SCL

It's not a bad idea to have a PTIN required, but charging you every year for that number makes no sense.  But remember, it started out being for OUR convenience, so we did not have to use our SSN.  They've been able to track preparers ever since they asked for that.    

 

I guess next the SSA will charge us an annual fee for our SSN?

This pisses me off every year when I have to pay it.  Paid preparers have always had to identify themselves on the tax return, and the PTIN just allowed us to not use our SSN on the return.  They have turned this into a required registration to use the e-file system that they require us to use.  I agree with the plaintiffs and I hope they prevail.  This attack on preparers needs to stop.

 

Tom

Hollister, CA

$65 is not much...forest/trees? i don't have a problem with it.

i see it as a small attempt by the irs to weed out the barber, gas station attendant, monkey's uncle, or anyone who thinks they can prepare and efile a tax return with little or no barriers to entry.

jack and easytax both make a case.

computers have been cheap for several years.

$600 or $800 for a laptop (or even a desktop pc) that will last several+  years is a bargain at twice the price.

i have a laptop/pc story...for what it's worth...and subject to anyone's welcome critique/correction.

3 years ago i bought a laptop and pc at office max on a demo sale...both win7, i5, and 8mg for around $650 each.

i have used the pc at my (stand alone/125 return) tax office with no problems...even with atx (well, some small problems).

i have used the laptop at home (the battery plugged into an outlet) as a desktop substitute...mainly for personal use but also for some satellite atx use. i had a problem with the laptop that cost me $250...my learning curve fwiw story.

laptop hard drives are sensitive to heat. i knew that and had it set up on a cooling fan platform when it was on.

apparently, if you sleep/hibernate a laptop, power is still on generating heat to the hard drive.

the rub, the cooling fan shuts off...the consequence, a cracked hard drive.

CRS syndrome      Cant' Remember Sh*t

funny!

general chat is quieter/less controversial because (right wing) politics is not in play anymore...good riddance.

perhaps, after the mud has settled, tax and program questions can re-emerge as main points of emphasis...i hope. 

DITTO

KUDOS!

you have come full circle on your merry-go-round.

you were the one (along with a couple of your pets) who originally/arbitrarily attacked me over the word "frequently".   

the irs does not "frequently" challenge anything...1.5%? of all (150 million?) returns...

and weighted toward high? (1 million+ gross income?) returns = .5%? of all returns.

Your numbers are outdated and simply inaccurate.

Last year, the IRS audited less than 1 percent of all returns from individuals, the lowest rate since 2005. This year, Koskinen said, "The numbers will go down."

Koskinen was confirmed as IRS commissioner in December. He took over an agency under siege on several fronts.

Last year, the IRS acknowledged agents improperly singled out conservative groups for extra scrutiny when they applied for tax-exempt status from 2010 to 2012. The revelation has led to five ongoing investigations, including three by congressional committees, and outraged lawmakers who control the agency's budget

i love it when normally reasonable and logical folk get dazed, confused, and their panties in a bunch that their desperate, so called argument against me proves my point.

i offered/allowed/said "1.5%?"....implying less. thanks jack!

And just HOW does this snarky post add anything to the discussion?  Perhaps you should remember what I'm sure your mother told you...."If you can't say something nice, or helpful, don't say  anything at all."

 

And, yes, of those items they do challenge, business-related driving expenses,  especially when they involve local travel, are very high on the list.  

i did not object to the content of the article or cbslee's posting it. it is a good article about local transportation deductions, especially after whatever jklcpa did to edit/clarify the article.

my "snarkyness" was directed at the very first word of the article from the author..."frequently"...and nothing else.

and no, you are desperately wrong (and snarky to boot, if you had a boot)..."of those items they do challenge, business-related driving expenses, especially when they involve local travel, are very high on the list."

of 1% or less of items challenged by the irs, driving expenses are not very high on the list.

perhaps your mother should have told you "if you can't say anything that is correct, then don't say anything at all." 

how much are they paying?

the irs does not "frequently" challenge anything...1.5%? of all (150 million?) returns...

and weighted toward high? (1 million+ gross income?) returns = .5%? of all returns.

I've been away on vacation for a while, in a place with no cell phone service or internet connection.  Just a lake, kayaks, hammocks, and books. It's been a nice break.

KC and Judy and I had discussed closing down the politics forum some time ago.  Now it's gone (I'll delete the forum itself soon) but I'd like to replace it with something else eventually.

I thought it'd be more beneficial for this community to have a place to discuss more no-tax topics.  Right now, I think General Chat has a comfortable balance of Tax and Non-Tax related posts... but that balance is what keeps me from posting much, since I don't have anything tax related to contribute.  My feeling is that I would share more NT stuff if there were a dedicated forum for it and I think other people might too.

I'd like to shoot for an Off Topic forum that focuses on more personal/friendly threads.  Talk about your kids/grandkids.  Post photos.  Post articles / videos about subjects that you find interesting.  A recent example I really enjoyed was Catherine's post about Fibonacci numbers / the golden ratio. 

