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1
SUNSHINE STATE REPORTER
YOUR FLORIDA CHAPTER NEWSLETTER
December 2016
FY 2016/17 BOARD
OF DIRECTORS
JOHN RUDESTEDT
President
LAURA WOOD, EA
Vice President
BIBI RUDESTEDT, EA
Secretary
SANDRA TORRENCE, EA
Treasurer
Newsletter Editor
AMY BROSNAN , EA
Director
DORIS E. DIMON, EA
Director
KENNETH DOWDALL, EA
Director
Nominations Committee Chair
STUART J. MILLER
Director
BARBARA L. WEART
Director
CONTENTS
Advertising and a new business 1, 3
Ocala “mug” shots 2
Scholarship Fund Application (Free CPE—check it out) 4
Daytona Beach Workshop-January 5, 2017 (6 CPE) 5-8
To Tax or Not to Tax: Tuition issues 9-10
Christmas recipe 10
Odds ’n Ends 11
IT’S TIME FOR THE HOLIDAYS…..
WISHING YOU ALL A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS AND
PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR
JOHN, LAURA, BIBI, SANDI, AMY, DORIS, KEN, STUART,
BARBARA, OWEN, GREG AND HEMENDRA
ADVERTISING AND A NEW BUSINESS
By Amy Brosnan, EA
I’m still new to being a business owner and since there aren’t any
books on it and I’m probably a little naïve about the world of business, I’ll
share my experiences in advertising with you.
I’m from Generation X and Generation Y (yes, you can be in both ap-
parently). I love reading a newspaper and I love reading all the online news
as well. I can’t get enough information. My Facebook page follows all sorts
of news including the local news blogs. My newspaper has discontinued its
section of the local area news and just uses the national news feeds and re-
ally has nothing to do with my general area. So what do I do—how can I
advertise in my area? I could advertise in the newspaper, however reader-
Continued on page 3
2
FACES GO WITH NAMES—AT THE OCALA CONFERENCE—
NATIONAL & CHAPTER BOARD MEMBERS
FROM LEFT: STUART MILLER, BARBARA WEART, AMY BROSNAN, JOHN RUDESTEDT (PRES),
OUR GUEST, JEAN MILLERCHIP (NATIONAL VP), BIBI RUDESTEDT (SECY), LAURA WOOD (VP),
AND SANDRA TORRENCE, (TRES). NOT PRESENT: DORIS DIMON AND KEN DOWDALL
JEAN MILLERCHIP (NATIONAL VP), BIBI & JOHN RUDESTEDT
(SECRETARY & PRESIDENT OF YOUR CHAPTER) SHARE A
HAPPY MOMENT AT THE OCALA CONFERENCE IN OCTOBER.
3
Advertising and a New Business, continued from page 1
ship is almost non-existent for our papers, so that’s a no-go and what advertising they offer is in the thou-
sands of dollars. I know a few owners of the local blogs and can advertise there, but the cost is astronomi-
cal for a monthly spot and I have no guarantee of a return rate. There is this little couponing book that cir-
culates, but again it’s a few hundred dollars to advertise per month. When and where does advertising be-
come affordable? I can’t seem to find it.
Recently, I got a phone call from a company handling a perks program for a very large local hospital
chain about an hour away from my house. They said they were interviewing 15 CPA and EA businesses in
the area. I was so excited because nurses and paramedics are my specialty. This was my chance to grow
my business. Can you imagine the exposure of being an exclusive recommendation for a hospital with
1,100 employees and potential for the rest of the chain? For the first time, I felt like I was a real business
and I was going to grow in 2016 in a big way. This gentleman found me and solicited me! I am totally legit
now and this was the proof. He gave me all the details and I asked questions about it. It would give me
web access to every employee, my logo would be on their badges and they would only recommend me as a
perk of their employment.,. I was overjoyed. This could help my business grow in leaps and bounds. I have-
n't been able to advertise, so this was a dream come true for me. How could this go wrong?
Well, the nice man tells me because of all we talked about, they wanted me! This was it. I asked the
question “what is the average usage rate” and it was 2-3%. That’s about 22 new returns for me and maybe
referrals if they liked me. I can’t believe this opportunity fell in my lap. And then he burst my bubble. How
did he do that you may wonder? This was not a free opportunity. Seriously, nothing in life is free. When
will I ever learn? The cost for all this fabulousness? $2,995. Um...no. He tells me I can put it on my credit
card, pay it off over time and it will pay for itself. At maybe 22 tax returns and all the traveling and expens-
es because this hospital is over an hour away and I don't have an office— it defeats itself. I worked my self
up because this was such a huge opportunity and then the hammer came down. Is it a great idea? Abso-
lutely. As a new business, can I afford it? Heck, no. I wish.
