In March, Donald Trump’s campaign published a letter written by his tax attorneys explaining the status of his tax returns, an apparent sore subject for the Donald whenever he is questioned about it by the media. Although the letter is dated March 7, 2016, it wasn’t released by his campaign until twenty-three days later. Regardless, he continues to thumb his nose at the time-honored tradition of presidential nominees disclosing their tax returns at some sufficent time prior to the election.
Trump has cited continuing I.R.S. audits as the reason for refusing to release his returns. The I.R.S. will not confirm if a person is being audited or discuss their returns, but taxpayers are free to publicize their own financial documents. The letter written by Sheri A. Dillon and William F. Nelson attempts to support Trump’s claims that he is continuously audited by the IRS. Last year, when Trump mentioned that he was considering releasing the returns, he made no mention of the IRS audits.
The letter states that Trump’s returns from 2009 forward are still under audit, but that audits on returns from 2002 to 2008 have been “closed administratively.” Trump’s reps failed to respond to a request for comment when asked if returns from 2002 to 2008 would be released any time soon.
Tax experts are divided on Trump releasing his returns, with some arguing that it would be malpractice to advise a client to publicize such information during an ongoing audit and others saying that law-abiding taxpayers should have nothing to conceal. After all, they say, when you file a return with the I.R.S. you file it under penalty of perjury that what you are filing is true and correct.
Trump’s wealth has been estimated at anywhere between 1 and 10 billion dollars. Many claim that the Donald is not as successful as he claims. While his comments and answers show little intention of disclosing accurate and verifiable details regarding his income, many are suspicious of his boasts of being a billionaire considering his countless bankruptcy filings and increased reliance on income and licensing agreements within the entertainment industry.
Many consider Trump’s tax returns to be of significant public interest as they would disclose things about his finances that his previously disclosed financial statement and other documents do not disclose. The scrutiny of Trump’s returns could add years to the audit of his returns because of the pressure on the I.R.S. to examine details of the tax returns highlighted by Trump’s critics.
If you have any question related to New York state or federal tax law, call THE TAX EXPERTS at the Thorgood Law Firm www.thorgoodlaw.com. For a FREE consultation, please call 212-490-0704.
