Charitable Giving Information

Charitable Giving Advisors

Author: John Leslie

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A DOW JONES NEWSWIRES COLUMN

A team of sleuths familiar with the myriad ways to hide big money should help the Internal Revenue Service do a better job of tracking down wealthy tax dodgers, according to former agency insiders.

Tax attorneys who know the inner workings of the IRS say a new SWAT team the agency is building will make a big difference. Announced last week, the unit is known as the Global High Wealth Industry group.

IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said the group is part of the agency’s Large and Mid-Sized Business operating division, though it will work with others throughout the agency. The idea is to centralize and focus agents who are experts in tax strategies of the rich, said Shulman.

Trusts, real-estate investments, royalty and licensing agreements, revenue-based or equity-sharing arrangements, private foundations, privately held companies and partnerships will all be of interest to the new unit. The rich frequently make sophisticated financial, business and investment arrangements with complicated legal structures and tax consequences. Some of these are simply mechanisms to avoid taxes, though others are legitimate devices to protect assets, promote charitable causes or defer income.

A single wealthy person may be involved in many of these arrangements, sometimes with other family members or business associates. So, the agency will take a unified look at the web of tax strategies associated with a single person.

The agency has rarely done audits of the wealthy and their businesses or investments in the same way that it coordinates audits of large companies, according to Pamela F. Olson, a partner in the tax group at law firm Skadden, Arps, and formerly assistant secretary for tax policy at the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

Now, audits of the rich and their businesses and investments will be in the hands of agents who have worked on coordinated corporate audits. Given these agents’ experience and sophistication, Olson said she expects them “to be more capable of auditing the complicated affairs of wealthy individuals than the agents who have traditionally audited small businesses and individuals.”

Olson also noted that the IRS recently has recruited a number of people from outside the agency with a sophisticated understanding of high-net-worth tax structures.

Not everyone is convinced of a big change. Mark E. Matthews, formerly an IRS deputy commissioner who oversaw the agency’s criminal investigation division, said the agency has paid attention to the high-net-worth taxpayers for many years.

During his tenure at the agency, for example, the IRS was trying to increase audits of these individuals because of an understanding that “that’s where the money is,” he said.

Still, with the growing emphasis on big-money, offshore cases, Matthews said he sees the new unit as “a development to watch.”

Cono R. Namorato, formerly chief of the criminal section and deputy assistant attorney general of criminal tax enforcement at the Justice Department and director of the IRS Office of Professional Responsibility, believes the new effort could help the IRS close a long-standing gap.

The IRS has been trying all along to identify wealthy people who evade taxes but it “hasn’t been done in a concentrated, focused manner,” he said.

The new unit is a “good idea, and could become an effective component of tax administration,” said Namorato, now a member in the Washington, D.C., office of law firm Caplin & Drysdale.

As for IRS monitoring of offshore accounts, he said: “Until recently, the agency has never been effective at it and its current enforcement effort seems to be primarily focused on only one foreign financial institution.” Swiss bank UBS AG (UBS, UBSN.VX) has been in the agency’s sights for allegedly encouraging U.S. taxpayers to open secret accounts abroad.

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Unit Should Help IRS Track Rich Tax Dodgers

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Tax Planning For Self Employed

Question: my employer doesn’t sponsor a 401k plan, how do i take tax advantage for my retirement?

I’m not self-employed, and other than IRA is there any other tax advantage pension plan for me?

Answer: If you mean by tax advantage, tax deferred, then a deferred variable annuity could be an option. Unlike a 401 (k) or an IRA, it does not have a limit. But find one with very low fees because most have high fees and have to be held at least 20 years for the earnings to outweigh the fees. But they do provide income for life after age 59.5.

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Program, FHA Mortgage, Fixed Interest Rate Loan

Tax Planning With Life Insurance

Question: Non-dependants in college -can I still put them on my health insurance plan?

I have two daughters who file their own taxes, which means i do not claim them as dependents. One lives at home (age 18 full time college and part time work) and the other has been away in another state for two years (age 21full time college and full time work) My question is on the new insurance plan – it states “dependents up to age 25 covered” Is there an advantage to making them dependent? What would I need to do to get them insurance coverage?

Answer: From Blue Cross Blue Shield:

My child will be going to college. Can I keep his or her coverage active?

Yes, provided your group health plan has our “family continuation” (FC) or “dependent continuation” (DC) rider. Be sure to check your benefit guide or ask at work to see if your group health plan includes one of these riders.

