Happy Friday! Here’s a recap of the tax relief news that made headlines this week.
Celebrity Tax Issues, IRS Audits and Enforcement
It seems like there is always a celebrity in the news currently facing down the IRS or other tax authorities.  This is not by accident. Since the Great Recession tax revenues have been down so to increase collections, the IRS has been going after celebrities and wealthy Americans to help
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The former mayor of a small Florida town and his wife were sentenced two six months in prison, to be followed by six-month terms of home detention, for conspiring to defraud the IRS.
Richard Rober, 52, the former mayor of Port Richey, Fla., and and his wife, Averill Rober, 47, both pleaded guilty to the charges.
Rober had resigned from his position at Port Richey mayor in March, disclosing at the time
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The IRS has been busting celebrities. But you and your neighbors aren’t safe from the taxman either.
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O.J. Simpson will be remembered for many things.
He was a football player.
He was a product spokesman and actor.
He was an accused murderer who was found not guilty in a criminal trial only to be found guilty later in a civil one.
He was an armed robber who went after sports memorabilia.
But there’s one more thing
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If you have ever received a letter from the IRS, you know the initial reaction all too well; panic and confusion of what to do next. But even after receiving an IRS audit letter doesn’t mean you should to roll over or be pushed around especially if you don’t agree with it. Robert W. Wood’s recent article in Forbes provocatively titled “Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Fighting the
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Attempting to understand the appeal of offshore tax havens, NPR’s Planet Money team decided this last July to wade into the murky offshore waters and create a few shell companies in countries advertising tax haven status. According to the Team’s Chana Jaffe Walt in the latest broadcast titled “The Downside of Tax Havens? Paperwork,” the process of buying the two companies one in Belize: “Unbelizable Inc” and one in Delaware:
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A Connecticut woman faces three years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 after pleading guilty to filing a false federal income tax return.
According to court documents, Renee Lamar Joseph, 38, of Norwalk, Conn., was the bookkeeper for Joseph Landscaping and Masonry, a sole proprietorship landscaping and masonry business owned and operated by her husband.  Joseph’s responsibilities included handling JLM’s billing, receiving payments and recording payments in the
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Jason Cohen, a Pennsylvania landlord, pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return. He falsified his personal income on tax returns for the calendar years 2006 through 2008 by failing to declare $283,308 in monthly rental fees paid in cash. The failure to declare the payments led to a tax loss on Cohen’s personal income tax returns of $24,368 for the three-year period. Cohen faces up to three years in
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Happy Friday! It’s time for a review of this week’s mixed bag of tax relief topics:
Currently Not-Collectable Status – Status 53
A new video from the Tax Man series explains how Currently Not-Collectable Status works for taxpayers having trouble with tax debt repayment because their current expenses are higher than their income. Currently Not-Collectable Status gives these folks time (sometimes up to two years) whereby they are not obligated to
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The purpose of the Tax Man series is to explain IRS practices and tax relief solutions that are implemented to help taxpayers get out from underneath tax debt issues. One solution is the “Currently Not-Collectable” or Status 53 as defined by the IRS.
In a recent Tax Man video, Tax Team member, Parham explains that the “Currently Not-Collectable” Status often works for taxpayers whose expenses are higher than their income and
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Two Wisconsin business owners have pleaded guilty to failing to pay payroll taxes to the IRS.
Lisa Bartz Vanden Elzen, 46, of DePere, Wisc., pleaded guilty to a felony charge of willfully failing to pay over to the IRS payroll taxes owed by her business, Dairy Transport Services. From July 2005 through December 2010, Bartz Vanden Elzen failed to pay $193,000 in payroll taxes that had been withheld from the wages
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A Business Week article titled “Prince Failed to Comply With IRS Summons Over Taxes, U.S. Says” shows just how far worldwide taxing authorities are willing to go to collect what they are due. According to the article, Prince Rogers Nelson known as recording artist Prince, is in need of some tax relief because he did not comply with an IRS summons sent on behalf of French tax authorities who are
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Following a five-day trial, a New Mexico couple was found guilty of federal tax evasion charges. Joseph C. Kupfer, 49, and Elizabeth D. Kupfer, 50, failed to report at least $768,333 in taxable income during tax years 2004 through 2006, evading $286,175 in federal taxes.
During the years 2004 through 2006, court evidence showed, Joseph Kupfer received income from his business, Kupfer Consulting, and the Kupfers reported income from Kupfer Consulting
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The IRS just awarded the largest amount ever paid out, $104 million dollars, to whistleblower and former UBS banker, Bradley C. Birkenfeld, for disclosing UBS banking secrets to the US government that revealed how UBS helped wealthy Americans avoid paying taxes to the IRS. A New York Times article, Whistle-Blower Awarded $104 Million by I.R.S. reports that Birkenfeld’s huge reward is considered a milestone for the IRS’  whistle-blower program that
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A Virginia man pleaded guilty to two counts of filing a false tax return.
According to court documents, Thomas W. Sawyer, 43, of Chesapeake, Va., was formerly employed by Dollar Tree and traveled to China procure goods to be sold in Dollar Tree’s stores. During his trips to Asia, Sawyer received gratuities from the Chinese manufacturers in exchange for choosing their products. Sawyer brought this additional income into the United States and
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Question: I’m in debt to the IRS. But I have two significant questions that have paralyzed me. How do I know which is better for me — the Offer in Compromise or the Installment Agreement? And what if I’m too much in debt?

Answer: Great questions. Since the second one is the simplest to answer, let me address it first.
Simply put, you cannot be too much in tax debt. No
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