Corporate Minutes

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Keep good corporate minutes An employee who is required to communicate with board members, take notes at board meetings, and compile corporate minutes may cringe at such a tedious and often thankless assignment. But carefully prepared corporate minutes are valuable, even essential, in many circumstances. They can be used to convince state regulators that directors performed their fiduciary responsibilities with due care. During an audit, favorable tax treatment — including the deductibility of officer compensation and travel-related expenses — may hinge on unequivocal documentation in the board minutes. If a company's corporate status is called into question, shareholders may become personally liable. Accurate board minutes can be used to demonstrate that the corporation has maintained its legal status and acted in the best interest of its shareholders. And by documenting the basis for board decisions, meeting minutes may provide insight to managers who must implement corporate policies and procedures. When should meeting minutes be kept? Of course, every routine discussion doesn't need to be documented. But at a minimum, a record should be made when the board selects new corporate officers, implements significant new policies, establishes new retirement plans, borrows significant amounts, or sells major assets. In fact, minutes should be taken at any official meeting in which significant discussions are held and corporate decisions made. What information should be included? Without necessarily identifying the individuals who spoke, the minutes should document the scope of the discussion. The goal should be to summarize the major points that support the final decision or resolution. The minutes might also indicate, in general terms, the time spent reaching a decision. This type of language — "the board then discussed the matter at length" — may serve to show that agenda items were not passed over lightly. Should the company's position ever be questioned in court, such verbiage may provide support for the board's decisions. In addition, the minutes should record any documents considered (though such documents may be incorporated by reference only). If board members relied on the advice of attorneys, accountants, or other professionals, this information should be included as well. What should be left out? In general, it's a good idea to omit a record of the detailed discussions that led to final decisions. Such "he said/she said" transcripts may later provide fuel to those who want to question the firm's actions. In a court of law, the minutes speak for the corporation. Discuss your minute taking process with your attorney. As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

Tax Preparation Tips - Being Audited

IRS

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 IRS If you receive a letter from the IRS, do not contact them direct. Don’t try to prepare or submit the documents they request. Don’t call to discuss the items in the letter. Depending on who you talk to (not everyone at the IRS will do the following, but some may not have your best interest and we never want you to lie to the IRS), the IRS might just try to take advantage of you, by tricking you into saying things incriminating, misquoting what the tax law states, or arbitrarily denying the information you gave them. It is really important that you never want to lie to the IRS. You can severely hurt your position by saying things to the IRS. We have been helping and working with clients and fighting for their rights since 1975. Whether you have an IRS audit, IRS Problem Resolution, IRS offer & Compromise, IRS payment plans, or filing amended returns prior year misstatements, we can help. Please call us whenever you get a letter from the IRS or if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

Starting a new business is hard.

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Business Tips Pay attention to money management basics Launching a small company can be exhilarating, like entering an extreme sports competition with huge risks and prodigious rewards. But keeping a business profitable year after year may not always generate such exuberance, especially if you're the one responsible for balancing priorities and covering day-to-day expenses. Like it or not, monitoring such mundane matters as cash flow, inventory, collections, and taxes often distinguishes winners from losers in the business arena. Conscientious owners who keep a close eye on their financial resources may still be in the fight five years after opening their doors. Entrepreneurs who neglect their accounts may find themselves posting "going out of business" placards after a year or two of frustration and dashed dreams. Unfortunately, some owners never discover what went wrong. Even if you've hired a top-notch accountant or bookkeeper, it's wise to acquire at least a basic understanding of the following business fundamentals: • Cash flow. Liquidity is the lifeblood of your business. Like a doctor assessing the health of a patient, gaining insight into cash — how much money is in the bank, how much is coming in, how much is going out, where the cash is being spent — can help you reach a proper diagnosis. Even if the firm seems healthy, knowing where your cash is flowing can inform crucial decisions, prompting adjustments that may stave off disaster before it strikes. • Assets and liabilities. The listing of balance sheet accounts lets you know how much is tied up in inventory, how much you owe and how much is owed to you, how much equity you've contributed to the business, and other factors that may affect your company's health. For example, a balance sheet that's heavy in accounts receivable may indicate a problem with too-lenient credit policies. A large cash balance may signal missed investment opportunities or sluggish payment of outstanding loans. • Business versus personal accounts. Of course, if the line between the company's books and your personal finances becomes blurred, your diagnosis may become distorted. Keeping personal and business budgets separate makes it easier to manage taxes and track financial transactions. Setting up discrete bank accounts — including a separate payroll account for employee social security, income taxes, and Medicare — is also crucial. We at 1040+ are you small business experts. We specialize in helping you set up your business and answering all the questions you have about the record keeping and things to do and not do in reference to your small business. As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

Save Taxes with Depreciation Deductions for your business

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Save taxes with depreciation deductions As you know, you can claim a depreciation deduction for the "exhaustion" and "wear and tear" of property you use in your trade or business. Determining the most favorable method of depreciating business property is an important part of tax planning. Here are three depreciation rules to remember as you begin a year-end review of your asset acquisitions. • Proof of purchase. To protect your depreciation deduction, you must establish the asset's depreciable basis by showing the cost, useful life or recovery period, and previously allowable depreciation. • Electing to expense. You may elect to treat the cost of certain assets used in your active trade or business as a current expense in the year the asset is placed in service. One way to do this is Section 179 expensing. For 2015, the Section 179 expensing deduction is $25,000, with a spending cap of $200,000. The cap is the maximum you can spend on eligible assets before your Section 179 deduction is reduced. When deciding whether to elect Section 179 expensing, be aware of the "predominant use requirement." This rule will affect you if you use assets for both business and other purposes. In that case, you can claim Section 179 on the business portion only if more than 50% of the use is for business purposes. Note: As in the past, Congress may reinstate a more generous Section 179 deduction before the end of the year. We'll keep you updated. • Extra requirements for "listed property." Listed property includes vehicles; certain entertainment, recreation, or amusement property; and computers and related equipment not used at your regular place of business. To prove the business use of these assets, you need to maintain additional substantiation that establishes the amount, time, place, and business purpose. Typically, this "substantiation" takes the form of written logs detailing your use of the asset. If you purchased business assets during 2015, or are contemplating making a purchase before year-end, please give us a call. We're here to help you get the most tax savings possible. As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