If your organization offers one of the riders, you must apply for continuation coverage before December 31st of the year your dependent turns 19. Let us know your dependent is attending college, and we will send a letter annually to verify that his or her enrollment continues. Between the ages of 19 and 25, dependents can remain covered if they are:

Unmarried
Related to you by blood, marriage or legal adoption
Full-time students for at least five months of the year or have a gross income of less than four times the personal exemption amounts as defined by the Internal Revenue Service’s current code

So it looks like your 18 year old can be covered but your 21 year old cannot. The family continuation rider is pretty common but you need to check with your own health insurance carrier to determine if their rules differ from those above.

Levin & Weiser, LLC - Basic Tax Planning With Life Insurance

Charitable Giving Europe

Question: Does socialism destroy altruism?

I dislike giving homeless people money (I do it anyway), because I feel that that’s why we pay for government welfare. If there was no welfare, hence lower taxes, I think I would give more money, however. I’ve also heard that while Europe’s governments give more foreign aid, our personal donations are significantly higher. So does government redistribution of wealth hurt personal charitable contributions? Would people as a whole give more or less if there was no welfare system in place?

Answer: In Socialism there would be no underclass who have to survive on charity, there would be no homelessness and no poverty. Socialism is by it's very nature altruistic as each receives according to their needs and gives according to their ability. Europe is not Socialist, but Social democratic - it has a welfare state and capitalism. The people who fall through the safety net are still reliant on charity and Yes Europeans continue to support them despite the welfare state. People charitable aid goes in different places some give to help the poor in their home nations, some abroad and some to research charities or animal welfare, the greater the state aid for the poor means less charity will be needed for them, but this is Good thing as it is the states responsibility to look after it's people. People would continue to give to the other charities

Volunteering in an Eastern European orphanage in Moldova

Salvation Army Car Donations California

Tag:Barefoot Kids,The National Center for Children in Poverty reports,new footwear,shoes and sneakers
From:http://www.buy-shoes-china.com/

  Barefoot Kids Foundation and Sammy’s Woodired Pizza Restaurant held a fundraiser dinner on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 from 5 to 9pm at two locations in Carlsbad and Scripps Ranch in San Diego County to benefit local Kids in Need.
  Sammy’s Restaurant will donate 20% of your dinner bill to the Barefoot Kids Foundation. Enjoy the food and help generate donations for a good cause. Go to www.barefootkids.org/Events.html to print the donation coupon that is required.
  Barefoot Kids Foundation and various childcare organizations have teamed-up to provide $25. Payless Footwear Shopping Cards to local Kids in Need.
  This Non-Profit organization exclusively provides new footwear to Kids in Need through their National Distribution Network currently in 27 cities throughout the USA. Childcare organizations such as Boys & Girls Clubs, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Salvation Army and Court Appointed Special Advocates provide Payless ShoeSource shopping cards to underprivileged Kids.
  The National Center for Children in Poverty reports that 17% or 12.7 Million of our children live below the poverty level. Footwear is often not on the list after the bills, food & medical care are paid. Many of America’s Kids are in desperate need of new footwear.
  Everyone can relate to the pride you get when you buy new footwear. Remember those early years when you were fitted for new shoes and sneakers, it was a great moment. You couldn’t wait to show them off. Share this thrill with a San Diego County Kid in Need.
  More Kids will participate in physical activity, and be healthier when wearing proper fitting footwear. They need to feel comfortable and need to fit in with their peers. The distraction of foot pain during class may affect the Kids ability to focus on learning. Studies published in Medical Journals conclude that proper footwear can improve your health. Kids in San Diego need your help.
  The online Free Donation program is now available by making online purchases with participating retailers. Each purchase you make generates a donation from their retail supporters. Go to www.barefootkids.org/Supporters and buy Airline, Hotel, Car Rental, Flowers, Electronics, Office Supplies, Event Tickets, Gifts and everything that EBay and Amazon.com offers. To make a Free Donation, just Point, Click and Buy.
  Barefoot Kids Foundation has different ways for you to donate. Individuals and Corporate donors can use Credit or Debit Cards on their secure PayPal website: www.barefootkids.org/Donate or send a check payable to: Barefoot Kids Foundation, 7040 Avenida Encinas, Suite 104, Carlsbad, California 92011-4653. Everyone can contribute and improve the life of San Diego’s Kids.

 

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Tag:Barefoot Kids,The National Center for Children in Poverty reports,new footwear,shoes and sneakers
From:http://www.buy-shoes-china.com/

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