a satirical web site that doesn't make any money because no one buys the hats and mugs he sells? Can he deduct the cost of travel to the South Pacific for market research? You are so busted. About the author Zack Urlocker is a pseudonym for a Silicon Valley software executive. 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Friday, September 17, 2004

Bonus-first-year depreciation, which was designed to act as an economic stimulus in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, will end on Dec. 31, 2004 for most taxpayers (unless Congress acts to extend it, which appears to be unlikely). As a result, taxpayers have an additional incentive to accelerate purchases of new depreciable assets into 2004 if their goal is to maximize deductions this year. This Practice Alert takes a detailed look at the closing window of opportunity to claim bonus first year depreciation, and how to make the most of it in year-end tax planning. 4:27:06 PM

Thursday, September 02, 2004

Guidance issued for Health Savings Accounts. The IRS has issued comprehensive guidance on the requirements for high-deductible health insurance plans (HDHPs) and health savings accounts (HSAs). The guidance should provide more certainty to employers, insurance companies and other parties, encouraging offerings of more of these plans by January 1, 2005. Families covered with HDHPs can make tax deductible contributions to an HSA, somewhat like an IRA. The earnings in the HSA are tax-deferred, and may escape tax entirely if used to pay for qualifying medical expenses. The annual contribution limits are $2,600 for individuals and $5,150 for families, based on the deductible for the HDHP. (Notice 2004-50.) 4:19:14 PM

The Balanced Scorecard Tells the Story A good balanced scorecard tells the story of the company’s strategy through a set of related objectives and measures. For most clients their strategic goal will probably include “making more money”. The question is - How can than that be achieved? Here’s a set of related objectives that might help them achieve that goal: A goal of improved profit (a financial perspective objective) could be related to increased revenue by increasing market share. That might be accomplished by achieving higher customer retention. Improved customer retention might be accomplished by improving customer satisfaction (a customer perspective objective). Increased customer satisfaction could be achieved by better customer service (an internal perspective objective). Better customer service could perhaps result from more motivated and satisfied employees (an organizational and learning perspective objective). In this scenario every objective is part of a chain of cause and effect that relates to the strategy of “making more money”. Once the set of related strategic objectives has been defined, the next challenges are: Choosing metrics: What exactly should we measure? We need to determine the metrics that best measure whether the objective is being met. We know how to measure our financial objectives, but we’re not as familiar at measuring other things. However, defining measures is usually straightforward. For example, to measure customer satisfaction the company may want to use customer surveys. To measure employee satisfaction, the measure might be trends in sickness and absentee rates. Keep in mind, there are no penalties for not choosing correctly the first time! Since the process should be a continuous process of evaluating results and making adjustments, the system can and will evolve and refine itself over time. Setting goals: How will we define success? For each measure, we need to set goals that can be achieved over time. In general, they should be stretch goals - difficult but not impossible to achieve. Avoiding over commitment: How much can be achieved given the capacity of the organization? This is probably where most organizations fail. It is better to start too small than to start too big. If company tries to accomplish too much, it runs the risk of failing and then abandoning the process completely In the fully implemented balanced scorecard system, the system would communicate to each part of the organization and potentially to each employee through separate scorecards the organizational strategy of the company. If that sounds too complicated, remember I said "the fully implemented balanced scorecard system". It seems to me that any business can benefit significantly from an executive level scorecard that could be easily implemented. Since one of the challenges of implementing any new system is over committing, it will generally be better to keep it simple in the beginning and let the system evolve over time. The next and final article of this series will discuss steps you can take to get started! Regards, Ed Wielage P.S. If you have any questions, comments or experiences with performance measurement and the balanced scorecard, send me an email, I’d like to hear from you! 4:09:05 PM

Wednesday, September 01, 2004

New Rules for Overtime Pay effective August 23, 2004!  Under the new FairPay rules, workers earning less than $23,660 per year — or $455 per week — are guaranteed overtime protection. This will strengthen overtime rights for 6.7 million American workers, including 1.3 million low-wage workers who were denied overtime under the old rules. Link to seminar    http://www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/whd/fairpay/main.htm link to video     4:10:09 PM

