Higher 1099-K Tax Reporting Threshold Pushed By Senate Duo - Samantha Handler, Bloomberg Tax ($):
Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) are looking to raise a tax reporting requirement for third-party transaction platforms to $10,000 from $600.
The 2021 Covid aid legislation lowered the 1099-K reporting threshold, requiring platforms like Venmo, PayPal, and Uber to send tax reporting forms to users who have made over $600 in transactions. The IRS late last year delayed the new rule from going into effect for the 2023 tax filing season.
IRS deploys cyber attachés to fight cybercrime abroad - Ines Kagubare, The Hill. "The IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) announced Thursday that it will launch a pilot program in June in which cyber attachés will be sent across four continents to combat cyber crime."
Wyden Delves Into Secret Accounts at Credit Suisse, Other Banks - Doug Sword, TaxNotes ($):
The Senate’s top taxwriter is pressing for a Justice Department investigation of Credit Suisse, while also calling on three European banks and an Israeli bank to explain their roles in what he alleges is an “ongoing and potentially criminal conspiracy.”
The latest action from Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., follows a March 29 committee report that accused Credit Suisse of violating its 2014 plea agreement with the Justice Department by failing to comply with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and assisting U.S. citizens and persons with “potentially criminal tax evasion.”
Insurance Agent, Co. Owe $1.5M For Charitable Trust Scheme - Theresa Schliep, Law360($). "An insurance agent accused of operating a charitable trust scheme that cost the government $8 million in taxes has to pay the U.S. a $400,000 judgment, while his employer has to shut down and pay $1.1 million, a Missouri federal court said."
Supreme Court Sides With IRS on Secret Summons Power - Chandra Wallace, TaxNotes($):
When searching for assets to collect delinquent tax debt, the IRS can access the records of third parties without telling them, the Supreme Court has held.
In a unanimous opinion May 18 in Polselli v. IRS, the Court ruled that the IRS may withhold notice when it seeks third-party records in aid of collecting assessed tax liabilities, even if the delinquent taxpayer has no legal interest in those records or the underlying accounts.
IRS Picked Wrong Rodeo in Ranch Hobby Case - Nathan J Richman, TaxNotes ($):
The IRS lost in the Tax Court on hundreds of thousands of dollars in deductions attributable to a lopsided ranching endeavor by trying to tie all the expenses to the taxpayers’ children’s rodeo competitions.
“In summary, the Commissioner's position under section 183 makes no sense in light of our view that the deductions reported on the Schedules F mainly related to ranching,” Judge Richard T. Morrison reasoned in a March 22 bench opinion...
Hobby activity reminder: Here's what taxpayers need to know about paying taxes on their hobby activities.
State Returns Pose Challenge for IRS Direct File - Lauren Loricchio, TaxNotes ($):
Taxpayers may be more apt to use an IRS-run free direct-filing tool if they can also easily file their state tax returns, but the agency acknowledges that setting that up will be a challenge.
The IRS will hold a direct-file pilot in the 2024 tax filing season that will allow a group of taxpayers to file their income tax returns electronically with the agency. Officials have yet to work out the details of exactly how an IRS-run direct-file program will fuse with state tax systems.
Senators Debate Positives, Hurdles of IRA Energy Credits - Cady Stanton, TaxNotes ($):
What better way to celebrate Friday, pizza and cake, enjoy!Senate taxwriters rehashed debate over the clean energy credits in the Inflation Reduction Act with disagreements over its recently updated cost estimate, permitting challenges for clean energy projects, and benefits for “energy communities.”
Senate Finance Committee Democrats defended the job creation and community development aspects of the energy credits in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA, P.L. 117-169) during a May 18 hearing, while Republicans pointed to the need for permitting reform, squishy domestic manufacturing requirements, and the higher-than-anticipated score of the credits by the Congressional Budget Office as reasons for critique.
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