FREE AT LAST!
THINGS NO ONE EVER
TOLD YOU
MY BEST TAX ADVICE
TAXES AND
ACCOUNTING, INC
TAXSMARTS
PO BOX A
HAWLEY PA 18428
Free
at last! Free at last! Thank God almighty, free at last!
Free
of the danger and damage of the Trump presidency and the Trump
Administration. Now that Joe Biden has
been sworn in as President our 4-year national nightmare will finally be over.
Donald
J Trump has proven every single day of his presidency with every single word,
tweet and deed that he is totally worthless, completely devoid of humanity, and
does not possess a single redeeming positive human quality or value. Trump has been the most ignorant, the most
incompetent and the most corrupt – the absolute worst – President in US
history. I will go further - he has been
the worst human being to ever hold national public office in US history.
Trump
did not care about America – he never has.
Trump
did not care about the American people – he never has.
Trump
did not care about American democracy, American values, or the Constitution –
he never has.
Trump
did not care about the Republican Party – he never has.
Trump
did not care about conservative or Christian beliefs, values, or policy – he
never has.
Trump
did not care about his core cult of ignorant racists – he never has.
For
his entire adult life Trump has cared about one, and only one, thing – Trump. Period!
Trump is the ultimate textbook example of a malignant narcissist and a
sociopath.
Every
bad thing that has happened in America in the past 4 years is the direct or
indirect result, or was exacerbated by, the words and deeds of Trump. In the history of our country no one
individual has done as much damage to America, American democracy and the
American people as Donald Trump.
The
major legacy of the Trump presidency is the emboldening, empowering and
attempted “legitimization” of racism, bigotry and white supremacy. He has organized racists, bigots and white
supremacists, his core cult or “base”, into a unified voting bloc that has
held, and still holds, the Republican Party hostage.
Sadly,
for the rest of my life I will judge the intelligence and character of every
person based on whether they supported or opposed Trump and his
presidency. There was, and still is,
absolutely no intelligent, legitimate, rational or acceptable reason for any
American, regardless of party affiliation or political philosophy, to support,
defend or vote for Trump.
The
Republican Party has totally abandoned all credibility, integrity and honor by
supporting, defending and enabling – by embracing – Trump and Trumpism
consistently over the past 4 years. The
Republican Party, and every Republican member of Congress almost to a man and
woman, is directly responsible for every single bad act committed by Trump as
President. The entire current leadership
of the Republican National Committee must resign and be replaced by consistent never-Trumpers,
and every single Republican in Congress who supported, defended and enabled
Trump as President must be voted out of office and replaced by never-Trumpers,
if the Party is to survive.
Going
forward Trump must be aggressively investigated, indicted, prosecuted,
convicted, and imprisoned for his multiple federal and state crimes. He must be held accountable for his multitude
of “sins’. We must forcefully say “never
again”.
There
must never be any degree or act of respect or honor usually provided a past
President given to Trump. No building or
street must ever be named for him. No
Presidential Library or presidential portrait in the White House. He must be publicly vilified and
disgraced. History will condemn America
if this is not done.
President
Joe Biden and his Administration has a big job ahead – to undo the substantial
damage done to America, American values and American democracy by Trump and his
Administration, and to restore America’s credibility, stature and standing on
the world stage.
I
wish Joe luck and give him my complete and total support, and hope you will
join me.
Since
February 1st is the, or at least my, official beginning of the “tax
season” here is something appropriate no one ever told you.
When
I first started preparing tax returns, in February of 1972, if you owed the
government a balance due on your 1040 or 1040A, or any other tax form, you were
told to make the check payable to “Internal Revenue Service”.
But
beginning with 1998 tax returns this changed and taxpayers are now instructed
to make checks payable to “United States Treasury”.
Why
was this change made?
It
appears several crooked tax preparers had told clients with a balance due to
make their checks payable to “IRS” instead of “Internal Revenue Service”. They also told the clients to leave the
signed return and check with them and they would mail it to the government.
