Tax question....

[just another ref]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Is one allowed to deduct the cost of a black belt?

Guys who wear belts are not real officials, so they have no officiating income to report.

[BBrules]

Originally Posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.

ILRef80:

Why would you think that meals, laundry, etic, are gray areas. I agree that the home officie expense is an impossible standard to meet but not some of the other areas.

If you and your partner(s) eat together after the game and discuss rules and mechanics that makes the meal deductable. Think about all of the officiating laundry you do over the course of the year, go to a laundrymat and see how much it costs to wash (including soap, bleach, etc.) and dry just one load, and you have a good idea of how much you spend on laundry and then add drycleaning to that cost.

I am a member of NASO, so I also purchase the NASO Game Fee Replacement Insurance, and that is a dollar for dollar deduction.

If you have loan on the car that you use for officiating, the pro-rated amount of interest on the loan is an interesst deduction. The interest deduction is not covered in the mileage deduction.

MTD, Sr.

I tend to agree with MTD, Sr. here. If you have a legitimate deduction, take it. The main thing to keep in mind is 1) keep records, and 2) KEEP RECEIPTS. Some might not be worth the effort. The meals and entertainment deduction is generally subject to a 50% limitation. This is also an area the IRS scrutinizes, at least they use to. I haven't taken an M/E deduction in several years. Whatever you take, just be able to support and justify why you are taking it. Uniform laundry - I think $5/wk is a low, safe figure; $50 might not be. However, if you can support and justify $50, then take it. You may get a letter from the IRS that says something like, "X has been disallowed and you owe $6 in additional tax and $600 in penalties and interest." This may be 2 or 3 years down the road. This 'letter audit' can be appealed. I have had two, appealed them and won both. (Most audits are not sit-down-with-the-auditor type audits.) Point is to keep good records so you can support your claims.

[ILRef80]

Originally Posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.

ILRef80:

Why would you think that meals, laundry, etic, are gray areas. I agree that the home officie expense is an impossible standard to meet but not some of the other areas.

If you and your partner(s) eat together after the game and discuss rules and mechanics that makes the meal deductable. Think about all of the officiating laundry you do over the course of the year, go to a laundrymat and see how much it costs to wash (including soap, bleach, etc.) and dry just one load, and you have a good idea of how much you spend on laundry and then add drycleaning to that cost.

I am a member of NASO, so I also purchase the NASO Game Fee Replacement Insurance, and that is a dollar for dollar deduction.

If you have loan on the car that you use for officiating, the pro-rated amount of interest on the loan is an interesst deduction. The interest deduction is not covered in the mileage deduction.

MTD, Sr.

Fair enough. You make good points. It's just not worth it, in my cases. I work in several conferences and belong to a number of associations, so the dues/mileage really add up. My deductions take care of most of my officiating income. I only have to pay a few game checks to take care of the taxes, so in my case, it's better to just take the straight-forward, no question deductions and not have to worry about the hassle of an audit.

I wasn't questioning the legitimacy of the deductions themselves.