Most expensive cars to insure By Prakash Gandhi • Bankrate.com It doesn't take a rocket scientist to identify which cars would cost the most to insure -- start with the Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Porsches. Duh! But they're limited-production cars and people who own them certainly are not concerned about the price of insurance. We've gone a step further, also bypassing other obviously expensive-to-insure lines such as the Mercedes, Jaguar, Corvette, BMW, Cadillac and Lexus. Model Annual Premium Value Ford Mustang GT convertible $2,363 $28,640 Honda S2000 convertible $2,363 $33,250 Chrysler Sebring $1,788 $24,045 Toyota Celica GTS $2,114 $22,750 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder GTS convertible $2,114 $27,144 Dodge Neon SRT-4 $2,028 $20,955 VW Passat W8 $1,856 $39,735 Honda Civic Hatchback $1,788 $19,560 Subaru Impreza WRX AWD Turbo $1,788 $25,170 Volkswagen GTI VR6 $1,788 $22,070 Instead, here's a rundown on the most expensive cars to insure that the average American might be driving or considering for their next purchase -- those that cost less than $40,000 -- as researched by Runzheimer International, a Rochester, Wis., consulting firm which reviewed insurance costs on vehicles priced under $40,000.     11:16:46 AM

10 least expensive cars to insure By Prakash Gandhi • Bankrate.com If you really want a car that's inexpensive to insure, go down the middle of the road when it comes to buying your next car. Cars likely to have the lowest claims rate of injury, theft and collision are going to get the best rates. Go for a model that is big enough to provide protection to you and your passengers, but not so big as to cause excessive damage in a wreck. Bigger cars provide better protection, but cost more in liability claims because they do more damage to others. The opposite is true for little cars: They don't do much damage to cars they collide with, but their passengers are not as well protected. Runzheimer International, a Rochester, Wis., consulting firm, studied insurance costs on vehicles priced under $40,000. Below is its list of the least-expensive cars to insure in 2004.
Model	Annual Premium	Value Model Annual Premium Value Saturn Ion $1,127 $11,975 Saturn L300 $1,158 $16,995 Chevrolet Colorado $1,158 $16,330 Chevrolet Aveo $1,216 $11,785 Ford Escape XLS $1,216 $19,300 Mazda 3 $1,216 $14,200 Dodge Caravan $1,250 $21,795 Honda Accord DX $1,250 $17,190 Hyundai Santa Fe $1,250 $19,359 Toyota Corolla $1,250 $14,885 11:14:52 AM

Monday, August 09, 2004

August 9, 2004 - Enjoy this improved deduction for education expenses Did you know that there’s an improved deduction for higher education expenses this year? The maximum amount has increased, and more taxpayers are eligible. It’s an above-the-line deduction, meaning that you can claim it whether or not you itemize. This year the maximum amount is $4,000, up from $3,000 last year. In previous years the income cut-off was $130,000 for joint filers and $65,000 for singles. If your income was above this level, you couldn’t claim the deduction. That limit still applies if you want to claim the full amount. But higher-income taxpayers earning up to $160,000 can now deduct up to $2,000 in qualified expenses. The new upper income limit for single filers is $80,000. You can’t claim any deduction if you’re married filing a separate return. You can claim the deduction for tuition and certain related expenses. These include student activity fees and other course-related expenses that you’re required to pay to the college. The tuition must be for post-secondary education at an eligible institution. Most private or public universities, colleges, or vocational schools qualify. To claim the deduction, the expenses must be for you, your spouse, or for a dependent that you claim on your tax return. You’ll have to coordinate the deduction with any education credits or other tax-free education funds you use. Don’t overlook the improved credit this year. Contact our office to see how it might fit with your overall education financing. 11:32:50 AM

Tuesday, July 27, 2004

July 26, 2004 - Home offices — when can you take a deduction? If you work at home, you’d probably like to take a tax deduction for your home office. Here’s an overview of what qualifies. The first requirement is that you have a part of your home that you use regularly and exclusively for business purposes. It doesn’t have to be a separate room, but it must be a clearly defined area. The exclusive use is very important. The area must be reserved only for business use; if you also use it for personal activities, it won’t qualify. The only exceptions are if you store business samples or inventory at home, or if you run a home daycare business. The other requirement is that your home office be any one of the following: Your principal place of business. That’s the place where you conduct most of the management and administrative activities of running your business. You may travel to meet customers, or perform operations in a hospital, but your principal place of business is where you do most of the work of actually managing your business. A place where you regularly meet customers, clients, or patients. Even if you run the business from elsewhere, a home office can qualify if you regularly use it for meeting with customers, clients, or patients. A separate building, not connected to your home. A freestanding garage or studio will qualify if it is used in your business. If you have an area of your home that qualifies, you can generally deduct a percentage of your total costs, including mortgage interest, insurance, taxes, and utilities. The percentage is calculated as the area used for business divided by your home’s total area. The rules on home offices are complex, with many gray areas. Contact our office if you need more information or assistance. 9:52:32 AM

