Catherine

I had to over-ride _the worksheets_ to get it to come out right. And THEN I had to over-ride the form on page 2 where it bounces you off to the worksheets; the required checkboxes would not check! Typical Massachusetts situation: ill-conceived, ill-implemented, ill-presented, and administered by the wrong agency!

Chances are no one else has run into this as there don't seem to be many Mass. folks on the forum. But there is a huge problem with the Mass Sch. HC (the *&^%$ health care proof). Things go fine as long as taxpayers have full-year health insurance. Ran into one a while back that didn't but it was a part-year residence and I over-rode where necessary to make it come out properly and correctly. But now I have a full-year resident who just didn't have insurance. I need eleven separate over-rides to get this bleepity-bleep-bleeping form to work according to instructions. Numbers that are supposed to flow from the Federal form just don't. The jump-to bunny (where it exists) jumps to the right place -- but the numbers don't flow through. And to enter those figures requires an over-ride. Then when I get to the penalty worksheets, I have to over-ride everything in sight! I understand not being able to get every little link right, but for goodness' sake I shouldn't have to over-ride to get the right data in there when they haven't put the links in! GRRRR!!!!!!! Catherine

1. Box 1 only. Adjustment goes on Line 29 of 1040; self-employed health insurance deduction. 2. Dunno off-hand; maybe someone else does. Catherine

I've had a couple of these in the last couple of years, too. Guess I'm luckier than I realized in that the documentation has been reasonably clear (the Hartford and I forget who else; FAQ's online rather than anything sent in the mail). One sum was put into a retirement account (non-reportable), the other had a whopping $25 settlement for legal fees that ended up on Line 21. Not a retirement account, so early distribution wasn't an issue there. Catherine

The "PG" previously referred to actually stands for "Phantom Gourmands" -- all of us drooling over this thread! Speaking of which -- time for some lunch. And look, look!! Only eleven posts away from the next level! Woo-hoo!!

I've got one client who is constitutionally incapable of opening an envelope without tearing the envelope and entire contents to ragged shreds. It's always quite a trip to go through her stuff. And yes, she puts every shredded paper form back into its' shredded envelope! Luckily, she comes early when I still have time to deal. Catherine

I was wondering what the ES was; the estimateds for MA are 1-ES; never noticed the Sch E Summary (although I'm sure I've been there). As to comments above on whether it's the software or other -- last year ATX had the most horrid problem with MA extensions. Once you filed the extension, it coded that extension as the _return_ and then you couldn't e-file the return. It hit _so_ many of my clients and it wasn't until the second-to-last that they came up with a work-around that they told me. (Which was the duplicate the return trick I mentioned earlier.) They also took a _very_ long time to admit it was their fault and not MA. Catherine

A town I lived in, in Central Massachusetts, was one of the last in the state to still have 4-digit dialing (and the old rotary switches, as well -- you could hear them clacking on the line). They lost that and had to go to 7 digits about 1995, just a couple years before I moved to Worcester. Catherine

to answer your original question -- whether or not it is right, it may well be correct.

Still -- thanks for posting this!

You can put on your bathing suit and stand outside to eat ice cream!!! Does blue skin mean you've been in the sun too long, or that you're about to attack England with sword and pike? Maybe both!

This all sounds completely bizarre to me. I will recommend double-checking the MA return for any Schedule E or E-1 that may be there blank, and getting rid of them. Ditto the Form 1-ES, plus the spot in the Federal return that indicates state estimated tax payments. Go to those fields and delete the date and amount areas. Even a "space" in the field registers as an entry (you just can't see it!). If none of that works, you could try duplicating the return and creating the efile from the duplicate (ATX support had me do that once last year on another type of problem). If all else fails, mail the thing in. And don't forget to do gnashing of teeth and growling noises when you print; this assures the paper file goes smoothly. Good luck! Catherine

