Nothing quite so certain as ... taxes

[EricNoah]

You know... I'm not much for reality shows, but someone should do a jail reality show. Not that I'd watch it. But I'd hear about it a lot at lunch!

 

[Angcuru]

Good, I say. Let the arrogant bastard stretch. Though I wonder how the IRS could NOT have known about his 1.01 mil income. The system sucks, I say.

 

[Greatwyrm]

When they have millions of tax returns to go through each year, I can understand some errors. But I'd like to think that if someone owes that much money, the IRS would be more prompt than taking 2 years to ask for it.

 

[Heretic Apostate]

All I can say about winning a million dollars is... Sixty-Five percent. Six Hundred And Fifty Thousand Dollars in taxes.

Where did you get that figure? I'm looking in my 1040 manual, and a single individual getting more than 319k pays 35% in taxes (35% x 1M = 350k, less 19k you get to keep, is 331k= 33%). Tack on probably another 5% for state taxes, and you're stil looking at keeping over 60% of your money.

Shoot, since it's an award, you probably don't have to pay social security or medicare, so you save another 7.45%.

Edit: Hatch was an idiot, plain and simple.

Now, if I can just get the government to stop sending me more and more complicated tax forms. Sheesh. First, I have an IRA that has about $10 in interest income and about $30 in capital gains, so I am sent a 1040A. Then in 2003, I work as an independent contractor for a while (about $8,000), and I'm upgraded to the dreaded 1040. I don't itemize, I don't try to find loopholes, why can't I stay with a simpler form?

 

[Jdvn1]

He should try to take it to Court TV or something so that he could make more money.

 

[Krieg]

Though I wonder how the IRS could NOT have known about his 1.01 mil income.

If the IRS didn't know about it then Hatch wouldn't be in court being prosecuted for not reporting it.

 

[Angcuru]

If the IRS didn't know about it then Hatch wouldn't be in court being prosecuted for not reporting it.

Oh yeah....

 

[Blue_Kryptonite]

Where did you get that figure? I'm looking in my 1040 manual, and a single individual getting more than 319k pays 35% in taxes (35% x 1M = 350k, less 19k you get to keep, is 331k= 33%). Tack on probably another 5% for state taxes, and you're stil looking at keeping over 60% of your money.

Shoot, since it's an award, you probably don't have to pay social security or medicare, so you save another 7.45%.

If that's more correct than my possibly apocryphal memory, I may renew my subscription to the NYS Lotto. We had stopped buying tickets below 15 million.

 

[LightPhoenix]

I think the IRS was probably giving him a good chance to let him report it before busting his butt.

 

[Krieg]

Oh yeah....

Don't take this negatively, but that just made me smile.

I think the IRS was probably giving him a good chance to let him report it before busting his butt.

I don't think that is very likely.

According to the article Hatch didn't report his 2000 earnings until Aug 2002. I would bet money that he purposely filed for extensions as long as possible hoping that after a bit of time it would be easier for him to slip it by unnoticed.

I would also be willing to bet that the IRS pegged it immediately and that it has just taken this long to work it's way through the legal system. The investigation, with an indictment and the usual legal wranglings by both side very likely filled up the last year and a half.