Ten forty plus bookkeeping houston

2015 is almost over time to start planning

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Year End Planing Tax time is approaching and it's time to start planning for taxes that will be paid next year. Businesses and individuals are gathering receipts, completing reports, and overall gearing up for the mayhem that is tax season. The goal is to pay in as little tax as possible, however, this can seem difficult to do. The primary way to do this is to make changes at year-end that will have an effect on lowering adjusted gross income. Since many of these strategies can take time to implement, procrastination is your enemy. The earlier you get on board with tax planning strategies, the easier the process becomes. Get started with these 6 smart year-end tax planning tips, so tax season can go much more smoothly for you or your business. 1. Make Adjustments to Your Tax Withholding If you are employed, you have the option every year to choose how much money you want withheld from your paycheck to go towards your taxes. If you have too much withheld from your check, not only could you have more financial difficulties throughout the year with lower paychecks, you are also providing the government with a tax free loan. If you have too little withheld from your paycheck, you stand the chance of owing a significant amount of tax to the government. Most people attempt to go middle-of-the-road where withholding is concerned. You may still have the opportunity to make adjustments to your withholding, even though it is close to the end of the year. It is preferable that your actual withholding get as close to your tax liability as possible. Review your pay stubs or income reports and determine how much has been withheld thus far. Calculate your income, and use this information to determine what your estimated tax liability will be. If you fall short, increase your withholdings for the remainder of the year. If you exceed your tax liability, reduce your withholdings to help even things out. Since doing so can have a significant impact on your paychecks for the rest of the year, doing this earlier rather than later will give you more pay periods to help buffer these changes. 2. Make a Holiday Donation to Charity Do you itemize your deductions? If so, making a significant donation to a charity of your choice may be a great way to adjust your tax liability for the year. Evaluate your income to determine if you are able make a monetary donation to a charity, and if so, in what amount. You can also look around your home for big-ticket items that you no longer use and could potentially be donated to a charity like the American Red Cross or Goodwill. An old sofa that you no longer use or electronics that you have replaced with newer versions could be donated and provide you with an ample tax write-off opportunity. Just remember to get receipts for everything you donate, monetary or otherwise, and not just those donations that exceed $250. Any charitable donation that you have made this year can be included in your itemized deductions and can help decrease your tax liability for the entire year. 3. Expedite Your Deductions If you have tax bills that are due at the beginning of next year, consider making payments towards them or paying them off at the end of this year instead. For example, if you have property tax bills that are due in January, or you make estimated tax payments towards your local or state taxes at the beginning of the year, send in those payments now in order to accelerate your deductions. Another way you might expedite your deductions is to purchase items that you need for work, especially if you are an entrepreneur. Have you been waiting to purchase a new computer system or a new work vehicle? Buy these items now and use them as deductions for this year's taxes instead of next. 4. Contribute Towards Your Retirement One of the smartest tax planning strategies is to make large contributions to your tax-advantaged retirement accounts, such as an IRA or 401(k). In addition to helping you reach your overall retirement goal more quickly, contributing to tax-advantaged retirement accounts reduces your taxable income for the year. Additionally, your contributions will be able to grow on a tax-deferred basis. Evaluate your finances to determine how much you might be able to contribute to your retirement accounts between now and the end of the year, and keep diligent records of what you contributed to and when. 5. Maximize Your Gift Taxes You have the ability to give $14,000 per year, per beneficiary yourself, or if you are married, you and your spouse can both give $14,000, totaling $28,000 per year, per beneficiary. These gifts reduce your taxable income and are gift tax free, making this a powerful end-of-year tax planning strategy. 6. Buying Back Stocks That You Sold at a Loss If you sold stocks at a loss earlier in the year planning to utilize the loss as tax write off you need to be careful not to buy them back too quickly. Doing so could invoke the “wash sale” rules wiping out your expected loss. The “wash sale” rules prevent taxpayers from selling stocks in their portfolio to generate losses and then repurchase the stock. If you do, the basis is adjusted and the loss is not allowed. To avoid the wash sale rules, you cannot buy the stock back within a 61-day period beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the date of the sale. The Importance of Planning Ahead Tax planning can seem overwhelming, especially if you're looking at owing a lot of tax for next year. However, with these smart end-of-year tax planning strategies, you can minimize your taxable income, accelerate your deductions, and get involved in worthwhile things like starting or maintaining your retirement accounts and donating to charity. If you have questions about your tax liability or how you can decrease your adjusted gross income for the year, don't hesitate to discuss your unique situation with a tax planning professional. A professional can evaluate where you stand and what the possibilities are for you, individually, and can help you take tax planning steps that will be beneficial to you in the year to come. As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

Record Keeping

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tip Record Keeping When it comes to your taxes, good records are the best protection you can have if the government decides to audit your returns. But just as important as your effective recordkeeping are the measures you take to make certain that your records are kept safe. While it may cause a chuckle to picture a mythical taxpayer confessing to an IRS auditor that tax records were destroyed by the family pet, it probably wouldn’t be nearly as funny to give a similar response in a real audit of your own. The Advantage of Good Records: • A good set of records can help you cut your taxes. Detailed records reduce the chance that you will overlook deductible expenses when your tax return is prepared. After all, how many people remember the exact details of their expenditures months after the fact? Nothing is more frustrating than knowing you incurred deductions yet not being able to prove them. The ultimate consequence of poor recordkeeping is enforced payment of more tax than the law requires. • Explicit records provide the best assurance of a favorable outcome if you are audited. Oral testimony alone is seldom enough to prove the deductions you claim on your tax return—auditors want to see a paper trail of receipts, logs, etc. • When you’re missing adequate backup records, it can cost a great deal in time and effort to get duplicates. The unfortunate fact is that many businesses balk at hunting down receipts for past sales (you can’t really blame them since it raises their expenses). Your ongoing recordkeeping effort is your best remedy to counteract this problem. • Good records help others who might have to handle your financial affairs in an emergency — e.g., an illness. The better your records are, the easier it could be for someone else to temporarily “step into your shoes” to handle your monetary transactions. Tracking Income How you track your income is largely dependent on the type of income you are receiving. For certain kinds of income, you will receive statements from the income payers to tell you the amount. These statements are called “information returns” by the IRS. Examples include: Type of Income Type of Information Return Wages Pensions/IRAs Interest Dividends Stock Sales Real Property Sales Miscellaneous Income (e.g., rent, prizes, non-employee payments) Gambling Winnings Unemployment Comp Tax Refund Canceled Debts Form W-2 Form 1099-R Form 1099-INT Form 1099-DIV Form 1099-B Form 1099-S Form 1099-MISC Form W-2G Form 1099-G Form 1099-G Forms 1099-A, -C When you receive an information return, you should compare it to your own records, and if there is a discrepancy in the amount of income reported, you should determine whether your records or the payer’s are in error. If you find your records are accurate, contact the payer to issue a corrected information return or explain to you how they determined the amount they have reported. Be sure to keep information returns you receive in a safe place so that the amounts reported on them can be shown accurately on your tax return. Payers must submit the data to the government as well as to you. The IRS will compare what they have received with your return to see that your reporting and their data match. If there’s a mismatch, you will get a letter asking ‘Why?’ or assessing additional tax. Since the IRS may misinterpret return reporting, check carefully before paying any extra tax they try to assess! Income from Other Sources Income not traceable to information returns also needs to be reported on your tax return. It could include such items as: • Receipts from a self-employed business, • Rental income, • Interest income on a personal loan. Taxpayers who receive income from sources like these have a more complicated job in tracking it. It’s recommended that you record it in a separate ledger or through a computer spreadsheet program. In addition, you may want to deposit the funds in a separate bank account earmarked for that income alone. Getting Organized No one method is the only way to maintain your records. What’s important is to develop a system that is the most convenient and comprehensive for your situation, and then to stick to it. The IRS estimates that a non-business taxpayer who files a 1040 return will spend about eight hours doing recordkeeping. For a more complex return, such as one with rental properties or self-employment income, add at least another five hours. The following suggestions may help you organize your records, and also reduce the time you spend doing so. Decide first if you will maintain your records manually or by computer. • Bookkeeping software - Some taxpayers, even though they aren’t operating a business, choose computerized “bookkeeping” software that uses their check register data to track their income and expenses by category. Monthly and yearly reports conveniently recap the income and expenses, especially if the accounts (income and expense categories) are consistent with how the information is reported for tax purposes. • Spreadsheet method - In lieu of purchasing bookkeeping software, a spreadsheet file (for example, in Excel) may be set up where you record your yearly income and expenses by tax return category. If you normally itemize your deductions, set up a separate sheet for each of the major deduction categories – medical, taxes, contributions, etc. – as found on Schedule A . For medical expenses, for example, record each expense by provider’s name, type, date, amount paid, and payment method. Note medically related auto mileage at the same time. At year’s end, sort income and expenses of the same type together to get a yearly total. For income items, a cross-check from the spreadsheet to the 1099 forms for all bank interest or other income sources is an accurate way to verify that all needed 1099s have been received. If your tax advisor gives you a “tax organizer” to help you prepare for your appointment, you can quickly transfer the totals from your spreadsheet to the organizer, or, instead, you can provide your advisor with a copy of the spreadsheet. • Manual lists - If you keep track of your records manually, the same type of system applies as for a spreadsheet, except you’ll set up a paper sheet for each category of income and expense that you normally have on your tax return. Write each payment you receive or expense you incur on the applicable list. At the end of the year, each list is ready to be totaled. If you make your entries no less frequently than monthly, you’ll find that the overall time you spend will be less, and the accuracy of the information will be greater, than if you wait until just before your tax appointment to put together the year’s lists. • Methods for retaining source documents - In addition to your lists of income and expenses, the receipts, canceled checks, credit card slips, income statements, etc., that back up the amounts need to be retained in case your tax return is audited. This is true whether you computerize or manually summarize your data. Choose from the following methods the one, or combination of methods, that suits you best: • Envelopes – Using several blank envelopes, write the tax year and names of the income and expense categories that correspond to your spreadsheet or manual list of accounts. After you’ve recorded an item on your list, insert the corresponding receipt, canceled check, etc., into the envelope. By storing the source documents by category throughout the year, instead of throwing all of them in a box to get to “later,” you’ll not only save time but considerable frustration if you must search for a particular item. There is also less likelihood that a receipt or other document will be lost. Store the envelopes in a larger master envelope or box. • File folders – Some taxpayers prefer to use file folders labeled by income and expense categories. These work well for manually maintained records, as the lists can go right in the folders along with the substantiating receipts, checks, credit card slips, etc. Small-sized receipts should be taped or stapled to a letter-sized sheet of paper to prevent them from falling out of the folder. • Binders – A binder, set up with dividers labeled by income and expense categories, is also useful for keeping your lists and paper records. Three-hole plastic sheet protectors are convenient for keeping source documents together by category in the binder(s). Binders are especially useful for filing monthly or quarterly brokerage or bank account statements. Start now – If you aren’t already in the habit of keeping your records organized and maintaining them contemporaneously, start now! The effort will be worth it in time saved when you prepare for your next tax return preparation appointment. And most likely your records will be more accurate than they’ve ever been before. Knowing When to Discard Records Taxpayers often question how long records must be kept and how long the IRS has to audit a return after it is filed. ANSWER: It all depends on the circumstances! In many cases, the federal statute of limitations can be used to help you determine how long to keep records. With certain exceptions, the statute for assessing additional tax is three years from the return due date or the date the return was filed, whichever is later. However, the statute of limitations for many states is one year longer than the federal. The reason for this is that the IRS provides state taxing authorities with federal audit results. The extra time on the state statute gives states adequate time to assess tax based on any federal tax adjustments. In addition to lengthened state statutes clouding the recordkeeping issue, the federal three-year rule has a number of exceptions: • The assessment period is extended to six years instead of three if a taxpayer omits from gross income an amount that is more than 25 percent of the income reported on a tax return. • The IRS can assess additional tax with no time limit if a taxpayer: (a) doesn’t file a return; (b) files a false or fraudulent return in order to evade tax, or (c) deliberately tries to evade tax in any other manner. • The IRS gets an unlimited time to assess additional tax when a taxpayer files an unsigned return. If no exception applies to you, for Federal purposes, you can probably discard most of your tax records that are more than three years old; add a year or so to that if you live in a state with a longer statute. Examples: Sue filed her 2012 tax return before the due date of April 15, 2013. She will be able to safely dispose of most of her records after April 15, 2016. On the other hand, Don filed his 2012 return on June 2, 2013. He needs to keep his records at least until June 2, 2016. In both cases, the taxpayers may opt to keep their records a year or two longer if their states have a statute of limitations longer than three years. Note: If a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday the due date becomes the next business day. Important note: Even if you discard backup records, never throw away your file copy of any tax return (including W- 2 s ). Often, the return itself provides data that can be used in future return calculations or to prove amounts related to property transactions, social security benefits, etc. Records to Keep Longer than Three Years You should keep certain records for longer than three years. These records include: • Stock acquisition data. If you own stock in a corporation, keep the purchase records for at least four years after the year you sell the stock. This data will be needed in order to prove the amount of profit (or loss) you had on the sale. • Stock and mutual fund statements where you reinvest dividends. Many taxpayers use the dividends they receive from a stock or mutual fund to buy more shares of the same stock or fund. The reinvested amounts add to basis in the property and reduce gain when it is finally sold. Keep statements at least four years after final sale. • Tangible property purchase and improvement records. Keep records of home, investment, rental property, or business property acquisitions AND related capital improvements for at least four years after the underlying property is sold. As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

