Call it the IRS version of Crime Stoppers. You know, the program in almost every community where law enforcement solicits the public’s help in nabbing bad guys. Now the federal tax collector wants to hear from people who’ve received fake IRS e-mails purporting to send you a refund in exchange for a little bit of your personal financial information. I got one just this last weekend. If you’ve been lucky enough to avoid this garbage, you can see what it looks like here. The IRS has set up phishing@irs.gov, a special e-mail box, and wants recipients of these bogus refund…
"Big Love" is getting a lot of attention. Naturally, TV critics are always looking for the next HBO breakout show to fill the void that will exist when the "Sopranos" are all whacked out. But the prurience potential of a show about a fictional polygamous family in present-day Utah is also getting a lot of mainstream coverage and prompting related "news" stories. The latest example: On this Sunday's Weekend Today Show, Lester Holt interviewed a real-life husband and wife and wife. I'm sitting there in bed waiting to see what Holt, an affable TV personality, might offer on this subject…
Baseball has been very, very good to Barry Bonds, but it seems that wasn’t quite good enough for the San Francisco slugger. Bonds, along with baseball fans and non-fans alike, watched raptly in 1998 as the friendly battle between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa played out en route to the new single-season home-run record. McGwire’s 70 gave him the record. He and Sammy hugged. The world and Major League Baseball, which sorely needed some positive press, smiled. And Bonds seethed, deciding that he, too, wanted some of that attention, adoration and acclaim. So he turned to steroids for the added…
It’s Friday the 13th. I can hear Count Floyd now: “Oooohhhh. Scary.” It certainly is scary for some celebrities who are facing some potentially costly tax issues. Jury selection began this week for Richard Hatch, the first winner of CBS’s “Survivor.” The IRS contends that he didn’t pay taxes on his $1 million winnings from the popular show. But that’s not the only charge. The jury also will hear government evidence that Hatch spent money designated for a charity he created, filed false tax returns and committed bank, wire and mail fraud. What was he thinking? We first asked that…
Ran across an article over breakfast and I can’t resist commenting. The New York Times reports that House Speaker Dennis Hastert, apparently concerned about Capitol Hill’s (and his GOP’s) image in the wake of several investigations into and indictments of Members and associates, has broached the subject of new ethics training for lawmakers. He wants to make sure they understand the “nuances of House rules.” Nuances? Let’s see. Bribery = Wrong! Money laundering = Wrong! Creating tax breaks for generous PAC contributors = Wr… Standard operating procedure.
Politics/Laws
The More Tax Posts tab at the top of this page will take you to, well, more tax posts. You also can search below for a tax topic.
March 5, 2026
Tax filing season is also peak time for tax scams. Be on the lookout for…
Happy New Tax Year! Are you ready to file your 2025 tax return? I know, too early to ask. But Tax Day 2026 will be here before we realize it. The Internal Revenue Service deadline to file and pay any tax we owe is the regular April 15 date this year. It’s also Tax Day for most of the states that collect income taxes from their residents, which is most of the states! If that seems too far away right now, don’t worry. As is the case every tax season, the ol’ blog’s tips and other tax reminders should help all of us meet our state and federal responsibilities. Procrastinators also will want to keep an eye on the countdown clock just below. It tracks how much time we have until April’s Tax Day, just in case we put off our annual tax task until the absolutely final hours and decide we need to instead get an extension request into the IRS by that date. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)