Once
the client left the office the preparer would carefully change the IRS on the
check to MRS, followed by a name in all caps (i.e. MRS JOAN TAXPAYER). The crooks would then cash the check and
“take the money and run”. When taxpayers
eventually received notices from the IRS and attempted to contact the tax preparer,
they would discover that the office had been closed and the preparer was
nowhere to be found.
Continuing with the tax preparation
theme -
As a veteran tax professional who has
been preparing 1040s for individuals in all walks of life since 1972, I am
often asked by friends, family, clients, readers, and cocktail party guests,
“What is your best tax advice?”
As an answer I have written a
compilation of my best tax advice to share wisdom accumulated from my almost 50
years (2021 will be my 50th “tax season”) of preparing 1040s.
This book does not discuss specific
deductions (well, I do talk about gambling losses and IRA contributions),
credits and “loopholes”, which are revised, changed, deleted and reinstated
frequently at the whim of whichever political Party is in power. And
it is not specific to 2020 or 2021 or any individual year’s tax
returns. It is concerned with universal tax planning and preparation
concepts and advice that remain constant year after year.
It also includes the best tax advice
of fellow tax bloggers and a listing of online tax planning and preparation
resources, a section on “Cool Tools” (online tax planning and preparation
resources), a history of taxes in America, and a basic introduction to the
federal income tax.
Here is what a couple of fellow tax pros and tax bloggers have
said about my advice -
“The . . . pages
of tax advice within the e-book (a pdf document) are full of good, common-sense
advice . . . any individual who follows Robert’s advice will be far,
far better off than those who don’t.”
Russ Fox, EA of
Nevada – author of TAXABLE TALK
“I think your
book is great. What I like most is that it is in plain English. You are not
trying to appear like a ‘know-it-all’. It is simple enough for
non-tax professionals to understand. However, it is informative enough to help
tax preparers learn something new.”
Jamaal Solomon, EA
of JS
Tax Corporation
The cost of this book is only $8.95 sent as a pdf
email attachment. A print version sent via postal mail is available
for $11.45
Send your check payable TAXES AND
ACCOUNTING, INC, and your email or postal address, to –
TAXSMARTS
PO BOX A
HAWLEY PA 18428
The book is also available in e-book
format for reading on Kindle from AMAZON.COM. Go to http://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FBHXVRK for more
information.
The
2nd Amendment has absolutely nothing to do with the right of an individual
citizen to own a gun. It was written to
appease those among the Founding Fathers who opposed a national Army.
This
amendment does not simply say “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms,
shall not be infringed." It says
"A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free
State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be
infringed." The important wording
in the Amendment is “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security
of a free state”. The Founding Fathers preferred state militias to a national
army.
They
were afraid of a standing army and wanted to maintain the authority of the
individual state militias that had made up Washington’s Revolutionary
Army. The members of Congress during
that first gun debate believed that “standing armies in a time of peace are
dangerous to liberty”. Those were the exact words used in the state of New
York’s amendment to the gun debate.
James
Madison, political theorist, American statesman, and the 4th President hailed
as the "Father of the Constitution" for his role in drafting and
promoting the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, believed, “Oppressors can
tyrannize only when they achieve a standing army, an enslaved press, and a
disarmed populace.”
Had
the early framers of the Constitution supported a standing army during times of
peace there would be no need for a “well-regulated militia”, and thus no need
for the 2nd Amendment.
In the entire Constitution, there are no time
limits on the power of Congress to raise money and pay for anything – except an
Army. We can have a Navy forever. We can have roads or bridges or post offices
or pretty much anything else that supports the ‘general welfare’ without limit
and in perpetuity. But an Army? That had to be re-evaluated every two years,
when all spending for the past two years of army was zeroed out. It's right
there in Article 1, Section 8, line twelve reads that Congress has the power:
"To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use
shall be for a longer Term than two Years."
