IRS Commish Seat Getting Hotter
If you listen to U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan, anyway.
Judicial Watch recently announced that Sullivan has threatened to hold IRS Commissioner Koskinen (and Justice Department attorneys!) in contempt of court after IRS failed to produce status reports and recently obtained emails of Lois Lerner.
Sullivan warned that failure to follow his July 1, 2015 order was indeed serious, and IRS and Justice Department’s excuses for not timely complying were “indefensible, ridiculous, and absurd.”
So there.
Warning he would tolerate no further shenanigans relative to disregard of his orders, Sullivan said, “I will haul into court the IRS Commissioner to hold him personally in contempt.”
On July 1, Sullivan ordered IRS to begin producing every week, the nearly 1,800 newly recovered Lerner emails responsive to Judicial Watch’s Freedom of Information (FOIA) request. IRS dragged their feet until July 15, and also failed to provide Judicial Watch a status report on the Lerner email production issues, as Sullivan had requested.
All of this in the context of Judicial Watch’s FOIA lawsuit seeking documents about Obama’s IRS’ targeting and harassment of Tea Party and other conservative groups.
Quoth Judicial Watch President, Tom Fitton, “The missing and-then-not missing Lois Lerner saga is a stark example of the Obama administration’s contempt for a federal court and the rule of law. That Obama administration officials would risk jail rather than disclose these Lerner documents shows that the IRS scandal has just gotten a whole lot worse.”
With the recent observance of the 25th anniversary of passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act comes IRS reminders of some tax benefits and services available to folks with disabilities.
- New program which created “Achieving a Better Life Experience” (ABLE) accounts, designed to allow folks with disabilities and their families to save for and pay for disability-related expenses. Contributions of up to $14,000 can be made to an ABLE account each year, and distributions are tax free if used to pay qualifying expenses.
- Inclusion within the umbrella of deductible medical expenses of items such as:
- Artificial limbs, contact lenses, eyeglasses and hearing aids
- Cost and repair of special telephone equipment used by the deaf
- Cost and maintenance of a wheelchair
- Cost and care of a guide dog or service animal
Check out IRS Publications 502 and 907 for further details.
CONSULT YOUR TAX ADVISOR – This article contains general information about various tax matters. You should consult your CPA regarding the implications to your own particular situation.
Jeff Quinn, the author of this article, is a shareholder in Ashley Quinn, CPAs and Consultants, Ltd., with offices in Incline Village and Reno. He can be reached at 831-7288, and welcomes comments at [email protected].