W-4 Employee Withholding Certificate

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate Starting a new job can be exciting, but it can also be stressful. One of the documents you’re likely to see on your first day of work is IRS Form W-4, which tells your employer how much income tax to withhold from your paycheck so you don’t owe a bundle when you file your tax return. The form has complicated instructions in small print, several worksheets, and can be intimidating at first glance. We trying to provide some basic information about what Form W-4 is, how to fill it out properly, and what is done with the information when the form is handed in to the employer. Purpose of Form W-4 Law requires every new employee to fill out Form W-4 so the employer can withhold the proper amount of federal income tax from the employee’s pay. Form W-4 is not filed with the IRS, but is kept in the employee file. A new Form W-4 may be filed with the employer if the employee’s situation changes. It is recommended that employees complete a new W-4 once a year. The employer may also use the information from IRS Form W-4 to determine how much to withhold for state income tax. Note that withholding for Social Security and Medicare tax (FICA) is a set percentage and is not affected by Form W-4. How Withholding is Computed When preparing payroll, the employer refers to an IRS chart that states an amount to withhold based on whether the employee is single or married, how many personal allowances are indicated, and how much the employee earned during the pay period. The amounts on the withholding chart are an attempt to withhold the proper amount so the employee will have paid the tax liability through withholding when he or she files Form 1040 for the tax year. If tax liability on the return is more than the amount withheld, there will be a balance due on the tax return. If the underpayment is substantial, penalties may apply. If tax liability on the return is less than the amount withheld, the difference is refunded to the taxpayer. There is no penalty for having too much tax withheld. Keep in mind that big refunds are generally viewed as a bad tax planning strategy since they amount to giving an interest-free loan to the government and getting your own money back next year. However some people look at filing Single and zero and getting a big refund is a forced savings that if you received in your pay check you would spend the money on non necessary things. Single or Married The employee checks a box on Form W-4 stating whether he or she is single or married. An employee who is single will have tax withheld at a higher rate than an employee who is married. Note that there is also an option to check a box indicating, “Married, but withhold at higher single rate.” An employee may want a higher rate of withholding if he or she has a significant source of other taxable income, or if he or she works more than one job. Personal Allowances Personal allowances reported on Form W-4 take into consideration personal exemptions that will be reported on the employee’s tax return. Personal allowances can also apply for other items that can reduce tax such as a non-working spouse, head of household filing status, expected credits on the tax return, itemized deductions, or other tax-reduction items. The higher the number of personal exemptions on Form W-4, the lower the withholding will be. The worksheets that accompany Form W-4 will help the employee determine the proper number of personal exemptions to report. Example #1: Melissa earned $52,000 as an employee in 2014. She is single and uses the standard deduction on her tax return. Melissa’s Form W-4 shows “Single – 1.” Melissa’s federal tax liability on Form 1040 is $6,325. Her federal withholding based on “Single – 1” is $7,280. Melissa is due a refund of $955 when she files her tax return. Example #2: Assume the same facts as Example #1, except Melissa claimed “Single – 3” on Form W-4 so her take-home pay would be higher. Instead of having $7,280 withheld, at “Single – 3” she had only $5,408 withheld. Melissa has a balance due of $917 on her tax return. Danger Zones Filling out Form W-4 is fairly straight-forward for a single taxpayer with one job claiming the standard deduction on his or her tax return. “Single-1” will cover the taxes and generally result in a small refund. Likewise with a married couple where only one spouse works, “Married – 2” will generally cover the tax bill. However, the withholding tables do not account for every situation. Many but not all of the following items can be taken into consideration on the worksheets on Form W-4. If there are significant additional sources of income, or other factors that create a more complicated tax situation, it is best to consult your tax advisor for assistance in what to claim for withholding. Be especially careful filling out Form W-4 with: • Both spouses working. • Working more than one job. • Additional non-wage income, especially self-employ-ment income. • High-income earners subject to alternative minimum tax, net investment income tax, or additional Medicare tax. • Married filing separately filing status. • Dependents earning wages. See IRS Publication 505, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information, for more information about withholding and filling out Form W-4 or as always feel free to give us a call. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

