tax

New Cigar Dinner Lets You Pay IRS Again!

Let's face it: even the best accountant in the world leaves the high net worth community paying more taxes than you would like. You drop all kinds of cash to the IRS every year, and it sucks. It really does. So, do you want to send that government body more?

That's the question Orlando banker Jeff Ramsey is asking.

He has organized a cigar dinner at Foxwoods in Connecticut to help rescue the house currently (and perhaps temporarily) owned by Jim Thorpe and his wife, Carol. Thorpe, once a pro golfer, won't be able to join you at the dinner ... because he's in prison after "losing a two-year legal battle with the IRS."

The dinner will include silent and traditional auctions to fill the financial void left in Thorpe's life by the IRS.

For $200, you can head up to Foxwoods on June 21, 2010, smoke a few cigars and dine with other civic-minded aficionados who are eager to give Thorpe a hand. For another $1,500, you can play in the ProAm golf course the next day.

Note: This is indirect IRS support. Your money will not go directly to the government agency.

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Tags: cigar, cigars, golf, irs, jail, Jim Thorpe, prison, tax, taxes

HAPPY Act Would Allow Pet Owners up to $3,500 Tax Deduction

by Lisa Palladino (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Pets

Even if you don't have pets, you've likely noticed how much more people are spending on their companion animals, and I don't just mean the vet, food, leashes, and litter. I'm talking about all the extras, such as carry bags, clothing, parties, day spas, etc. We've even mentioned on this site a number of expensive items you can purchase to indulge yourself, I mean, your pets. In fact, The American Pet Products Association reports that 2009 spending on pets hovers around $45.4 billion.

That said, no one is twisting pet owners' arms to buy all this stuff. But pet owners will be happy to know that they may get some relief from their day-to-day pet expenses in the form of the HAPPY [Humanity and Pets Partnered Through the Years] Act, a bill before Congress that would allow pet owners a tax deduction of up to $3,500 per person for pet care, including veterinary expenses. The bill, introduced by Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.), defines a pet as "a legally owned, domesticated, live animal," which covers dogs, cats and an assortment of other creatures.

When I mentioned the act to my family, I said, "I guess I'll need to prove I have pets, such as bringing a vet bill to the accountant." And they pointed out to me that years ago, no one had to prove they had children, and my parents even told me about some people they heard about who claimed to have children just for the deduction. (Now newborns leave the hospital as tax-paying citizens, complete with a Social Security number.)

USA Today has a good article on the HAPPY Act.

Tags: Congress, deduction, deductions, HAPPY Act, HappyAct, pet, pets, tax, taxes

Unique Tax Changes for the Rich in Connecticut

by Laura Malesich (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wealth

Add Connecticut to the list of states with major budget issues -- a club with a growing membership lately. Instead of just taxing the rich to help make ends meet, Governor M. Jodi Rell has decided to split hairs and tax the living rich while providing tax breaks to the rich who have passed on. Her budget plan includes a proposal to increase the personal income tax rate from 5% to 6.5% for those earning $500,000 or more per year and for joint filers earning $1 million or more. On the flip-side this plan would eliminate the inheritance tax which is rather appealing to those with ample funds to pass onto their heirs. This applies to estates worth $2 million or more. The Legislature will be bickering over the details -- what is your take on it?

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Tags: connecticut, governor jodi rell, GovernorJodiRell, jodi rell, JodiRell, tax, taxes, taxing the rich, TaxingTheRich

Boston's Schizo Tobacco Policies

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cigars

The City of Boston just can't seem to make up its mind. Back in December, officials were mulling an absolute smoking ban that likely would have led to the closure of several cigar-related businesses (such as Cigar Masters on Boylston St.). Now, the city sees tobacco as a way to bring some new cash into ol' Beantown's coffers – up to $13 million annually, actually. The tax increase would cover loose tobacco, small cigars and smokeless tobacco.

Having tapped the cigarette well dry with a recent tax increase from $1 a pack to $2.51 last July, the lawmakers have had to hunt elsewhere. Officials, with bizarre logic, believe that the cigarette tax has led price-sensitive teenagers to consume other forms of tobacco. Yet, there has been no report of an outbreak hoodlums smoking White Owls at Copley.

While this measure does not affect the luxury cigar market directly, the underlying thinking may signal future legislative ambition. Cigarettes, long the preferred tobacco product to tax, will eventually lose their value as a source of tax revenue, particularly if they are taxed out of existence. While the stated ambition of the proposed Massachusetts measure is to price tobacco out of the reach of minors, it also suggests that alternative sources of tobacco tax may be necessary.

We've seen this thinking in action with the SCHIP. The states may follow.

Worried about the future of your right to enjoy cigars? Join the Cigar Rights of America.

