kcjenkins

PLEASE, would those of you who use other programs please stop the posts just bashing ATX? It has gotten really irritating and serves no useful purpose. Brag all you want about your wonderful choice, but if you are not using ATX, you don't need to slam it.

I agree, Deb. Jack can sometimes be a bit abrasive, but he is a good guy who goes out of his way to help others here.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/01/02/if-the-caller-id-shows-a-number-from-this-area-code-think-twice-about-answering-it/ Authorities are warning people to avoid picking up a call from a 473 area code number. The area code is international for Grenada. KSL-TV specifically reported the offending number as 473-520-9734 from someone who seems to be in distress. Those who call the number back are charged each minute they’re on the line. Costs can add up in the thousands of dollars. KSL pointed out that the scam isn’t new, but it seems to be surging again. Verizon has provided information and tips for a similar scam with the 809 area code. “If it’s someone who wants to talk to you or get information to you, they’re going to leave a voicemail,” Sgt. John Arnold with the Sandy Police Department in Salt Lake County Utah said. He suggested that if you don’t recognize a caller to “let those numbers go to voicemail.”

i always feel just a little sad when all the decorations are down.

I think I now understand your point, Jack, although after your first post I did not. I do agree that someone should not be overcharged just 'because they can afford it'. Of course, normally they do pay more because their returns are usually more complex, but it should not be further inflated just to offset a discount to someone else. In fairness, any 'compassionate discount' I give should be out of my pocket, not some other client that I overcharged to 'make up the difference'. I think that is what you meant.

Darn, none in Vegas this year? That was always the cheapest option, as long as you can resist the games and slots.

Two things to share to get you off to a new year with a laugh. This cat barks like a dog, until she gets caught doing it, and then, clearly embarrassed, meows. http://www.wimp.com/catbarks/ This link should have you thinking that the start of ta season is not so bad, after all....... http://themattwalshblog.com/2014/01/01/heres-why-i-havent-been-updating-my-blog/

Well, this might be an extreme solution, but if you really never use it, you could delete that master form entirely. If you are batch printing a large number, I can certainly see how you'd hate wasting those sheets.

Way to go, David.

Eric was an employee of ATX from the early days, when ATX was still ATX, before CCH bought it. He formed this board right after CCH abruptly killed the Official ATX Community Board on April [6th ?] leaving us all without that very valuable resource. I think that's a good indication of the sort of relationship between the users and the old service tech group, that Eric took it on himself to do this for us, and many of the old tech group continued to help us on here. It is, I am sure, the thing that pushed CCH to restore the Official board before the start of the next tax season.

Tom, why not use the 2012 program's tax planner to do that?

Then you might want to edit your signature line like I did, David, to let readers know both areas you are experienced in.

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p509.pdf The IRS noted on the cover of Publication 509 that Publication 1518, IRS Tax Calendar for Small Businesses and Self-Employed, has been discontinued after 2013. However, the IRS said that an IRS Tax Calendar and most of the information previously contained in Publication 1518 can be found at www.irs.gov/taxcalendar. The calendar dates can be imported into a user's own calendar sofware through the IRS CalendarConnector, and users can also subscribe to the IRS's Small Businesses Calendar through Outlook 2007 or 2010, or Mac iCal.

Here are a few good sources to start with: http://www.nysscpa.org/cpajournal/2005/205/essentials/p50.htm http://www.marcumllp.com/news-and-events/partnerships-and-llcs-the-basics-of-making-a-754-election http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/events/real_property_trust_estate/joint_fall/2009/spratt_20090907145241093.authcheckdam.pdf http://www.tscpa.com/Content/Files/tscpa/Journal/articles/Disregarding%20754%20Elections.pdf

That is a false choice. Like if you said "I don't like coffee" and I came back with "Would you rather drink poison?"

Not sure about the keyboard, but hack the mouse? Does not make sense. I LOVE wireless mice. No way I'd give up mine.

For anyone who loved Johhny Carson and Jack Webb, this one is still hilarious after all these years

What city?

My question is, what good would seeing a Birth Certificate do toward proving where the child lives? I think the real thing the IRS is questioning is the actual existence of the child. In many of the EITC fraud cases, the supposed children are supposedly from Mexico, and when challenged, no evidence can be provided to prove they even exist. But clearly, the main solution the IRS has arrived at is to put the screws to the preparers. And it should work, because it's unlikely that you could charge more than $500 per return to take those kids. Although I've read that some of those returns claim 5 or more 'nieces' or 'nephews', getting many thousands of dollars of EITC, so maybe they would pay that?

I'm not taking a position on the 'have' or 'don't have' argument. I never had it, but I don't think every practice is like mine, or every practitioner either. A small price for the peace of mind, if you want it.

Glad to hear that! Of course, if you were sitting in the dark, shivering, you would probably not know I was asking, either!

Catherine, Michael, etc, are you being affected by the Storm and the power outages?