How to Leverage Your Voicemail Into An Effective Medium of Communication By Scott Ginsberg Among all the media through which we communicate, voicemail always gets treated like the redheaded stepchild: “Hi this is Randy. Leave your name and number and I’ll get back to you.” Gee, thanks Randy. It’s great to know you value my call. Oh, and I appreciate you sounding so enthusiastic and willing get back to me. This is an example of a typical outgoing message that makes callers feel like they really are talking to a machine. Now, we all hear this cookie cutter message about a dozen times daily. And it doesn’t necessarily make a voicemail message bad; but it does mean the voicemail is not being fully leveraged. So just because it’s a 20 second recording on your machine doesn’t mean it can’t be used to your advantage. And by your advantage I mean your caller’ s advantage. Here are five techniques that will leverage boring, robotic voicemail into an engaging, fun and personable medium of communication. These tips will maximize the effectiveness of your voicemail so people will hang up the phone feeling glad that they called you. Noise Have you ever left a message on someone’s voicemail who obviously recorded their greeting in a car? “Hi you’ve reached the voicemail of (HONK!) I’m away from my (HEY WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOIN LADY!) but I’ll call you back as soon as I (SCREEEEECH!) Thank you.” Beep. Click. Messages like these will make your callers feel unimportant. Messages like these will show your callers that you don’t care enough about them to spend 10 lousy minutes recording a clear message. Therefore, the first rule of transforming your voicemail is: get rid of the noise. When you go into your office or home - shut the doors, turn the music and TV off, and record your message in absolute silence. Not unlike conversation, your voicemail is a medium of communication. And like any medium – robotic or otherwise - noise is a barrier. Differentiation Now that you’ve locked yourself in the closet with your phone, it’s time to figure out what you’re going to say. What’s more, how you’re going to say it. So think of your business cards, website, letterhead and promotional materials: what makes you stand out? Is it the slogan? The phrases? The company name? Great example: I used to sell furniture at a family-owned store called City Liquidators. Every week, the owner would rerecord a new voicemail with one or two items that were an amazing deal. She did this so her customers - even without walking into the store - knew their prices were the lowest in town. Unfortunately when it comes to voicemail, people just seem to go through the motions. They throw some generic message together and it stands out like a needle in a stack of needles. But remember: everyone has voicemail. Everyone. So what are you going to record that will allow your callers differentiate you from all those other “I’m away from my desk” people out there? Fun Why can’t voicemail messages be fun? In search of an answer I recently consulted my Sprint PCS handbook. I found the following instructions under the section called “How to Record Your Outgoing Message”: “When recording outgoing voicemail message, remember to sound as unfriendly, boring and bland as possible to guarantee maximum robotic presence in the minds of your callers.” Not bloody likely. I have a friend whose greeting says, “Hey this is Jeffery. Leave me your 16 digit American Express Card number and I’ll get back to you soon. Thanks!” Believe it or not – at least three people a day actually leave their credit card numbers for him! In fact, the first time I called him I gave him my card number too! Guess that explains the $2,000 bill on my statement. But the advantage to a message like this is that it shows your true colors. And people love that. So, unless you actually are a robot – in which case I’d love to meet you - don’t sound like one. Sound like you. People like and want you. Engagement If you call either of my phone lines, this is what you’ll hear: “Hello, my name is Scott – and you have reached Front Porch Productions. Sorry I missed you; but leave me a message and IF you tell me your favorite cereal, I promise to call you back! Thanks, and we’ll talk soon.” Now, I’m not exactly sure what prompted me to record a voicemail message about cereal. But to my surprise, my callers’ responses immediately transformed in regard to their level of engagement. Some people told me about their favorite cereals, others discussed breakfast as a whole. Some callers said they didn’t care for cereal, while others reminisced about childhood memories of delicious treats that are longer available on the market. This showed me that voicemail messages aren’t that different from conversation. People are still more willing to open up when they are asked a question that is open ended, fun and universally easy to relate to. What ’s more, once personal preferences are revealed via self disclosure – trust, rapport and common points of interest will develop in the relationship. Not to mention, it’s easy to leverage someone’s message as a great ice breaker when you return their call! Smile Once you’re ready to rerecord your voicemail, there’s only one thing left to do: smile. I know, it sounds so simple. So cliché. So Dale Carnegie. But say the following sentence aloud: “I’ll get back with you in 24 hours.” Ok, now…say the following sentence WITH A SMILE: “I’ll get back with you in 24 hours!” Did that make you feel silly? Maybe. Did that sound totally different? Probably. But will that make your callers actually feel your smile through the phone? You better believe it. There are two reasons to record your outgoing message with a smile. First, it will sound like you actually took the time to record your message instead of quickly spurting out a few words while merging onto the interstate. What’s more, people will sense that you do care about their call. Secondly, you never know who’s going to call for the first time. Imagine getting a phone call from a new referral that has potential to generate a lot of business. She leaves a message and awaits your follow up. Now, odds are if you met them for the first time in person, you’d be smiling so much your ears would get crowded. Likewise, if your voicemail is the first time they hear your voice, speaking your smile is a great way to make a first impression. Even if you ’re not there! Results Your voicemail is a communication tool that has untapped potential. If you take the time to rerecord an outgoing message that is different, fun, engaging, friendly and consistent with you or your business’s personality, here’s what will happen: YOUR CALLERS WILL…smile as they leave a message. YOUR CALLERS WILL...be able to separate your voicemail from the other 1000 they call every week. YOUR CALLERS WILL…tell their friends about your voicemail. YOUR CALLERS WILL…hang up feeling glad they called you. YOUR CALLERS WILL…feel a connection with you because their interaction – even if it was with your voicemail – made them feel comfortable and engaged. 9:52:30 AM

