Wednesday August 3, 2022 – Today, I learned something from my Google Alerts and John Stosell. Puerto Rico has some very speical tax rules for US citizens. VERY SPEICAL TAX RULES.

Now, I found out that these tax rules have been around for some time – they aren’t new. As a tax professional, you would think I would know about such things.

Puerto Rico Act 20 and Act 22 – and later Act 60 – allows some corporations to pay 4% tax rate and some individuals to pay 0% capital gains tax. Like most every law – there are lots of rules to follow to get these tax advantages.

Attorney Steven A. Leahy reveals the Puerto Rico taxing regement on Today’s Tax Talk.

https://townhall.com/columnists/johnstossel/2022/08/03/tax-freedom-in-puerto-rico-n2611162

https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2022/01/10/puerto-rico-tax-haven-is-alluring-but-are-there-tax-risks/?sh=4111c1caa838

https://globalexpatadvisors.com/puerto-rico-taxes-how-to-benefit/

Tuesday August 2, 2022 – The infrastructure bill Congress passed in November 2021 contained new “broker rules.” The broker rules require that crypto firms collect customer transaction data and is set to take effect in 2023 with full reporting to occur in 2024 (for calendar year 2023).

These rules are designed to overcome the difficuties taxpayers have found when reporting cryptocurrency trades on their annual tax returns.

Recently, the IRS announced it is crafting a new information return dubbed 1099-DA (Digital Asset). This form is speicically designed to report the information needed to calculate gains (or losses) such as the asset type, date purchased, date sold, gross proceeds and cost basis.

Attorney Steven A. Leahy reviews the IRS proposal and how it will effect taxpayers on Today’s Tax Talk.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/shehanchandrasekera/2022/08/01/the-irs-is-working-on-a-new-tax-form-to-capture-your-crypto-activity/?sh=48a1bbc6c23c

https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=a33c41f7-d82f-4366-b10e-c946c747d6ac

https://coinledger.io/blog/form-1099-da

Monday August 1, 2022 – If you are lucky, you may win the Lottery or find treasure. Or, if you are the IRS, you do both routinely.

That’s because, each time someone wins something, anything, the IRS gets their end.

The recent news of the lucky Illinois resident who hit the $1.3 billion Mega Millions Jackpot is a good case study. The prize is set to be paid out over 30 years – or a lump sum upfront. Either sceanerio has the IRS and the Illinois Department of Revenue racking in a sizeable bounty.

But the lottery isn’t the only boon for the taxing authorities. Found treasure is income. Treasure, like a historic baseball cought by a fan, could be taxable.

Attorney Steven A. Leahy talks about these tax obliations on Toiday’s Tax Talk.

https://www.kiplinger.com/taxes/602142/tax-on-mega-millions-jackpot

https://www.abqjournal.com/2520585/baseball-history-frequent-flyer-miles-and-the-irs.html

https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/illinois-quick-hits-lottery-winner-could-pay-386-million-in-taxes-work-comp-fraud-case/article_d86cdac8-11ad-11ed-9cf8-3fc09e1f3f14.html

Thursday July 28, 2022 – Have the Democrats finally come together to double the size of the IRS? Senator Joe Manchin and Senator Chuck Schumer announced a deal today they are calling the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

How will this bill reduce inflation? Easy, the IRS will be granted more power, and more money, to squeeze American Businesses to pay for climate change, health care, prescription drugs and pre-K schooling.

The IRS portion of this spending bill is more than $80 Billion with a promise to collect more than $700 Billion to narrow the tax gap.

Attorney Steven A. Leahy will take a close look at this bill on Today’s Tax Talk.

Wednesday July 27, 2022 – Immediately upon taking office President Biden promoted the Build Back Better Plan as PRESIDENT BIDEN’S PLAN TO REBUILD THE MIDDLE CLASS.

Since that time, the Build Back Better Plan – with a whooping price tag of $3.5 Trillion (some placed the cost at $5 Trillion) – has been put aside, time and time again. But, it keeps popping up.

Senator Manchin has objected to the price tag and have opposed the bill. The lavish items like – universal Pre-K, First-generation down-payment assistance, Home-efficiency rebates have been removed.

The one item that has endured is the $80 Billion Dollars for the IRS over the next 10 years that would more than double the size of the IRS workforce.

Attorney Steven A. Leahy goes through the IRS segments of the Build Back Better Plan on Today’s Tax Talk.

https://www.atr.org/dems-want-to-supersize-irs-to-fund-spending-blowout/

https://www.whitehouse.gov/build-back-better/

https://nypost.com/2021/10/05/never-mind-the-cost-just-look-at-the-absurd-things-build-back-better-would-buy/