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Tags: boston, cigar, cigars, massachusetts, schip, smoking ban, smoking bans, SmokingBan, SmokingBans, tax, tax increase, tax increases, taxes, TaxIncrease, TaxIncreases

Hey, Bargain-Hunters: Cigar Prices already Hiked

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cigars

The SCHIP takes effect next week, and cigar smokers everywhere are dreading Wednesday. We've seen it coming, and I'm sure a few committed, deep-pocketed smokers have been stocking up to lock in discounts now. For the rest of us, though, there's no choice but to bite the bullet. And, in some places, that bullet is flying faster than in others.

Employees at the 16 Tocacco Depot stores, for example, have been rushing around to put new prices on various tobacco products, even though we still have nearly a week left. Fred Hoyland, who runs the show at that chain, says that some of the manufactures have raised their prices early – weeks in advance, even – in a play to beat the bargain hunters to the tax punch. Hoyland calls this "keep[ing] the market and inventory stable."

So, all your planning was probably for nothing. The house always wins ...

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Tags: cigar, cigarette, cigarette smoking, cigarettes, CigaretteSmoking, cigars, schip, smokers, tax, taxes, tobacco, tobacco industry, tobacco use, TobaccoIndustry, TobaccoUse

Illinois Says No To Luxury Tax

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

If you are in Illinois go ahead and splurge on that piece of bling. Jewelers of America has announced in a press release that the Illinois State Legislature's Revenue and Finance Committee has opted not to move forward with HB 451, a bill that would have slapped a five percent luxury tax on watch and jewelry purchases over $20,000. Jewelers of America had created an anti-luxury-tax letter and fundraising campaign to stop the bill fearing the impact the luxury tax could have on the industry. Now Jewelers of America is setting their sights on New York which also has a similar luxury tax proposal that calls for a percent tax on jewelry and watches over $20,000.

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Tags: illinois, luxury, luxury tax, LuxuryTax, tax

Miami Cigar Manufacturers Brace for SCHIP

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cigars

President Obama wants to create jobs, yet he isn't too worried about some that already exist. Miami's cigar manufacturers are watching April 1, 2009 with grave concern. The new State Children's Health Insurance Plan (SCHIP) takes effect on that date, resulting in a 900 percent tax increase on every cigar made in the United States – or imported here.

What's at stake?

For Miami, it's the many people responsible for rolling 75 percent of the 272 million cigars rolled in this country. Manufacturers and retailers alike are bracing themselves. A tax that takes the surcharge on hecho a mano sticks from 4 cents to 40.26 cents is cause for alarm.

So, as my sergeant used to say, "Smoke if you got 'em." At this rate, you may not have 'em much longer ... or at least not as many.

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Tags: barack, barack obama, barack-obama, BarackObama, cigar, cigars, cigarshop, florida, miami, obama, president obama, PresidentObama, schip, smoke, smoker, smokers, smoking, tax, taxes, tobacco, tobacco industry, TobaccoIndustry

Controversial 'Luxury Taxes' Passed in Sardinia

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

In what seems to be a strange turn of events in today's tourism-driven world, the island of Sardinia is making an attempt to preserve it's natural beauty (and make a little money) by limiting tourism. The President of Sardinia, Renato Soru, has been fighting for a long time to put "luxury taxes" into effect, and he's finally won. Aimed mostly at the super rich (after all, Sardinia has been nicknamed "the playground of the rich"), the steep set of taxes will affect mostly items like second homes, private yachts, aircraft, and hotel rooms. Opposition of the new taxes are afraid it will drive too much tourism and development out of Sardinia, not to mention possibly give the country a negative image.

As much as I hate taxes, I always have to support efforts to preserve natural beauty and prevent too much tourism -- even if they do make money doing it.

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Tags: luxury, luxury tax, luxury taxes, LuxuryTax, LuxuryTaxes, sardinia, tax, taxes, tourism

Emmy Swag and a Tax Reminder to Celebs

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events, Celebrity Shopping

With the Emmy Awards approaching in just a few weeks, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (ATAS) took the time to remind celebrities that their swag bags are considered taxable income and need to be reported as such when tax season rolls around. This is no small thing, either. The value of this year's Emmy gifts is estimated to be between $27,000 and $33,000. The ATAS even sent out letters to the presenters asking for compliance with the various tax codes with a waiver to sign, proving that they read it.

One of the reasons that the ATAS is being rather strict is that the IRS reportedly stands to collect over $1million from Oscar bags alone, which were worth over $100,000 each last year, and the ATAS doesn't want to be held responsible for any tax problems stemming from the Emmy Awards.

For a full list of the goodies that the Emmy presenters will be getting, click past the jump.

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Tags: awards, celebrities, emmy, emmy awards, emmy swag, emmys, event, swag, tax, tax evasion, taxes, win, winners