We're nowhere near as cold as Caribou, but it's been pretty doggone cold. Low 20's overnight, barely hitting freezing during the day. And the wind has been howling at 30 - 40 mph for a couple of days. Tomorrow they say mid-40's -- that's going to feel like midsummer by comparison. The plus is that the sun has been warm; riding in the car I've been getting too hot with my coat on. Catherine

Hi Margaret -- First off, if you need more details or if this doesn't seem right for your clients' situation, post again (or call me; 781-652-8994 will be good until about 9:30PM EDT -- after that I don't guarantee to be coherent). The embedded smilies are from some code in the text, not me. What you need is JUST the Form 2-G, not the Form 2. And if the grantor is a non-resident of Mass, the trustee must do backup withholding for Mass-source income. Directive 89-4 details this; here's the link. http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=dorterminal&am...4&csid=Ador And the text: Directive 89-4: Grantor Trust with Non-Resident Grantor ISSUE: What are the filing and withholding requirements for Able as trustee of a grantor trust set up by Baker, a non-resident grantor? What are Baker’s filing requirements as the non-resident grantor of such a trust? DISCUSSION: Every trustee or other fiduciary who receives gross income in excess of $100 must generally file a return. G.L. c. 62C, § 6(. Some trusts are taxed as separate entities and file Form 2; a grantor trust, however, acts as a conduit and income from the trust is taxed not to the trust but to the grantor. See Internal Revenue Code, §§ 671-678; G.L. c. 62, § 10(e). The trustee of a grantor trust must still file an information return, Form 2G, "Grantor’s or Other Owner’s Share of Income, Deductions, Credits, Etc. of a Grantor Type Trust." G.L. c. 62, § 10(f). Form 2G is due on the fifteenth day of the fourth month following the close of the trust’s taxable year. A copy of Form 2G must also be sent to the grantor. Non-resident Grantor In the case of a non-resident grantor, these additional rules apply: (a) The Trustee: In addition to filing Form 2G, the trustee must, where the grantor is a non-resident of the Commonwealth, withhold tax on behalf of the grantor based on the trust’s Massachusetts source income. G.L. c. 62, § 10(g). There is no withholding requirement on income not subject to Massachusetts taxation. Tax is withheld at a rate applicable to income of that particular class (i.e., 5% or 10%) and paid over to the Commonwealth using declarations of estimated tax, Form 1-ES, Estimated Income Tax Payment Voucher. Id. For due dates, See AP 607, "Estimated Tax Payments." Form 2G will state the amount withheld and paid over by the trustee. Since the trustee is responsible for withholding tax on income subject to Massachusetts taxation, failure to withhold will make the trustee liable for the full amount of tax not withheld, plus any interest and penalties for underpayment or late payment. However, if the estimated taxes due are properly paid by the grantor rather than the trustee, the trustee will be credited with those payments. ( Under ordinary circumstances, the non-resident grantor is not required to make estimated tax payments with regard to income from the grantor trust. If the trustee fails to withhold, however, the grantor must make estimated tax payments if he reasonably expects the tax on the trust income to exceed $200. G.L. c. 62B, § 13. If the grantor fails to make the required payments, he will be liable for interest and penalties. G.L. c. 62B, § 14. The grantor is always liable for the full payment of any tax due, and must file Form 1-NR, taking credit for any amount withheld by the trustee (attached Form 2G) or any estimated tax payments he himself has made. Thus, in the situation where the trustee fails to withhold tax and the grantor fails to pay estimated taxes to the Commonwealth, the trustee is liable for: 1. taxes not withheld; and 2. any interest and penalties The grantor is liable for: 1. interest and penalties on failure to pay estimated tax; and 2. the tax due. In this situation, if the grantor pays the tax due, the Department of Revenue will not require the trustee to pay the taxes not withheld. The trust must, however, pay the full amount of the interest and penalties due for failure to withhold. The grantor will continue to be liable for interest and penalties due to his failure to make estimated tax payments. DIRECTIVES: Able, as trustee of a grantor trust with a non-resident grantor; must deduct and withhold the appropriate amount of tax from the grantor trust’s Massachusetts source income; these amounts must be paid over to the Department of Revenue on Form 1-ES at stated intervals. Able must also file Form 2G with DOR and send a copy of it to the grantor. Baker as a non-resident grantor must file Form 1-NR to report his Massachusetts source income from the trust, attaching a copy of Form 2G to the return. On his return, Baker will take credit for any amounts withheld and paid over by the trust. REFERENCE: I.R.C. §§ 671- 678; G.L. c. 62, § 10(e), (, (g); G.L. c. 62B §§ 13, 14; G.L. c. 62C, § 6(; Administrative Procedures, AP 607 (MASSTAX Guide, vol. 6). /s/ Stephen W. Kidder Stephen W. Kidder Commissioner of Revenue March 15, 1989 DOR-D 89-4 This Directive represents the official position of the Department of Revenue on the application of the law to the facts as stated. The Department and its personnel will follow this Directive, and taxpayers may rely upon it, unless it is revoked or modified pursuant to 830 CMR 62C.01(5)(9). in applying this Directive, however, the effect of subsequent legislation, regulations, court decisions, Directives, and TIRs must be considered. and Department personnel and taxpayers may rely upon this Directive only it the facts, circumstances and issues presented in other cases are substantially the same as those set forth in this Directive.

