• IRS wants to drop casino winnings threshold to $600

    This could affect a small percentage of APs. It could also be a harbinger of changes to come.

    http://www.reviewjournal.com/busines...-threshold-600

    Comments 9 Comments
    1. Three's Avatar
      Three -
      I am not much of a slot player. But if the $1200 threshold was set in 1977, wouldn't the more common sense approach be to adjust the $1200 threshold to inflation since 1977 and make the threshold like $5000? If tax rates can be tied to inflation as they are in some states shouldn't the thresholds for reporting also adjust for inflation? Reducing them after almost 40 years of inflation is ludicrous. Are they trying to the slot s? Can you imagine you put in $100 into a 25 cent UX machine and in a few spins get two or three strong hands in a row on the initial deal and the machine locks up. You didn't get anything that great just like flushes or full house etc no Royal or straight flush. