clifp
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
- Joined
- Oct 27, 2006
- Messages
- 7,733
Personally, my fear of the IRS has decreased dramatically after the latest scandal about administration officials
Here is a snippet from the WSJ article on Geithner.
Now this isn't a political statement, but just my observation, that unless you are deliberately attempting to defraud the government the IRS doesn't seem to be particularly nasty recently.
Two things stand out. First they IRS waived penalties. Second despite clear evidence that Geithner screwed up the IrS wasn't smart enough and audit previous year returns. So even if the IRS audits you one time and rules against your method, it seems unlikely that you'll owe more than interest on the taxes.
Finally what are these capital gains you are writing.
Here is a snippet from the WSJ article on Geithner.
In 2006, the IRS audited Mr. Geithner's 2003 and 2004 taxes and concluded he owed taxes and interest totaling $17,230, according to documents released by the Senate Finance Committee. The IRS waived the related penalties.
During the vetting of Mr. Geithner late last year, the Obama transition team discovered the nominee had failed to pay the same taxes for 2001 and 2002. "Upon learning of this error on Nov. 21, 2008, Mr. Geithner immediately submitted payment for tax that would have been due in those years, plus interest," a transition aide said. The sum totaled $25,970.
The Obama team said Mr. Geithner's taxes have been paid in full, and that he didn't intend to avoid payment, but made a mistake common for employees of international institutions. That characterization was contested by Senate Finance Republicans, who produced IMF documents showing that employees are repeatedly told they are responsible for paying their payroll taxes.
As to why Mr. Geithner didn't pay all his back taxes after the 2006 audit, an Obama aide said the nominee was advised by his accountant he had no further liability. Senate Finance aides said they were concerned either Mr. Geithner or his accountant used the IRS's statute of limitations to avoid further back-tax payments at the time of the audit.
Other tax issues also surfaced during the vetting, including the fact Mr. Geithner used his child's time at overnight camps in 2001, 2004 and 2005 to calculate dependent-care tax deductions. Sleepaway camps don't qualify.
Now this isn't a political statement, but just my observation, that unless you are deliberately attempting to defraud the government the IRS doesn't seem to be particularly nasty recently.
Two things stand out. First they IRS waived penalties. Second despite clear evidence that Geithner screwed up the IrS wasn't smart enough and audit previous year returns. So even if the IRS audits you one time and rules against your method, it seems unlikely that you'll owe more than interest on the taxes.
Finally what are these capital gains you are writing.