My lesson from this: Don't be so desperate to grow that you fall for anything. We talk to our clients
about this and here I just fell right into it. If I want to advertise, I need to find out the most cost effective
way to do it with something that will bring in a good return. This wasn’t an option for me, but it was nice
that I got the call. I might be down in the dumps about not being able to take advantage of the opportunity,
but when you start up a business you have to think about more than growth; you have to be able to afford
the items your business really needs, like software and portals and computers. Sometimes, it means you
sacrifice. I’ll stick with my business Facebook page for now and look for other opportunities. Growth will
come. I have to remember that you don’t judge the success of your business by its size. I have a small prac-
tice—too small for me and I want to grow but the success comes from my desire to grow and my desire to
get education so that my clients see how knowledgeable I am and tell all their friends. Referrals will be the
true test of my practice not how and where I advertise. Tough lesson, but I’m glad I learned it early on.
Speaking of education, I’ll be speaking at the Daytona January workshop on the 5th. Sign up today.
5
DAYTONA BEACH WORKSHOP
THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017
AGENDA
TOPICS AND INSTRUCTORS
8:10—8:30 AM Check in and Registration
8:30—9:20 AM New & Unusual Ways the Florida Dept. of Revenue
Is Calculating Sales Tax; New Developments (1 hr.)
Sam Eckhardt, Jr., EA
(CE credit unavailable from the IRS for state topics)
9:20—9:30AM Break
9:30—11:10AM Casualty Theft & Disaster Losses (2 hrs.)
Owen Oatley, EA
11:10—11:30AM Break
11:30—12:20PM Foreign Investment Reporting (2 hrs.)
Laura Wood, EA
12:20—1:30PM Lunch (on your own) The DSC cafeteria is open.
1:30—2:20PM Foreign Investment Reporting, continued
Laura Wood, EA
2:20—2:30PM Break
2:30—3:20PM K-1’s for 1041
Amy Brosnan, EA
3:20—3:30PM Break
3:30—4:20PM K-1’s for 1041, continued
Amy Brosnan, EA
6
REGISTRATION FORM
DAYTONA WORKSHOP
THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017
DAYTONA STATE COLLEGE BUILDING 150 ROOM 101
NOTE NEW LOCATION: Building 150 is located on White Street, which is the east boundary street for DSC .
Turn at the light just to the east of the main campus entrance on International Speedway Blvd. The building
is the first on your left. Take the first left before the building to access the parking lot.
DSC is located at 1200 W. International Speedway Blvd., Daytona Beach, FL 32114
Name: ____________________________________________________________________________
PTIN (required)___________________________ NATP Member # (required for discount)_______________________
Address:___________________________________________________________________________
City:_____________________________________State____________________ZIP_______________
EMAIL: __________________________________ Phone_____________________________________
Emergency Contact Name & Number:____________________________________________________
REGISTRATION FEE $ 80 Non NATP Member: $85 After December 30 $90. Non member $95
Class materials will be delivered via PDF by December 30. Printed materials fee: $20
No “at the door” registration will be available due to material costs.
PAYMENT METHOD
We accept: Visa, MC, AMEX and Discover cards. Checks made payable to Florida Chapter NATP.
Be advised that e-mailed registrations do not go to a secure site.
Name as it appears on cc: ______________________________________________________________
CC #___________________________________Exp Date: ______________Security Code_____________
Signature: ____________________________________________________________________________
HOW TO REGISTER
Mail to: Florida Chapter NATP, 13001 Spring Hill Drive, Spring Hill, FL 34609-5048
Phone: 352-686-0220 FAX: 352-686-0215 EMAIL: [email protected]
Cancellation Policy: To cancel your registration, please notify Sandra Torrence, Treasurer at confiden-
[email protected] no later than January 2, 2017 to receive a refund. Cancellation fee is $15.
7
FLORIDA NATP JANUARY
WORKSHOP SPEAKERS
AMY BROSNAN, EA Amy has her own tax business called Sweet Deduc-
tions. She became an EA in 2016 and joined NATP in 2005. She has been
very active in our chapter, serving as Secretary and President. She has be-
come an established member of our chapter teaching staff. Other than bak-
ing and quilting, her newest hobby is boxing.
SAMUEL B. ECKHARDT, JR. , EA Sam operates the Business Tax Insti-
tute located in Deland and was formerly the Tax Audit Supervisor at the Day-
tona Beach office of the Florida Department of Revenue. We can always turn
to Sam for the “ins and outs” of the DOR.