Wednesday, July 21, 2004

What you make affects what you pay Inflation adjustments instituted on Jan. 1 have already helped many taxpayers. While the six tax brackets remain the same, ranging from 10 percent to 35 percent, slightly larger amounts of income are now taxed at lower rates. For example, in 2003 single filers making $70,000 saw part of their money taxed at 28 percent; this year, the maximum applicable tax rate to their salaries is 25 percent. 4:39:18 PM

July 2004   10 insurance policies you don't need Illustration by Bob Eckstein If you're like most people, you don't relish spending money on insurance. Sure, you need it, but it's not bright and shiny, you can't drive it, and no one is going to admire it. So it's all the more galling when you find out you've purchased insurance that you don't need. “Fear sells a lot of insurance,” says Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, a nonprofit consumer-advocacy group of which Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, is a founding member. “A good rule of thumb is to purchase insurance only from an insurance provider. And buy policies that are comprehensive.” Insurance should cover catastrophic losses that you'd be hard-pressed to cover on your own. So what do you need? A term-life policy to cover your contribution to the family's expenses; a comprehensive health policy (or membership in a managed-care plan); disability coverage to provide income when you can't work; and homeowners and auto insurance to replace lost property. If you've got those, you don't need the following 10 policies. 1 Mortgage life insurance. This policy, generally purchased from a lender, will pay off your mortgage if you die. The cost can be three to five times as much as comparable term-life insurance for a benefit whose value declines as the mortgage is paid down. Instead: Rely on term life. 2 Credit-card-loss protection. It pays off losses if your card is stolen and the thief goes on a spending spree. Plans cost $7 to $15 a month. But federal law limits your loss to $50 per card. Instead: Put credit-card numbers in a safe place, and report lost cards ASAP. 3 Car-rental insurance. For $8 to $11 a day, it covers damages to cars and people if you are in an accident while driving one of the rental agency's vehicles. Check to see if your credit card or your own auto policy has such coverage, says Sandy Praeger, insurance commissioner for Kansas. Instead: Don't bother. 4 Flight insurance. Specialty travel-insurance companies sell life-insurance policies that pay a benefit if you die (or are dismembered) in a plane crash. Depending on the amount of insurance you buy, you pay $15 to $60 per flight. Instead: Skip it. Term life will cover you if you die in a plane crash, and health insurance should cover medical expenses. 5 Cancer insurance. Marketed by specialty-insurance companies, these plans supplement health insurance for cancer-care costs. Annual premiums range from $200 to $3,000. Despite their high cost, the policies may not cover outpatient care. Instead: Chances are that your existing health insurance already covers cancer expenses, so forget about it. 6 Credit-life insurance. Credit-card companies, banks, and other organizations that finance a purchase or lend money offer policies that repay a loan if you die. Average payout is $4,500 for a yearly cost of $23, says William Burfeind, executive vice president of the Consumer Credit Insurance Association. That's a lot of money when a healthy, nonsmoking man of 40 can buy $100,000 of 10-year level term coverage for about $100 a year. Instead: Make sure you have enough term life to cover loan payments. 7 Credit disability insurance. This policy will pay minimum installments on a loan, typically up to 36 months, if you are disabled according to the terms of your policy. A policy may cost $21 per $1,000 of coverage. Instead: Make sure that your disability plan will cover your expenses, including any loan payments. 