Robin Ardinger CPA

10/28/2026

10/23/2026

The "F-word" in the accounting/tax world is "Fraud"!
Bad behavior will sometimes only come to light when the Tax Code gets involved!
A 2026 Appeals Case revisited a 2023 jury trial of a Chicago lawyer who hid his payments to and for his mistress by using his business to pay her, and DEDUCTING or otherwise falsely showing them on his business income tax returns. Why didn't he just get a divorce and marry this woman, you may ask? 🤷‍♀️ Who knows? It may have had something to do with her profession as a dancer at a local club. 🤓 This all started in the mid-1990s.
Fast-forward to 2026 Appeals Court: Bottom-line - NO you CAN'T deduct payments to your mistress as consulting fees, and no technicalities will get you off the hook! 👨‍⚖️ "His convictions are AFFIRMED" !!
U.S. v. Abramson, 2026 PTC 298 (7th Cir. 2026).

10/13/2026

FinCEN - the US Dept of the Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network assessed a $1.2 billion penalty against Bank of America. I don't know about you, but I think this is a BIG DEAL!! This involves money laundering, narcotics and global terrorism banking violations. There's a concurrent civil penalty for $750 million from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and $11.6 million from the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Bank of America admits that it willfully violated the Bank Secrecy Act and failed to follow the Anti-Money Laundering compliance program.
I don't know how this works, but I see a WIN for the USA and a big loss for criminals. Should it scare others who may be conducting business illegally?? I certainly hope so! 😎

10/08/2026

If you have traditional Medicare coverage, you may have noticed a $90 deposit to the account from which your premiums are paid. Now . . . is it taxable?
My best guess without distinct ruling from IRS or Congress, is that it will be treated as a reduction of your health insurance cost, so if you are able to deduct your Medicare premiums as a self-employed person or if you itemize deductions and your medical expenses exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income, you must reduce the expense by this payment. This payment has not gone to people who have a Medicare advantage plan, which is private insurance with the advantages of Medicare.
The SSA-1099 you receive in January will hopefully have that amount adjusted. Who knows!?! 🤓

10/01/2026

So now the IRS has an app! Watch out for imposters! Be careful out there!🤓

Download the official IRS app. See your balance due, make a payment, check your refund and more. All in the IRS app.

09/10/2026

Individuals can set up an online account with the IRS that helps communicate with the IRS when something is questioned, stuck in the system, or delayed. You can give access to your tax professional to handle IRS matters on your behalf if they have the proper credentials to do so. When the IRS is understaffed, it is difficult to see what has caused a problem so that it can be resolved in a timely manner. Access to information is extremely helpful. Setting up your account will also eliminate the possibility of someone else setting up your account without your consent!
Be careful out there! 🤓

Sign in or create an individual account. Check your refund status, make a payment, view your tax records, submit forms and more.

08/24/2026

TIGTA did a review of the IRS's compliance with the rules related to seizing taxpayers' property. It's concerning to me that the report says that the IRS employees ". . . generally complied with applicable laws, regulations and procedures. However . . ."
TIGTA found issues where the IRS had to give $377,000 back to taxpayers. Imagine what occurred between the time the IRS seized the property and when the taxpayers got it back! Don't mess with the IRS. That said, there are MANY notices before the IRS does this, so OPEN your MAIL, and be sure the IRS has your current address!! 🤓

08/13/2026

TIGTA - Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration is the oversight for the IRS. "Federal agencies are required BY LAW to develop a plan to achieve a drug-free workforce." TIGTA received 78 allegations of illegal drug issues, opened investigations into 22 of those and referred 11 employees to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for PROSECUTION. DOJ declined. HHHHmmmmm. I wonder if any of those alleged drug-users were the ones who programmed the IRS computers to send out notices???? 🤔🤓

07/30/2026

TIGTA - Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration - is the oversight for the IRS. For Fiscal Year 2025, TIGTA found that the IRS did not meet the goal of keeping improper payments to less than 10% for four types of highly-scrutinized payments: the Additional Child Tax Credit, the American Opportunity Tax Credit (tuition), the Earned Income Tax Credit (low-income), and the Net Premium Tax Credit (health insurance). The IRS's overall improper payment rate is up to 26.5%. What does this mean for law-abiding taxpayers? YOUR refunds may be delayed for the IRS to verify your refund correctness. Once again, the law-breakers are making life more difficult for the honest taxpayers. 🤓
How do they come up with these "estimates" if they are not actually catching these overpayments? 🤔😕 Interesting!
FYI: Estimated improper refunds = $28.1 BILLION!

07/22/2026

OH - IRS, You've done it again! MID-YEAR CHANGE!! 🥳
Internal Revenue Bulletin #2026-29 issued July 13, 2026 announced a change effective July 1, 2026, in the Standard Mileage Rate:
76 cents per BUSINESS mile July - Dec. 2026 (Jan - June = 72.5)
23.5 cents per MEDICAL or moving mile July - Dec 2026 (Jan - June = 20.5)
Charitable 14 cents per mile is "permanent" in the Code and doesn't change. 🤓