OWEN R. OATLEY, EA Owen has his practice in Daytona Beach. He is a
past president of our Chapter and now serves on the Chapter’s Advisory
Board. He is a past member of the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel which is a Fed-
eral Advisory Board. Before he started his own practice he was employed by
the IRS. Owen has a Master’s Degree in political science from FSU. In May,
2006 he was the NATP Member of the Month.
LAURA WOOD, EA Laura received her EA in 1998. She and her husband,
who is a CFP, co-own a business accounting, tax preparation, representation
and financial services firm in Altamonte Springs. She serves as our chapter
Vice President. Her regular passion and distraction is doing aerial photog-
raphy while flying her Powered Parachute aircraft. In March, 2007 Laura be-
came the first Florida woman FAA-licensed Sport Pilot in Powered Parachute
aircraft. We are happy to say another of her passions is teaching for our
chapter.
All instructors have been certified to teach by the National Association of
Tax Professionals, except Mr. Eckhardt.
8
JANUARY WORKSHOP COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
CASUALTY, THEFT & DISASTER LOSSES: After taxpayers suffer a casualty, theft or
disaster (can you say Hurricane Matthew) taxes are probably the last thing on their minds.
Tax laws can offer some help for loss victims and victims of a presidentially declared disas-
ter could use their tax filing to obtain much needed cash. This course helps a tax profes-
sional identify and report casualty, theft and disaster losses. Additionally, the tax provi-
sions of insurance reimbursements, disaster assistance, disaster payments, reconstruction
of records and calculation of losses are covered.
FOREIGN INVESTMENT REPORTING: United States citizens and residents are taxed
on their worldwide income, regardless of where they live or earn the income. To alleviate
double taxation, taxpayers are allowed to claim a foreign tax credit for foreign taxes paid.
This course examines the application and computation of the foreign tax credit. The IRS
is making a very proactive attempt to uncover hidden offshore accounts by requiring tax-
payers owning foreign assets and accounts to file certain disclosure forms with their tax
returns when foreign holdings exceed a specific value. The penalties for non compliance can
be substantial. This course identifies forms you need to file and what conditions trigger a
filing requirement. Forms discussed are 1116, 8938 and FinCEN 114 (formerly FBAR).
K-1’s FOR 1041: Taxpayers who are beneficiaries of an estate or trust will receive a
Schedule K-1 (Form 1041). This course examines what you need to know to properly report
the information provided to the beneficiary on a Schedule K-1 on their individual tax return.
NATIONAL BOARD MEMBER ELECTIONS
While there were only four open board positions and four candidates and therefore, some-
what of a foregone conclusion, your chapter Board wants our members to know that we
take our voting responsibilities seriously and we did not let this election pass unnoticed.
Your Board did vote. New National members are: Sally Achord, EA, Gerard Cannito, CPA,
CFP, Jaimee Hammer, EA and Brett Rosser, EA. Once the officer positions have been an-
nounced we will put them in the newsletter.
9
HOW A BIT OF TAX PLANNING CAN MAKE YOUR CLIENT HAPPY
OR CHOOSING TO PAY TAX ON A SCHOLARSHIP OR GRANT
AND STILL GET THE EDUCATION CREDIT
As presented by David Mellem, with permission
Sometimes a student receives enough scholarships and grants to totally cover the
amount of tuition paid during the year and it appears the education credits are not available
since there is no tuition left after applying the scholarships and grants. However, there is
an option that can result in the student paying tax on some or all of these leaving some or all
of the tuition to be used for the education credits.
This provision has been available for many years, but every time we present it at a
seminar we find many tax professionals don’t know about this option. Recently, the US Dept.
of the Treasury released a 5-page Fact Sheet basically saying many taxpayers are not tak-
ing advantage of this option.
1) Scholarships and grants, such as the Pell Grant, are not taxable to the extent they are
used to pay for tuition. They are taxable to the extent they are used to pay most other
college related expenses, such as room and board.
2) Some scholarships and grants are very specific as to how they must be used. This is
found in their paperwork. These scholarships and grants MUST be used for the speci-
fied purpose..
3) Now the option to tax scholarships and grants: Those scholarships and grants that do
NOT specifically state how they must be used can be treated by the student as used for
any education related expense the student paid that year. If the student treats any of
these as used for tuition, that amount of the scholarships and grants are nontaxable. If
the student treats any of these scholarships and grants as used for other expenses,
they are taxable, but this would leave the tuition paid during the year available for the
education credits. (Since the scholarships and grants belong to the student, any amount
that is taxable is taxable to the student.)