8 Involuntary unemployment insurance. Credit-card companies and other lenders market this policy which makes minimum payments on a credit card or car loan for 6 to 12 months if you lose your job. The cost: $0.70 per $100 of your credit-card balance. Instead: Create an emergency fund that will cover 3 to 6 months of your expenses. 9 Accidental-death insurance. Your heirs collect a benefit if you die in an accident. Cost runs about $600 a year. Only about 5 percent of those who die each year do so in accidents, however. Instead: Stick with term-life insurance, which pays regardless of cause of death. 10 Identity-theft insurance. Sold by banks, credit-card issuers, and specialty insurers, it covers the cost of repairing your credit and sometimes attorney's fees. Policies cost $20 to $180 a year for up to $25,000 in coverage, which does not include unauthorized charges or funds siphoned from accounts. Instead: Check your credit reports regularly. The FTC anticipates issuing a final rule this summer that would give consumers the right to order one free credit report a year from each of the three main credit bureaus. 4:20:14 PM

Tuesday, July 06, 2004

Last week a Federal District Court in Boston decided that when someone reads your private e-mail without your permission and before you receive it, it doesn't violate federal wiretap law. The ruling perfectly illustrates how we can frustrate the entire purpose of a statute simply by reading it too carefully. The case began when an online bookstore named Internloc decided to also become an online ISP... and a KGB. First it provided its clients with e-mail and Internet access, then it became interested in its customers' communications with competitor Amazon.com, presumable to find out which books its customers were buying from Amazon, and not from them. Internloc modified its inbound mail server to make special copies of any incoming Amazon e-mail for the company to read, without the customers' knowledge or consent. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts indicted the company and its vice president, Brad Councilman, for violation of the federal wiretap law, Title 18 United States Code Section 2511, which makes it a crime to: "intentionally intercept, endeavor to intercept, or procure any other person to intercept or endeavor to intercept, any wire, oral, or electronic communication." 6:43:59 PM

Thursday, April 08, 2004

The 'Top Ten Most Unusual Sales Tax Laws For 2004' AccountingWEB.com - Apr-8-2004 - Taxware, a leading provider of tax calculation and compliance solutions, today announced the "Top Ten Most Unusual Sales Tax Laws For 2004." The second annual listing was compiled by Taxware's team of tax specialists that constantly monitor more than 27,000 ever-changing tax jurisdictions around the world. In Ohio, a gift basket of fruit or candy is not subject to sales tax, as the "true object sought is the food items contained within," not the basket. However, a lead crystal candy dish, which is considered a decorative container, full of candy would be fully taxable. In Connecticut, the sale of a pumpkin in its "natural grown state" is exempt from sales tax because it is considered a food product. However, if the pumpkin is sold after being painted, its "primary purpose" becomes decoration and is subject to sales tax. In Washington, crushed, shaved or cubed ice is not taxable, but blocks of ice are. Up until 2003 in Texas, donuts and other individual sized bakery items sold in quantities of 5 or less were taxable -- they are now exempt. Antacids are exempt in Connecticut, but are taxable once one crosses the border into Massachusetts. In Minnesota, cough drops are taxable as "candy." In California, fresh fruit is exempt, but an apple purchased through a vending machine is taxable on 33 percent of the price. In M