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Tax File Memorandum Essay

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Tax File Memorandum To: Peaceful Pastures Funeral Home From: Whomever Date: 2/17/2013 Re: Peaceful Pastures Tax Payer Engagement

Confidential I SPOKE WITH PEACEFUL TAX PAYER ABOUT THE AUDIT NOTICE THE IRS HAD SENT. IT CONTENDS THAT THE AMOUNT PREPAID UNDER PEACEFUL’S PROGRAM CONSTITUTES PREPAID INCOME THAT MUST BE INCLUDED IN PEACEFUL’S INCOME (AND THEREFORE SUBJECT TO TAX) IN THE YEAR IN WHICH IT IS RECEIVED. THE TAX PAYER WANTED TO KNOW IF THE IRS FINDINGS WERE CORRECT.

FACTS: Peaceful, an accrual basis taxpayer, provides a full line of funeral services and sells goods related to those services. Peaceful has attempted to design an …show more content…

properly reported monies received for Massachusetts regulated pre-need funeral service contracts in year services were actually rendered, rather than in payment year as IRS contended: following Supreme Court precedent, payments were refundable deposits, not advance payments, where contracts contained open-ended cancellation and refund rights that left taxpayer without complete dominionand control over funds. Notably, under contracts' plain language and pursuant to Massachusetts regs], customers controlled whether or when refund would be made; and fact that cancellation/refund rights were rarely exercised was irrelevant.

Because Peaceful were receiving prepaid income they will have to pay taxes on the prepaid sales that were being made within 1 year of the sale. The Internal Revenue Code imposes a Federal tax on the taxable income of every corporation. Sec. 11(a). Section 61(a) specifies that gross income for purposes of calculating such taxable income means “all income from whatever source derived”. Encompassed within this broad pronouncement are all “undeniable accessions to wealth, clearly realized, and over which the taxpayers have complete dominion.” Commissioner v. Glenshaw Glass Co., 348 U.S. 426, 431 [47 AFTR 162] (1955). Stated otherwise, gross income includes earnings unaccompanied by an obligation to repay and without restriction as to their disposition. James v. United States, 366 U.S. 213, 219

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