Taxpayers Who Receive an IRS NOTICE

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services, Inc 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Taxpayers Who Receive an IRS NOTICE Receiving a notice from the Internal Revenue Service is usually no cause for alarm. Every year the IRS sends millions of letters and notices to taxpayers. In the event one shows up in the mailbox, here are ten things you should know. 1) Don’t panic. Many of these letters can be dealt with very simply. 2) Don’t ignore it. Most of these letters have a “reply by” date. Inaction can lead to additional interest and penalties or more aggressive action from the IRS. 3) Call your tax professional. Your tax professional is available to help you, is familiar with your situation, and has experience dealing with the IRS. Utilize his or her expertise. He or she will generally want to see a copy of the letter to determine the next course of action. Some letters can be resolved simply by having you contact the IRS directly. Other, more complicated issues may require you to sign Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, to allow your tax professional to deal with the IRS on your behalf. 4) There are a number of reasons the IRS sends notices to taxpayers. The notice may request payment of taxes, notify you of a change to your account, or request additional information. The notice you receive normally covers a very specific issue about your account. 5) Each letter and notice offers specific instructions on what you need to do to satisfy the inquiry. 6) If you receive a notice about a correction to your tax return, you should review the correspondence and compare it with the information on your return. 7) If you agree with the correction to your account, usually no reply is necessary unless a payment is due. 8) If you do not agree with the correction the IRS made, it is important that you respond as requested. Respond to information you wish the IRS to consider, along with the bottom tear-off portion of the notice. Mail the information to the IRS address shown in the lower left corner of the notice. Allow at least 30 days for a response from the IRS. Most correspondence can be handled without calling or visiting an IRS office. 9) However, if you have questions, we recommend you call us or another tax professional to deal with the IRS for you Keep copies of any correspondence with your tax records. As with any tax issue, contact your tax professional to help you navigate your own unique situation. Avoid Future Problems You can minimize the likelihood of encountering future problems with the IRS by: • Keeping accurate and complete records, • Waiting to file your tax return until you receive all your income statements, • Checking the records you receive from your employer, mortgage company, bank, or other sources of income (W-2s, 1098s, 1099s, etc.) to make sure they are accurate, • Including all your income on your tax return, • Following the instructions on how to report income, expenses, and deductions, and Consider filing your taxes electronically. Filing online can help you avoid mistakes and find credits and deductions that you may qualify for. Find a tax preparer whom you trust to prepare and e-file your return. An experienced tax preparer who is familiar with your personal situation is in a position to help you file a complete and accurate return. In addition, he or she will be able to advise you on the best course of action for responding to a notice should you receive one. Professional and Courteous Service If you believe that an IRS employee has not treated you in a professional, fair, and courteous manner, you should tell that employee’s supervisor. If the supervisor’s response is not satisfactory, you should write to the IRS director for your area or the center where you file your return. Representation You may either represent yourself or, with proper written authorization, have someone else represent you in your place. Your representative must be a person allowed to practice before the IRS, such as an attorney, certified public accountant, or enrolled agent. If you are in an interview and ask to consult such a person, then in most cases, the IRS agent must stop and reschedule the interview. You can have someone accompany you to an interview. You may make sound recordings of any meetings with the IRS’ examination, appeal, or collection personnel, provided you tell them in writing 10 days before the meeting. Payment of Only the Correct Amount of Tax You are responsible for paying only the correct amount of tax due under the law—no more, no less. If you cannot pay all of your tax when it is due, you may be able to make monthly installment payments. Help With Unresolved Tax Problems The Taxpayer Advocate Service can help you if you have tried unsuccessfully to resolve a problem with the IRS. Your local Taxpayer Advocate can offer you special help if you have a significant hardship as a result of a tax problem. Appeals and Judicial Review If you disagree with the IRS about the amount of your tax liability or certain collection actions, you have the right to ask the Appeals Office to review your case. You may also ask a court to review your case. As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

Tenforty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services testimoniol

Repair or Improvement

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services,Inc 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tip When determining is a deduction is a current business expense or should be capitalized and depreciation care should be taken. Internal Revenue Code 162 generally allows a current deduction for the cost of repairs and maintenance incurred during the year. On the other had Internal Revenue Code 263 requires capitalization of amounts paid to acquire, produce, or improve tangible property. Since repairs and improvements have similar characteristics, it can be tricky to classify these expenditures. However, correct classification is important because the cost of repairs can generally be deducted in the year paid, while Improvements must be capitalized and the deduction taken over several years through depreciation. An improvement requiring capitalization occurs with an addition to or partial replacement of property that results in a betterment of the unit of property, restores the unit of property, or adapts the unit of property to a new use. The cost of an improvement must be capitalized and depreciated over a certain number of years as if the improvement were separate property. Repairs Improvements Costs that: • Keep the property in good operating condition. • Do not materially add value to the property. • Do not substantially prolong the property’s life. Costs that: • Improve or better the property. • Restore the property. • Adapt the property to new or different uses. Deductible as a current expense. Must be capitalized and depreciated.* Examples: • Repainting inside or out. • Fixing gutters. • Fixing damaged carpet. • Fixing leaks. • Plastering. • Replacing broken windows. • Servicing office equipment. • Cleaning and lubricating machinery. Examples: • Room additions. • Remodeling. • Landscaping. • New roof or flooring/carpeting. • Wiring upgrades. • New heating/cooling and plumbing systems. • Installing a security system. • Replacing gravel driveway with concrete. * The cost of an improvement is depreciated according to a prescribed class and recovery period of the underlying property. Most non-real estate assets such as computers or machinery are depreciated over five or seven years, with residential real estate depreciated over 27½ years, and nonresidential business property over 39 years. Business Use Requirement Repairs are deductible only on business-use or rental property. A homeowner with no business use of the home does not benefit when an expenditure is classified as a repair rather than an improvement. Repairs are nondeductible personal expenses, while an improvement increases the basis of the home and reduces any potential gain on the sale of the home. Recordkeeping Keep good records and ask contractors to provide an Itemized list showing repairs and separately stated improvements and costs. If repairs and improvements are All completed at the same time, the IRS may classify the Entire cost as improvement, even if some of the expenses were for repairs. Court Case: The taxpayer incurred expenses to add a lunch area, restrooms, and a loading and unloading ramp to his existing manufacturing plants. In addition, the interior of the plants were painted and ‘fixed-up.’ The taxpayer claimed a repairs and maintenance deduction for all of the expenses. The IRS disallowed the deduction, explaining that the additions/improvements were made under a proposal and were required to be capitalized. The court agreed with the IRS, noting that the additions of the lunch room, restrooms and ramps constitute nondeductible capital expenditures that were more than merely keeping the property in an ordinarily efficient operating condition. The additions and improvements not only increased the value of the plants, but also aided in adapting them to a different use. The painting of the facility would qualify as a deductible repair if those expenses were standing alone, however, when made as part of an entire capital investment in the improved property, as they were in this case, they must be treated as a capital expenditure. In addition, the court noted that it was not possible to determine from the evidence submitted what portion, if any, was attributable to deductible repairs. Without a segregation of expenses, the deduction cannot be allowed and all expenditures must be capitalized. (Rutter, T.C. Memo 1986-407, August 28, 1986) As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