Yes, we all have to apply the 'smell test'. As my mother taught me, "if in doubt, don't".

Year-End Tax Tips and Reporting Checklist for Accountants December 24, 2013 By Mike Trabold With the New Year right around the corner, business owners are likely scrambling to identify tax credits they can take advantage of or a tax professional to help them ensure they’re properly reporting their tax information for 2013. Here are a few year-end tax tips and a checklist accountants can share with their clients to help them avoid late fees, fines and frustration in the New Year. Tips vs. Service Charges Businesses with tipped employees need to be aware of the Internal Revenue Service’s intent to enforce guidelines that clarify the taxability of tips and service charges. This enforcement effort is expected to begin in January 2014. Guidance from the IRS offers the following clarification regarding tips and service charges: a tip is subject to special withholding rules, while a service charge is treated as any other taxable wage. Service charges should be characterized as wages and not included with tips when calculating the FICA tip credit. Transportation Benefits The current levels for transportation fringe benefits are set to expire at the end of 2013. If this happens, the new transportation limits for 2014 would decrease from $245 to $130 for mass transit benefits and increase from $245 to $250 for qualified parking. However, it is possible that the issue could be addressed by Congress in the New Year, and current levels could be reinstated retroactively to January 1. Keeping an eye on legislative and regulatory changes in the coming weeks could prove valuable to your clients. Retirement Plans If a client is considering starting a retirement plan for his or her employees, doing so before the end of the year will enable them to write off some of the setup expenses, as well as enjoy the tax advantages of any plan contributions. Remember to advise your clients that they don’t have to start contributing until next year. By offering year-end planning tips to clients, especially focused on payroll and tax changes, you are opening the door to a discussion focused on the year ahead and how you can best work together to ensure the growth and prosperity of their business. Tax Reporting Checklist One of the most important services accountants can provide their clients each year is to help them ensure the proper tax information has been reported and that it’s done on time. The following is a checklist of items to reference when advising your clients: Has this information been reported? • All in-house payroll • Voided checks • Employee pension information • Group term life adjustments • Tax deposits made for an amount other than the amount on the deposit notice • Tip allocations for TEFRA • Compensation adjustments paid to employees that need to be included on employee Form W-2 (i.e., charitable contributions, union dues) • Other amounts in Form W-2, Box 14 • Any premiums for health and accident insurance paid by an S corporation on behalf of 2 percent shareholders/employees • Taxable cash and non-cash fringe benefits (i.e., personal use of a company car) • Third-party sick pay insurance benefits • Educational assistance reimbursements • Any dependent care services provided to employees under an employer-sponsored program • Identification numbers for every tax agency Has this information been verified? • Employees’ names and addresses • Employees’ social security numbers (SSNs) • 1099 payees’ SSNs or taxpayer ID numbers • Identification numbers for state and local agencies on each return The items in these lists may seem basic, but year after year, we see that not reporting or providing inaccurate information for one or more of these items results in some of the most commonly made mistakes. Going over these checklist items and tax tips with your clients can save them time, money, and headaches… and sends the message that you are there to help your clients navigate the maze of taxes and regulations that come with running a business. Mike Trabold is director of compliance at Paychex, Inc.

Washington, D.C. (December 23, 2013) By Michael Cohn The Internal Revenue Service has issued Revenue Ruling 2014-02 , explaining the tax treatment of payments under the National Mortgage Settlement to homeowners whose principal residences were foreclosed by mortgage servicers using techniques such as “robosigning,” where there was little documentation or examination by qualified bank officials. Last year, the federal government and the attorneys general of 49 states and the District of Columbia entered into settlement agreements with five bank mortgage servicers to address mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure abuses. One component of the National Mortgage Settlement is the Borrower Payment Fund, which the parties intended to be structured as a qualified settlement fund under Section 1.468B-1 of the income tax regulations. The terms of the settlement agreements provide that the five mortgage servicers collectively will pay approximately $1.5 billion into the fund, which in turn makes payments to certain borrowers who lost their principal residences in foreclosure on or after Jan. 1, 2008, and on or before Dec. 31, 2011. One of the main issues covered in the Revenue Ruling issued by the IRS last week is the proper tax characterization of the National Mortgage Settlement payment. In addition, if the NMS payment is characterized as part of the amount realized on the foreclosure, and if that characterization creates or increases a gain on the foreclosure of the principal residence, the Revenue Ruling also addresses whether there are grounds for the taxpayer to exclude from gross income some or all of that gain. Another issue is, if the property for which a taxpayer receives an NMS payment contained one or more additional dwelling units that were not used as the taxpayer’s principal residence, the IRS explains how the NMS payment should be allocated between the portion of the property that the taxpayer used as a principal residence and the rest of the property. In addition, if a borrower who was eligible for an NMS payment died before receiving it, the Revenue Ruling describes the tax treatment of the person who receives that payment.