The
Founding Fathers were well aware, based on the history of Europe, that military
coups by a standing army were a great threat to any nation. So, they required a
re-evaluation of the need for a national army every two years.
America
today has a permanent standing army and other legitimate organized and
regulated militias for mutual protection in the form of police departments and
the National Guard.
There
is no legitimate reason why any individual needs to own an assault rifle, or a
device that turns a “normal” rifle into an assault rifle. You don’t need an assault rifle to hunt a
deer. You don’t need an assault rifle to
protect yourself. You don’t need an
assault rifle for target shooting. The
one and only purpose of an assault rifle is in its name – to assault.
Even
if we falsely assume the purpose of the 2nd Amendment was to guarantee the
right of a citizen to own a gun, the government can pass gun control. The government can ban assault rifles and
devices that turn existing rifles into an assault weapon. Just as the government can pass, and has
passed, laws to ban slander and libel, to prevent individuals from abusing the
right to free speech and free press to cause harm to others.
There will be a delay in processing 2020 federal income tax returns in the following circumstances:
* You use 2019 income to calculate the 2020 Earned Income Credit and/or Additional Child Tax Credit, as per the latest stimulus package. The IRS must verify that the amount of 2019 income reported on the 2020 return matches what was reported on their 2019 return.
* You claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on uour 2020 federal return. The IRS must verify the amount of EIPs sent to the taxpayer match the amounts reported on the 2020 return.
Apparently, the amount of delay depends on the number of returns that are being processed at any one time.
There are always delays in issuing refunds on returns that include the EIC and the ACTC, due to the PATH Act.
Refunds in general will be delayed this year, regardless of what is claimed on the return, as the IRS will not begin to process returns until February 12th this year.
And IRS processing of 2019 returns and calendar year 2020 correspondence is still be backed up. It is more important than ever to carefully review IRS correspondence – much is wrong and based on outdated information. Be sure to give/send your tax preparer any correspondence you get from “Sam” immediately.
Let’s
stay with tax preparation.
*
Obviously, the best websites for tax planning and preparation information and
resources are www.irs.gov and the websites of your state
of residence and any state for which you must file a non-resident or part-year
resident return. You can access and
download tax forms, instructions and publications. And after you have prepared and submitted
your returns you can check on the status of any requested refunds.
Go
to http://www.taxadmin.org/state-tax-agencies
for links to the state tax agencies and state tax forms for
the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US Territories.
Regardless
of what you may think of the IRS or your state tax agency, their websites are
well-done and an excellent resource for both taxpayers and tax preparers.
*
You can claim a deduction for the “fair market value” of used appliances,
books, clothing, computer hardware and software, electronics, furniture,
household items, toys, videos, etc. donated to a qualifying church or charity. According to the IRS, fair market value is
the price a “willing, knowledgeable buyer
would pay a willing, knowledgeable seller when neither has to buy or sell.” You are responsible for determining the
fair market value of the items you are donating. The charity to which you make the donation is
not required to provide you with a value.
Here are some websites to help you figure the tax value of your donated
stuff:
* There
are several weblogs, or “blogs” that deal with federal, and sometimes state,
tax issues. The Wandering Tax Pro blog,
which I write, provides up-to-the-minute advice, information, resources and commentary
on federal and New Jersey state income taxes and the NJ property tax rebate and
refund programs, and updates on federal and state tax legislation, IRS and NJ
Division of Taxation rulings and regulations, and federal and state tax court
decisions.
Here are
a few tax blogs for you to check out, beginning with mine (FYI, I do not post
during the “tax season”, but you can check my archives for tax preparation
advice and information) –
Trump
and Graham are in a rowboat on a lake.
The boat overturns in a deep section of the lake. Neither Trump nor Graham can swim.
You
are in a nearby boat when this happens.
You can only save one of them from drowning.
What
do you do – eat your lunch or read the paper?
TALK
TO YOU NEXT MONTH
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