We appreciate your referrals

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services, Inc 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Why We Appreciate Referrals We acquire many of our customers through referrals from satisfied clients. Beyond the benefit of being able to expand our business, there are other reasons why we appreciate referrals. When a client thinks enough of us to recommend our services to a family member, friend, or co-worker, we attain a higher quality clientele than those we acquire from more random marketing efforts. A personal recommendation can help jump start the business relationship, resulting in a more efficient, effective tax engagement. Please consider sharing our information with any individual who you believe might find our services useful. Benefits of Using a Paid Preparer With so many do-it-yourself tax programs available for sale, it’s a legitimate question to ask why you should hire a paid preparer when you can create and file a tax return on a home computer. Keep in mind that entering tax information into a computer program and making adjustments necessary to clear the program’s diagnostic error messages is no substitute for understanding tax law. The Internal Revenue Code and related Treasury Regulations contain over 10,000 pages of complicated provisions. Working with a tax professional who understands how the provisions affect your specific situation and how the rules interact can provide you with the best result on your tax return. Obtaining tax benefits is often a complex process involving properly executed and timely-filed elections. Simply entering amounts into an input program we save new clients more than the cost of our services compared to returns they have prepared themselves. Proper reporting and filing can also help keep you off the IRS radar. Other Benefits Include: • When your information is compiled and we’ve exam-ined and discussed your unique tax situation, we take care of preparing the forms and we file the returns electronically. • We will explain details of how items of income and expense affect your return, and will make recommendations on how to reduce your tax liability. • If you receive any communication from the IRS or state revenue department, we are available to assist you with resolution. • As professional tax preparers, we know the proper means of reporting income and deductions, the proper forms to use, and the proper entries to make. Using a paid preparer makes your return much more likely to be “accepted as filed,” meaning in most cases you will avoid the dreaded letter from the IRS triggered by a box that was not checked or a number entered on the wrong line. • We can discuss with you the tax effects of any chang-es in income anticipated for the coming year, to help eliminate the guesswork involved with figuring out what your tax situation will be in future years. • We can make recommendations for changing with-holding at work to help put you in the position you want to be in when it comes time to file next year’s return. Tax Issues Our clients frequently contact us for assistance in dealing with tax issues such as the following. • Pension or IRA distributions. • Significant change in income or deductions. • Job change. • Marriage. • Start-up or sale of business. • Purchase or sale of a home or other real estate. • Retirement. • Divorce or separation. • Self-employment or contract work. • Large charitable contributions. • Children in college. Confidentiality As professional tax preparers we are bound by rules of ethics to keep all of your information confidential. We take great care in handling your information, including names, addresses, birth dates, and Social Security numbers, and items of income and deductions. We have safeguards in place to protect the security of your physical documents as well as security of electronic information used to process and file your returns with the IRS and state revenue agencies. We adhere to strict rules regarding any disclosure or use of your personal information. We will not disclose or use any of your personal information obtained during the tax engagement for purposes other than preparation and filing of your returns unless we obtain specific written authorization from you in advance. Checklist of Common Errors When Preparing Your Tax Return The IRS created the following checklist based on common filing errors: • Did you choose the correct filing status? • Did you check the appropriate exemption boxes for your personal, spousal and dependency exemptions? • Did you enter the total number of exemptions? • Did you enter the names and Social Security numbers for everyone listed on your return exactly as those names and numbers appear on each person’s Social Security card? If there have been any name changes, be sure to contact the Social Security Administration at ssa.gov or call them at 800-772-1213. • Did you enter your income on the correct lines? • Did you calculate deductions and credits correctly, put them on the right lines and attached the necessary forms or schedules? • Did you figure the tax correctly? • Did you sign and date the return? • If you filed a paper return, did you use the correct mailing address from your tax form instructions? • If you are due a refund and requested direct deposit, did you double-check your routing and account numbers for your financial institution? • Did you make a copy of the signed return and all schedules for your own records? As always please call us if you have any questions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

BE CAREFUL WITH HOBBY LOSS RULES

Ten Forty + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services, Inc 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 TAX TIPS Hobby or Business When you are a W-2 Wage earning opening a business could help you develop additional adductions while building a business that is 100% your own. However, you have to be careful about about Hobby / Loss Rules. If an individual, partnership, estate, trust, or an S corporation engages in an activity that is not conducted as a for-profit business, deductions are limited to the amount of income from the activity. This rule does not apply to corporations, other than S corporations. If an activity is considered a for-profit business, deductions can exceed income, allowing the resulting loss to offset other income. Determination In determining whether an activity is a hobby or a business, all facts and circumstances are taken into account. No one factor can make the determination. The following list is not intended to be all inclusive. 1) Manner in which the taxpayer carries on the activity. Factors that may indicate a business include maintaining complete and accurate books and records, carrying on the activity substantially similar to other profitable activities of the same nature, and changing operating methods and techniques to improve profitability. 2) The expertise of the taxpayer or his or her advisors. Factors that may indicate a business include knowledge of the taxpayer, or consultation with those who are knowledgeable about a particular industry, then using that knowledge to try and make a profit. 3) The time and effort expended by the taxpayer in carrying on the activity. Factors that may indicate a business include spending a lot of time and effort in the activity, particularly if the activity does not have substantial personal or recreational aspects. Taking time away from another occupation may also indicate a profit motive. Spending little time will not be counted against the taxpayer if qualified employees are hired to carry on the activity. 4) Expectation that assets used in the activity may appreciate in value. Even if no profit is made from operations, if the value of land or other assets in the activity appreciate so that an overall profit is made from a sale, the activity may be considered a business. 5) The success of the taxpayer in carrying on other similar or dissimilar activities. If the taxpayer was successful in the past turning an unprofitable venture into a profitable venture, the current activity may be a business even if it has not yet made a profit. 6) The taxpayer’s history of income or losses with respect to the activity. Early losses during start-up will not count against the taxpayer, but continued losses after the customary start-up stage that are not explainable may indicate a hobby. Losses sustained due to unforeseen circumstances, such as casualty or thefts beyond the taxpayer’s control, will not count against the taxpayer. Any series of profitable years are strong evidence the activity is a business. 7) The amount of occasional profits, if any, which are earned. The amount of profits in relation to the amount of losses, and in relation to the taxpayer’s investment in the activity, may indicate intent. An occasional small profit one year, mixed with large losses in other years or large taxpayer investments, may indicate the activity is a hobby. Substantial occasional profits mixed with frequent small losses or investment may indicate a business. An opportunity to earn substantial ultimate profits in a highly speculative venture also indicates a profit motive. 8) The financial status of the taxpayer. If the taxpayer does not have substantial income or capital from other sources, the taxpayer may have a profit motive. If the taxpayer has substantial income from other sources, and losses from the activity in question generate substantial tax benefits, the taxpayer may not have a profit motive. 9) Elements of personal pleasure or recreation. Where there are recreational or personal elements involved with the activity, a lack of profits may indicate a hobby. On the other hand, a lack of any appeal in the activity other than possible profits indicates a profit motive. It is not necessary that the sole purpose for engaging in an activity is to make a profit. The availability of other investments that might produce a higher rate of return will not count against the taxpayer. The fact that a taxpayer derives personal pleasure in the activity is not sufficient in itself to classify the activity as a hobby if other factors indicate the activity is a business. Presumption of Profit IRS rules state that if an activity is profitable in three of the last five tax years, including the current year, the presumption is it is carried on for profit, and the hobby loss limitations do not apply. If the activity consists primarily of breeding, training, showing, or racing horses, the IRS will presume it is carried on for profit if a profit is produced in at least two of the last seven tax years, including the current year. Reporting Hobby Income and Expenses Occasional profits from hobby activities are not subject to self-employment tax, and losses from hobby activities cannot be used to offset other income. Hobby Income Gross income for the purposes of the hobby loss rules equals gross receipts minus the cost of goods sold deduction. Hobby income may include capital gain, rent, and other income. Hobby Expenses Expenses related to hobby income are reported as itemized deductions on Schedule A. Activities Not Engaged in for Profit IRS examiners consider the following in their analysis to determine whether or not an activity is engaged in for profit. • Are there activities with large expenses and little or no income? • Are losses offsetting other income on the tax return? • Does the activity result in a large tax benefit to the taxpayer? • Does the history of the activity show that it is generat-ing any profit in any years? Examples of possible hobby activities include: – Airplane Charter – Games – Artists – Gardening – Auto Racing – Horse Breeding – Boating – Horse Racing – Bowling – Jewelry Making – Collecting – Knitting – Cooking – Motocross Racing 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