Hi Margaret -- Just saw this; will look into and get back to you shortly. Catherine

I couldn't get any help from ATX, but found this on the "official" communities, from a member called mwpope: "This is similar to Charley's response but if you sit on the "detail" tab of schedule D, then click on the menu Tools - Unprotect Sch D, the the screen will look a lot like an Excel template with colunn and row letters and numbers. Copy the E12:K36 and paste it onto an Excel file. Save this file as a schedule D template for use for other clients that have large quantities of sales. Now, if you can get the stock sale from any other source and export to Excel, you could copy/paste the data you get into the applicable cells that ATX used. Then copy your excel range and toggle over to ATX and hit paste. Now you need to click on Tools - Protect Sch D. I use this trick to input what I have from investment statements but if I'm missing purchase dates and basis, I can paste it in an excel file, send it to the client for them to research and mail back to me." ATX officially will NOT recommend that anyone unprotect forms. But sometimes you just gotta.... I'll also note that this was from April '08; almost a year ago. Catherine

RJM -- HOW do you do this??? I got an excel-format of a couple of client accounts -- there are several HUNDRED transactions (the FIRST account of four has 179). But I can't figure out how to do the entry in any way. The ATX help is useless with its' talk of starting/stopping links but no walk-through. The detail page you mention wants one line at a time (how is this better than individual entry I might do?). Ditto input sheets. How can I get this information entered without going crazy? Thx. Catherine

There are also _legitimate_ reasons to get a 1099 and a W-2 from the same employer. A contract worker is hired for a specific task and is a great fit; the company then offers this person a regular job. First year gets both. A regular worker at a company has a sideline self-employment job in a different field. Said worker provides - outside the regular job - services to the employer (as well as others) from the self-employment (say, office manager at a club who is also an artist is paid to paint a mural over a weekend or two). Compensation over $600 => 1099 as well. And more, I'm sure. But just to "get around" withholding etc doesn't wash, as stated above. Catherine

Happy Happy Day!

Happy Birthday, Booger!!! Catherine

It went through this morning just fine, so I guess Maine follows CT in taking the weekend off. That's a nice idea this time of year; too bad _we_ don't get to do it!!

Thanks for posting this -- I was going to have to go searching later tonight for that same thing.

I ......... LOVE ............. cinnamon rolls ............. yum. yum. yum. Now I have to go finish making my bean soup for dinner. I was really looking forward to bean soup. But it's not cinnamon rolls. I may have to go weep piteously for a little bit first. Catherine (sniff)

Happy Birthday to both Dotjenn and MAMalody! :bday:

Anyone else notice delays in Maine ack's? I have one return that was sent in early Friday. Didn't get a "Transmitted to Agency" until Saturday morning, and it's still sitting with that status. Seems odd that it hasn't gone through and been either accepted or rejected. Catherine