Although the IRS website was careful to note that the rebate checks would be withheld to satisfy federal obligations, checks are being seized by states in order to satisfy past due state income tax obligations. The seizures are part of the Treasury Offset Program (TOP). Under TOP, states may enter into agreements with the IRS…
Taxpayer asks:This is my situation. In 2007, I sold a bunch of stock my grandpa gave me, and had a gain of roughly $8,000. I had my regular income at around $50,000, and $6,583 was withheld. I did not make any estimated tax payments throughout the year. I owed $1,271 in taxes. My question is:1….
Keith Olbermann’s trademark “Worst Person In the World” segments – usually reserved for Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly – may be coming back to haunt him. After revelations that he owes the state of New York $2,269 in back taxes for his corporation, Olbermann Broadcasting Empire, many of his former targets are turning the tables. The…
This week, I happened to notice a series of ads running in my local paper (The Philadelphia Inquirer) for Derrie-Air airlines. There were two features that distinguished Derrie-Air from, say, USAirways and United. One was the method of determining fare: The magic comes from our one of a kind “Sliding Scale”—the more you weigh, the…
Will UBS name names as part of an ongoing investigation into its offshore accounts? Maybe. The Times is reporting that UBS may reveal the names of up to 20,000 of its American clients as part of the investigation into alleged “tax irregularities.” A spokesman for UBS has, of course, declined to comment. The US government…
A federal judge has thrown out the conviction and ordered the release of Samir Al-Monla, a former Islamic charity leader. Al-Monla was immediately released. The same judge, US District Court Judge Dennis Saylor IV, partially overturned the sentence against two others, Emadeddin Muntasser and Muhammed Mubayyid, ruling that prosecutors failed to prove conspiracy and tax-related…
After months of speculation, the field is finally set. The US presidential race is down to Republican candidate John McCain and Democratic candidate Barrack Obama. Both will spend the next five months talking about the issues important to the American people. Tops on their list? The economy. The tax plans for McCain and Obama could…
The first ever winner of CBS’ Survivor has appealed his tax evasion conviction to the U.S. Supreme Court. Richard Hatch was convicted of failing to pay taxes on the $1 million prize on Survivor in 2000. He was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison. He had previously appealed his conviction to the United States…
Quick: Who is most responsible for the Reagan tax cuts? Donald Regan, Secretary of the Treasury during Reagan’s administration? Nah, the real force behind the Economic Recovery Act of 1981 was Jodie Foster, according to Robert Mundell, Columbia University’s Nobel laureate economist. The Financial Times reports that Mundell cites the Oscar winning actress as most…
As his popularity continues to decline, President Bush has re-introduced legislation to extend his 2001 and 2003 or risk what he is calling “the largest tax increase in history.” Realistically, some of the cuts will likely be extended or made permanent – but not all. Bush claims, for example, that allowing the tax cuts to…