EARLY RETIREMENTS

Ten Forty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services, Inc 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 TAX TIP Early Retirement Distributions A taxpayer may choose, or be forced into choosing, early retirement. A retirement before age 59½ creates income challenges for the retiree. The retiree is not yet eligible to receive retirement benefits from Social Security. The retiree may or may not have a monthly pension to generate income. In many situations, the retiree will need to generate income from his or her assets. Often, the retiree has most of his or her assets in a retirement plan through a 401(k) plan at his or her employer or in an individual retirement arrangement (IRA). Withdrawals of earnings and pre-tax contributions are subject to ordinary income tax. In addition, taxpayers may be subject to the 10% early withdrawal penalty tax on distributions taken before the taxpayer reaches age 59½. Tax Summary • Withdrawals of earnings and pre-tax contributions from an IRA are subject to ordinary income tax. • Unless an exception applies, taxable withdrawals from an IRA prior to age 59½ are subject to a 10% early withdrawal penalty. • Taxpayers who take a series of substantially equal periodic payments from an IRA are not subject to the 10% additional tax. Tax Planning Strategy One strategy to generate income from retirement accounts for taxpayers under age 59½ is to take periodic distributions from those accounts. If structured properly, the 10% additional tax will not be assessed on the distributions. Taxpayers can take distributions from various retirement accounts such as 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, and IRAs. Substantially Equal Periodic Payments (SEPP) The Internal Revenue Code allows taxpayers to take withdrawals from retirement accounts without incurring the 10% penalty. To do so, very specific rules need to be followed. • The payments made to the taxpayer from the IRA are based on one of three calculation methods. • The payments must be made to the taxpayer at least annually during the payment years. Payments can be made more frequently, such as monthly, but the total for each year during the SEPP period must meet the payment calculation result for the year or years during the SEPP. • Payments must be made for a period of at least five years or until the taxpayer reaches age 59½, whichever is later. Example: Fred, age 52, establishes a SEPP from his IRA. He must continue to take withdrawals until he reaches age 59½. If he discontinues or changes his SEPP withdrawals at any time before he reaches age 59½, the current year withdrawal is subject to the additional 10% tax. In addition, the SEPP withdrawals for previous years are retroactively subject to the additional 10% tax. If, however, Fred begins SEPP withdrawals at age 58, he must continue the withdrawals to age 63 to comply with the 5-year withdrawal requirement. Calculation Method Payments are considered to be substantially equal periodic payments if they are made in accordance with one of the three calculation methods allowed. Early Retirement Distributions 1) Required minimum distribution method. Under this method, the account balance, the number from the life expectancy table, and the resulting annual payment amount is re-determined each year. 2) Fixed amortization method. The annual payment for each year is determined by amortizing in level amounts the account balance over a specified number of years determined using a life expectancy table and a chosen interest rate. Under this method, the annual payment is determined once for the first distribution year and the annual payment is the same in each succeeding year. 3) Fixed annuitization method. The annual payment for each year is determined by dividing the account balance by an annuity factor that is the present value of an annuity of $1 per year beginning at the taxpayer’s age and continuing for the life of the taxpayer. The annuity factor is derived from a mortality table and a chosen interest rate. Under this method, the annual payment is determined once for the first distribution year and the annual payment is the same amount in each succeeding year. One-Time Change to Required Amount A taxpayer who begins distributions in a year using either the amortization method or the annuitization method may in any subsequent year switch to the required minimum distribution method to determine the payment for the year of the switch and all subsequent years. The change in method will not be treated as a modification. Once a change is made, the required minimum distribution method must be followed in all subsequent years until the required number of years under the plan have been met. Changes to Account Balance No other contributions or distributions can be taken from the account being distributed from during the SEPP period. This includes nontaxable transfers in or out of the account. Example: Susan establishes a SEPP distribution from her IRA. Two years later, at age 53, she takes on a new job and wants to make contributions to an IRA with her newly earned income. Susan cannot contribute to the IRA that is making her SEPP distribution. Susan can establish a new, separate IRA account that she can make contributions to. Depletion of Account Value If, as a result of following an accepted method of determining SEPP withdrawals, a taxpayer’s IRA assets are exhausted, the taxpayer will not be subject to the additional income tax of 10%. The resulting cessation of payments will not be treated as a modification of the series of payments. Example: Dick established a SEPP distribution plan at age 54 that required him to take a distribution amount of $25,000 each year. He invested aggressively in his SEPP account and, due to distributions and declines in the stock market, the value of his account was down to $15,000 when Dick took his distribution at age 58. Because the account has been depleted, none of the amounts distributed through the SEPP plan in prior years is subject to the 10% additional tax. In addition, the $15,000 distribution at age 58 is not subject to 10% additional tax. Also, because the account has been depleted, he will face no tax consequences for not being able to take a distribution at age 59. Possible Risks • The rules for distributions using the Internal Revenue Code provide very little flexibility. Once the distribution begins, taxpayers need to exert extreme caution in making any changes to the distribution amount and frequency. • Taxpayers need to document the calculations used to determine the distribution, as well as any change in distribution. Tax courts have consistently assessed the 10% additional tax for taxpayers who could not substantiate the distributions were, in fact, based on SEPP calculations. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com Contact Us There are many events that occur during the year that can affect your tax situation. Preparation of your tax return involves summarizing transactions and events that occurred during the prior year. In most situations, treatment is firmly established at the time the transaction occurs. However, negative tax effects can be avoided by proper planning. Please contact us in advance if you have questions about the tax effects of a transaction or event, including the following: • Pension or IRA distributions. • Retirement. • Significant change in income or • Notice from IRS or other deductions. Revenue department. • Job change. • Divorce or separation. • Marriage. • Self-employment. • Attainment of age 59½ or 70½. • Charitable contributions • Sale or purchase of a business property in excess of $5,000. • Sale or purchase of a residence or other real estate.

When can you deduct your mileage

Ten Forty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services, Inc 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips When are Transportation expenses deductible? Home to regular job and job to home are never deductible. Home to Temporary Job or location are deductable if taxpayer has a main job at another location that same day. Temporary location to maid location deductible alway. Main to location to any location during the work day are deductible Getting called back to work if your on call are deductible. 2015 standard mileage rate .565 2016 Standar mileage rate .575 Most employees and self-employed taxpayers can use the summary above. Do not use this if the taxpayer’s home is the principal place of business. • Home. The place where a taxpayer resides. Transportation expenses between home and the main or regular place of work are personal commuting expenses. • Regular or main job. The principal place of business. If a taxpayer has more than one job, determine which one is the regular or main job. Consider the time spent at each, the activity at each, and the income earned at each. • Temporary work location. A place where the tax- payer’s work assignment is realistically expected to last, and does in fact last, one year or less. Unless the taxpayer has a regular place of business, only deduct transportation expenses to a temporary work location outside the metropolitan area. • Second job. If a taxpayer regularly works at two or more places in one day, whether or not for the same employer, deduct transportation expenses of getting from one work place to another. If the taxpayer does not go directly from a first job to a second job, only deduct transportation expenses of going directly from a first job to a second job. Do not deduct transportation costs between home and a second job on a day off from the main job. If you work from an office in your home, all work related mileage is deductible. It is very important that you keep a log indicating the date, the starting mileage, the ending mileage, where you went, and the purpose you were there. Substantiation for Travel, Meals, and Entertainment • Must substantiate deduction with evidence that includes: – The amount of the expense. – The time and place of the travel, entertainment, amusement, recreation, or use of the facility or property. – The business purpose of the expense. • The business relationship to the taxpayer of persons entertained, using the facility or property. • The per diem rate for meals can be used as a standard deduction in place of actual receipts. • The per diem rates for travel and meals can be used to substantiate an employer reimbursement in place of actual receipts. • An expense (other than lodging) less than $75 does not need a receipt or similar evidence to support a deduction. • Oral statements containing specific information in detail may be used to substantiate a deduction. • Electronic receipts and electronic expense reports satisfy the accountable plan substantiation rules. Please if you have any questions about mileage, don’t hesitate to call us. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com