There are plenty of places to argue about politics.  We have a good community here and I would personally prefer to grow this community in a more positive way.  I'm really hoping that our members have more varied interests than just politics, and I'm hoping that people will share those interests here so that everyone can get to know each other beyond their political views.

I don't have a timeline for these changes.  There is a very big forum upgrade on the way--I've been doing beta testing on and off for the past few months, reporting bugs, and testing fixes.  The changes will be significant, and so I'd like to lump that upgrade with the forum changes and do it all at once.  There is no timeline for the release of the new version, but it's looking pretty polished at this point and I can't imagine that it'd be more than a few months away.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions?

i am late to post on this thread...but up to date on current threads/posts.

general chat needs to be ONLY PROGRAM AND TAX QUESTIONS...no politics, NT, jokes, laugh of the day, or any other bs.

off topic could be any or all of the NON general chat topics.

i don't mind political discussion as long as the rules of engagement are understood...basically an open and two way street fight of argument (with gloves off).

otherwise, i have no problem if political posts are eliminated altogether.

I am not interested in your "off topic" (non tax/political) comments.

 

kcjenkins, on 26 Aug 2014 - 12:42 PM, said:

Just to be clear, the new Off Topic board is totally non-political.

that is true...off topic is non political and chat is also non political.

in other words, there is no outlet for political posts...sorry, charlie.

you indicted yourself with the name of this thread...

"I'm Avoiding Most Political Items, But This is Exceptional"

i think off topic could be amended to allow for political posts.

i do not mind a political discussion as long as the rules of engagement  are understood...

basically, a two way street of argument.

my problem with your prior political posts was that it was your one way street.

it was your street, your way, and subject to your arbitrary control and censorship.

i did not like it.   

My computer shows zero defragmentation. Still have problem.  If it makes any difference this is a stand alone laptop. 

for my own curiosity, what are your other specs?

my stand alone, win7, i5, 8gb (business only pc)) had little problems on 2012 and 2013 tax returns (120 returns).

it feels to me that you have computer "corruption problems" (whatever that means in my computer naive world).

CALL ATX SUPPORT.

they helped me out once when I thought all was lost.

they know how to cancel out and reinstall the program without loosing data. 

LOL!!! 

stick a fork in TRX, PLEASE...it is well over well done!

as THEY say...

fool me once (or even twice if you are a bit of a masochist), shame on you.

fool me 5 times, shame on me.

who knows? the shadow knows...two pennies on a dollar.

I will feel better when you ABSOLUTLEY quit posting critical, passive/aggressive threads about liberal/progressive (POLITICAL) positions on chat..

LOL!!!! 

I am not interested in your "off topic" (non tax/political) comments. 

I wondered how long it would take you to violate the new political terms of engagement. 

you resisted longer than I thought you were able/capable...what? 11 days of self restraint...LOL!!!

assign yourself a mickey mouse point of board violation.

Yeah, I'm going to have to go with clearing cookies. I'm kind of at a loss. If you hit that Sign Out link at the top right, you really shouldn't be logged in when you come back.

or the corollary...don't sign/log out and you aren't signed/logged out.

it's what I do...I am never logged out.

ms tabby...my opinion, if I understand your question.

give up on trx and forget about tax act.

go back to atx.

I suspect your friend got "audited" because mdonalds reported the sale/income on a 1099misc.

"forgot" to report income is only an excuse that works when there is no irs "paper trail".

to pursue my scenario, you friend really did not really get "audited".

he got computer verified...like anyone on a w2 or 1099 int/div/pension/and MISC.

about your oih question...that goes to a sch c?

assuming you are doing it properly, then no problem.

assuming you are doing it incorrectly, then very, very likely no problem.

unless the oih deduction is way over the line...

is your indirect expense % deduction around $500.

if so, deduct your 100% direct expenses on your sch c and...

forget about claiming/revealing the extra/minor oih expense/hoops you have to jump through.

1.5% or so of returns are audited.

I'm speculating without research...but

97+% of those returns involve over $1 million individual agi or business net income.

there is a not so subtle campaign going on by congress/irs.

I saw in the press today that 32 mill federal returns were filed by individuals from their home computers.

their requirement...buy an individual tax prep program or use "FREE flipping FILE", follow the menu, and press send...and good luck with your state return that you have to pay for.

on the other hand, congress/irs wants to impose regulations/standards (not that there is anything wrong with that) on the tax prep industry...from mom/pop stores to eas, cpas, and attorneys who know way more than individual filers who are doing their own returns to save $75-$150+.

WHY? individuals who prepare their own returns and make it through, pay more (way more?) taxes because they don't know what they are doing on their fed and state returns.

many individual returns that incorrectly over claim tax law benefits are flagged and corrected.

the irs and state tax bodies do not flag and correct tax law benefits that are not taken.

no...eliminate trx/onedesk altogether.

just wondering, m333?

why do you continue to (try) to use failed TRX/OneDesk?

my suggestion...get rid of both of them...and move on.

lol...check out vegas yellow pages.

about the SOL of current taxpayers/heirs...

whatever, it is no doubt unconstitutional.

fugetaboutit!!!!

I want my Mommy.........

freud called...in 1910, he had little concern about taxes.

today, tax questions could be a major psychological concern.