Of course there are other items on the tax return that could be affected by this option
as well as nontax issues that may need to be considered. For example, increasing the income
by taxing some or all of a scholarship or grant means the student has higher income and a
higher tax. Therefore, it is important to look at the overall picture of the tax returns of
both the student and the parents, as well as nontax issues before choosing to tax scholar-
ships or grants. Continued on page 10
10
TAXING SCHOLARSHIPS & GRANTS, continued from page 9
The Fact Sheet has two examples: one situation where the best results come from
taxing all of a Pell Grant and another situation where the best results come from only taxing
part of the Pell Grant.
You can find this Fact Sheet by going to www.treasury.gov and entering “Pell Grant” in
the Search box.
HOLIDAY STUFFED PEPPERS
KISSED WITH CREAMY HORSERADISH
WITH A HOLIDAY RED AND GREEN MOTIF THIS DISH IS EXCELLENT WITH
PRIME RIB OR PASTA
WHAT’S IN IT? SERVES 4
4 MEDIUM RED BELL PEPPERS (DON’T USE GREEN ONES), 2 BUNCHES FRESH SPIN-
ACH, WASHED AND LONG STEMS REMOVED, 1/2 TSP OLIVE OIL, 3 TABLESPOONS
RED ONION, MINCED, 1/4 TSP FRESHLY GROUND NUTMEG, 1/2 CUP DRAINED NON-
FAT PLAIN YOGURT, 2 TABLESPOONS PREPARED HORSERADISH.
WHAT DO I DO?
WASH AND DRY WHOLE RED BELL PEPPERS AND PLACE IN LIGHTLY OILED BAKING
PAN. ROAST WHOLE PEPPERS AT 400 DEGREEES FOR 12 MINUTES TURNING AS THEY
BROWN. IN A LARGE PAN, SAUTE RED ONION IN OIL WITH A BIT OF SALT AND
PEPPER FOR 3 MINUTES. ADD SPINACH AND COOK UNTIL JUST WILTED, ADDING
SALT AND PEPPER TO TASTE. REMOVE PEPPERS FROM OVEN AND ALLOW TO COOL
FOR 10 MINUTES. USING A SHARP KNIFE, GENTLY CUT ALONG TOP RIM OF PEPPERS
AND REMOVE TOP WITH STEM AND SEEDS ATTACHED. PILE SPINACH INTO PEP-
PERS AND BAKE AT 350 DEGREES FOR 10 MINUTES. MAKE A MIXTURE OF DRAINED
YOGURT AND HORSERADISH AND ADJUST TO TASTE. DOLLOP HORSERADISH MIX-
TURE ON TOP OF SPINACH—IN THE CENTER SO THAT SOME OF THE SPINACH
SHOWS FOR THE COLOR EFFECT. DUST WITH THE NUTMEG AND SERVE IMMEDI-
ATELY.
FROM SANDI’S KITCHEN
11
FL NATP DEALS AND DISCOUNTS
QUICKFINDER –code Q680 THE TAX BOOK-code 433
Each of these companies are offering a discount to all FL NATP members. Ac-
cess the websites below to see the complete list of books offered and order
forms. You can order online, print out the form and mail it in or just phone
them. Quickfinder: 800.510.8997; Tax Book: 866.919.5277
http://tax.thompsonreuters.com/products/brands/checkpoint/quickfinder
www.thetaxbook.com
TWO NETWORKING MEETINGS AND A CONFERENCE
JANUARY 2: Networking in Palm Coast. The Perkins Restaurant at 6:30.
Located at 2375 Curlew Rd/Hwy 19. RSVP to Doris at
JANUARY 9: Networking in Port Richey. The Olive Garden Restaurant at
6:30. Located at 9690 Hwy 19. RSVP to Bibi at [email protected].
MAY 18/19: Spring conference. Shores Resort and Spa, Daytona Beach.
Our speaker will be the incomparable Beanna Whitlock. 16 CE. More details in
the February newsletter. Don’t miss this one!
MISCELLANEOUS BUT IMPORTANT STUFF
FORMS 1095-B, 1095-C: The IRS has granted insurance companies and
businesses which are required to send out these forms an extension of time
until March 2 (it was January 31) . Taxpayers who may be affected by these
forms and who file before receiving them and who rely on other information
from their employers need not amend their returns. The forms, when re-
ceived, should be retained with the taxpayer’s return.
IRS & CE HOURS: The IRS advises that CE hours on their web site are not
up to date—this would impact hours obtained at our Ocala conference.