Tax Planing for the investment credit

Ten Forty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Reduce the effect of the net investment income tax Year-end tax planning has traditionally included tips for managing ordinary income and capital gain tax. These long-established strategies are still effective — but now your planning also needs to include ways to manage your exposure to the net investment income tax. This 3.8% tax applies to the lower of your net investment income or the amount by which your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $200,000 when you're single or $250,000 when you file jointly. Example. Say you're filing jointly for 2015. Your net investment income for the year is $25,000 and your modified adjusted gross income is $300,000. The tax is $950 (3.8% of $25,000). Although the term "net investment income" covers most investment income — including capital gains, interest, royalties, dividends and passive income — other items such as distributions from IRAs and qualified plans and active business income are excluded. Be aware the excluded items may still increase your modified adjusted gross income and bring the net investment income tax into play. Here are planning opportunities to consider before the end of the year to reduce the effect of the net investment income tax. Harvest capital losses from securities transactions and use them to offset capital gains. Turn a passive activity into an active business by increasing the hours you spend participating in the activity. Invest in tax-free municipal bonds or municipal bond funds that won't increase your net investment income or your modified adjusted gross income. Sell real estate on the installment basis to spread out capital gain over several years or arrange a like-kind exchange to defer gain. Instead of selling appreciated property, donate it to charity and realize a charitable deduction — with no capital gain. When possible, defer taxable business income, including bonuses, to 2016 if you expect your income to be lower next year. Reviewing your options for reducing the net investment income tax is only one part of comprehensive planning. Give us a call. We'll help you factor the net investment income tax into your year-end decisions. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com

Hiring Seasonal Employees

Ten Forty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Are you hiring seasonal employees? Is hiring seasonal workers on your busy season to-do list? Here are tax rules to keep in mind. Affordable Care Act exception. When you employ 50 or more full-time workers, you're considered a "large employer" and are generally required to provide health insurance coverage or pay a penalty. However, the law provides an exception for seasonal workers, defined as those you employ for not more than 120 days during the prior calendar year. In general, your answer to two questions determines if you qualify for the exception. Did your workforce exceed 50 full-time employees for 120 days or fewer during the year? Are the employees in excess of 50 who were employed during that period seasonal workers? If both answers are yes, you're generally not considered a large employer. Employment taxes. Temporary workers are typically subject to the same employment tax rules as regular employees. You'll generally have to withhold social security and Medicare taxes, as well as federal income tax from wages. You'll also have to follow payroll tax deposit rules and employment return filing requirements. Employment tax returns. Special filing rules may apply when you only hire employees at a specific time of year, such as the holiday season. For each quarter that you pay wages, you can check the box for "seasonal employer" on "Form 941, Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return." By notifying the IRS of your seasonal status, you're not required to file returns for quarters when you have no wages or tax liability. State rules. In addition to reporting these employees as new hires and filing quarterly state payroll reports, you may have to request classification as a seasonal employer by completing a special form. In some states, you're required to reapply periodically. Qualifying as a seasonal employer can affect your staff's eligibility for unemployment benefits as well as your experience rating, which determines your tax rate. Please call us for more information about payroll tax rules, recordkeeping requirements, and documentation for seasonal employees. We're here to make sure your busy season goes smoothly. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com

Withdraw Excess IRA contributions

Ten Forty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services, Inc 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Withdraw excess IRA contributions, or face penalties Contributing to your retirement accounts is a good thing. But like many good things, too much can get you in trouble. That's the case when you make excess contributions to your IRA — because those excess contributions may be subject to a 6% excise tax penalty, even if the overage is due to a mistake. As you know, for 2015 you can contribute up to $5,500 in total to all of your traditional and Roth IRAs (or your taxable compensation for the year, if your compensation was less than the dollar limit). When you contribute more than the limit, the 6% penalty rules kick in. Here's how the rules work. Before tax filing deadline. If you withdraw the over-contribution and any related earnings before your tax return is due (including extensions), you won't have to pay the penalty. The withdrawal may be taxable to you if you took a deduction on your return. Earnings on the contribution while it was in your IRA are included as income on your tax return. You also have the option to recharacterize your excess contribution. This can be useful when, for example, you contribute to a Roth and later discover your income was over the limit for making the contribution. Note: You have until October 15, 2016, to correct an excess contribution made in 2015. After tax filing deadline. The tax applies each year while the excess contribution remains in your account. You can withdraw the excess to stop the penalty, or you can carry it forward to future years. Just be sure to reduce your regular contributions in those future years. Please call for a full explanation of these and other IRA rules. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com

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Wash Sales

Ten Forty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Understand the wash sale rule In the case of any loss claimed to have been sustained... Those are the first words of Internal Revenue Code Section 1091, which you may know as the wash sale rule. That particular sentence goes on for another 111 words. Yet you may sell a security and still not be sure whether the rule applies. That's true despite the information reporting form you receive from your broker at year-end.It might help to understand the reason behind the rule, which prevents you from claiming a current loss on certain investments you sell, then reacquire within a short time period. The idea is that in a wash sale, you've initiated a tax-saving transaction without changing your true economic position. Here's how wash sales work. When you buy a "substantially identical" security in the thirty-day window before you sell an investment and the thirty days after, any loss on the sale is postponed. Note that the rules include the day of the sale, so the window is 61 days. Note, too, that the term "substantially identical" is not defined. The general rule is that stocks or bonds in different companies — even those in the same industry — are not substantially identical. Wash sale rules apply to securities such as mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, and stock or option grants, including those you receive as part of your compensation. A wash sale can occur when you repurchase a security in your IRA, or when your spouse or a company you control does the buying. Wash sale rules merely defer capital losses. In most cases you'll eventually get the benefit, since the disallowed loss is added to the basis of the reacquired securities. The holding period of the original security is also carried over, creating planning opportunities. Want to know more about wash sales? Give us a call. Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com

IRS AUDITS - Cohan Rule

Ten Forty Plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips IRS AUDITS THE COHAN RULE What the IRS doesn't want you to know about expense documentation... It is very common in federal tax audits that the IRS will assert the position that an undocumented expense cannot be deducted. This is generally untrue (with exception to expenses covered by IRC section 274(d)). The IRS must allow reasonable and ordinary expenses, and must consider corroborating evidence as support for a deduction, per ‘the Cohan rule.' George M. Cohan, 1933 The case of Cohan v. Commissioner, settled in the 2nd Circuit US Court of Appeals on March 3, of 1930, is one of the top ten most cited tax cases in history. Among other matters of little long-term significance, the case addressed deductions for travel and entertainment expenses claimed by actor, songwriter, and playwright Mr. George M. Cohan (shown at right on the cover of Time magazine) between 1921 and 1923. The IRS (or the ‘Board’ as it is referred to in the Court’s opinion) attempted to deny all of Cohan’s travel and entertainment expenses due to insufficient accounting and documentation, even though it conceded he had traveled due to the income earned in various cities across the country. The Court disagreed with the Board’s conclusions, and expounded in the following remarks (written by Circuit Judge Learned Hand, at left, who has been quoted more by the Supreme Court than any other lower court judge): “Absolute certainty in such matters is usually impossible, and is not necessary; the Board should make as close an approximation as it can, bearing heavily if it chooses upon the taxpayer whose inexactitude is of his own making. But to allow nothing at all appears to us inconsistent with saying that something was spent.” “It is not fatal that the result will inevitably be speculative; many important decisions must be such. We think that the Board was in error as to this and must reconsider the evidence.” Since this case, there have been hundreds of spin-off cases where the Cohan rule has been applied to different circumstances. In one of the more recent cases, Doffin v. Commissioner, 1991, the tax court applied the Cohan rule to gambling loss deductions. In Doffin, the court considered statistical probability based on the gambler’s gaming style to estimate the deductible losses. Doffin has frequently been cited in other cases involving gambling loss deductions. The IRS will always interpret the application of tax law in a manner adverse to the taxpayer. The burden of defending your rights is yours, and if you choose, ours. If you receive a notice that your being audited, call us before you call the IRS. 1040 + Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com

