Your Money: IRS is still awaiting late '12 taxes
Even though much of the federal government shut down Tuesday, will individual taxpayers filing late returns for 2012 still need to file by Oct. 15? The answer, sadly, is yes.
Even though much of the federal government shut down Tuesday, will individual taxpayers filing late returns for 2012 still need to file by Oct. 15? The answer, sadly, is yes.
We checked in with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and found some scary answers to your questions. Taxpayers and accountants should assume that the extended due date for individual returns is Oct. 15 until the IRS otherwise provides guidance, according to the AICPA.
Question: Will the IRS provide an expedited or automatic abatement of penalties for late-filed tax returns?
Answer: No. The IRS has no plans to grant expedited or automatic abatements of penalties for late-filed returns due to a government shutdown.
Q: For e-filers, will the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System continue to operate as normal during the government shutdown?
A: Yes, the IRS will take your filing and your money online. It has indicated that the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) will continue to operate as normal during the government shutdown. As a precaution, the AICPA recommends that you print the confirmation page for any payments you make through the system.
Q: Will the practitioner hotline remain open during the government shutdown?
A: No, according to the IRS's contingency plan, services such as responding to taxpayer questions will cease during any shutdown. Once government operations resume, the IRS may consider extended hours and additional staff to assist tax practitioners through Oct. 15.
Q: Will taxpayer assistance centers be open during the government shutdown?
A: No, they will be closed.
Q: How will the shutdown affect the timing of taxpayer refunds?
A: The IRS will not issue any refunds during a government shutdown. In addition, the "Where's my refund" service will cease during the shutdown.
Golf and markets
A new book makes a strong case that the rise and fall in golf purses for top players, such as Tiger Woods' bullish $10 million draw, signals investor sentiment - and therefore correlates closely with moves in stock markets.
"Golf and investment markets are related and have been for years," says Kevin Armstrong in Bulls, Birdies, Bogeys & Bears, out this year. The money won by professional golfers has been almost perfectly correlated with the returns of the stock market for eight decades, a relationship unique to golf. Armstrong, a New Zealander, spoke at the Socionomics Institute's Social Mood conference this year. A link to his presentation can be found here: http://bit.ly/1hl2m2q.