Tax Scams

281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips What's New: Beware! Tax scams old and new The IRS has issued several warnings recently about scams both old and new. In the "old" category are unsolicited phone calls from con artists who claim to work at the IRS. According to a press release, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration has received reports of approximately 736,000 contacts since October 2013 and has become aware of approximately 4,550 victims from every state in the country who have collectively paid over $23 million as a result of this scam. Remember that the IRS will generally contact you first by regular postal mail — not by phone. The IRS will not demand that you pay any tax bill with a prepaid debit card or wire transfer, nor ask for your credit card number over the phone. A newer scam attempts to profit from the recent flooding in South Carolina. Fraudsters impersonate a charity and attempt to solicit donations as well as personal financial information. We urge you to hang up immediately on any suspicious telephone calls. You can report scam attempts to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the Federal Trade Commission, and the IRS. If you need assistance, we're here to help. If you have any questions, please call. Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com

Expiring Tax Benefits 2015

1040+ Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services 281-397-7777 Fax 281-397-7443 Tax Tips Will Your Favorite Tax Benefit Expire? More than 50 tax provisions that Congress routinely extends on a yearly basis expired at the end of 2014. The big problem is, each year they are extending the provisions later and later in the year, creating uncertainty for taxpayers on whether they can depend on these tax incentives or not. This makes tax planning unclear and leaves taxpayers wondering about their projected tax liability. For 2014, Congress waited almost to the end of the year to apply many of the provisions to the 2014 tax year. This was not only a problem for taxpayers but also for the IRS, which needed to adjust its forms and tax filing software at the last minute and actually had to delay the start of the tax season. Although there were serious discussions among some members of Congress in the spring related to passing an extender bill, those discussions withered away with the summer heat and little has been discussed recently about either making some of the provisions permanent or extending some or all of them for another year. So whether we will have extender legislation and, if we do, what will be included in that legislation is up in the air. So you may wish to review the expiring provisions to see how you will be affected if they are not extended. Each of these tax benefits expired at the end of 2014 and will not apply in 2015 unless Congress acts. Although more than 50 provisions are expiring, the list below only includes those that most likely will impact individuals and small businesses: Teachers' Above-the-Line Expense Deduction – Elementary and secondary teachers have been allowed to deduct up to $250 for classroom supplies without itemizing their deductions. As an alternative, these teachers can deduct these expenses as a charitable itemized deduction if they work for a public school or charitable organization and obtain the required documentation verifying the expenses. Principal Residence Acquisition Debt Forgiveness Exclusion - When a lender forgives debt, the amount of the debt forgiven is income to the borrower; and, although the law allows a taxpayer to exclude that debt relief income to the extent the taxpayer is insolvent, many taxpayers saddled with this problem were not insolvent. To alleviate that situation, Congress passed a law allowing debt relief income from the discharge of qualified principal residence acquisition debt to also be excluded from one's income. This exclusion does not apply to forgiven equity debt income. Excludable Commuter Transportation and Transit Passes – The tax law allows an employer to reimburse, tax-free, an employee for qualified parking, certain commuter transportation and transit passes. For several years now, the monthly maximum has been the same for all three ($250 in 2014). However, the nontaxable amount of commuter transportation and transit passes will drop to $130 in 2015 if the higher deduction is not extended. Mortgage Insurance Premiums – A temporary provision has been allowing lower-income taxpayers to deduct mortgage insurance premiums on contracts in connection with acquisition indebtedness on the taxpayer’s principal residence. General Sales Tax Deduction – This temporary provision allows taxpayers to take a deduction for state and local general sales and use taxes in lieu of a deduction for state and local income taxes. The big losers here will be residents of states that do not have a state income tax; these taxpayers will end up without either deduction if the provision is not extended. Qualified Conservation Contributions – This special rule for contributions of capital gain real property made for conservation purposes allowed qualified conservation contributions to be deducted up to 50% of a taxpayer’s AGI (100% for qualified farmers and ranchers). Without an extension, the allowable contribution will be limited to 30% of the taxpayer’s AGI. The portion of the contribution that exceeds the AGI limitation is carried over for up to five future years. Above-the-line Tuition Deduction – This deduction allows moderate and low-income taxpayers to take an above-the-line deduction (maximum $4,000) for qualified higher education tuition and related expenses. As an alternative, most taxpayers will qualify for the American Opportunity Tax Credit. IRA to Charity Contribution – A temporary provision allowed taxpayers age 70½ or older to directly transfer up to $100,000 from an IRA to a qualified charity without including the distribution in income, and it would also count towards their required minimum distribution. Although no charitable deduction is allowed, the benefit is the same as (or even better than) taking a taxable distribution and then getting a charitable deduction. It also keeps the donor’s AGI lower for purposes of all the AGI limitations built into the tax laws. It is especially helpful for those with Social Security income that becomes taxable because of an IRA distribution. As a hedge, in case this provision is extended, act as if it has been. Bonus Depreciation – For the past several years, as an incentive for businesses to invest in equipment and boost the economy, this provision allowed businesses to take bonus depreciation in the first year the property is placed in service. At one time it was 100%, but was 50% in 2014. The impact here, if the provision is not extended, is that equipment will have to be depreciated over the equipment’s useful life, generally 5 or 7 years. Where applicable, the Sec 179 expense deduction can be used, but it too is reduced drastically without extension (see below). Sec 179 Expense Deduction – As part of the economic recovery efforts of the last few years, Congress temporarily increased the Sec. 179 expensing limit from $25,000 per year to $500,000, which it has been since 2010. The property cost limit phaseout threshold was also increased to $2 million. Without extension the maximum deduction will return to $25,000 with a $200,000 cost limit phaseout. Qualified Real Property Sec 179 Deduction – For years 2010 through 2014, the definition of qualified property for purposes of the Sec 179 deduction was temporarily amended, with some limitations, to include: o Qualified leasehold improvement property, o Qualified restaurant property, and o Qualified retail improvement property Thus, without an extension, these properties will no longer qualify for the Sec 179 expense deduction. 15-year Life – A temporary provision allows 15-year straight-line cost recovery for qualified leasehold improvements, qualified restaurant buildings and improvements, and qualified retail improvements. Without an extension, these items will have to be depreciated over a 31-year life. Where Congress left off this summer was with a Senate bill that would extend the provisions for 2015 and 2016 and House legislation that would only extend a few of the provisions for 2015 only. With the partisan battles going on in Congress, the distraction of the upcoming elections and the holiday recesses just around the corner, what will happen to the extender legislation is anyone’s guess at this point. If history is an indicator, passage will come very late in the year. If you have any questions, please call. Joseph C Becker Ten Forty plus Quality Tax Preparation & Financial Services www.tenfortyplus.com 281-397-7777, Fax 281-397-7443 joeb@tenfortyplus.com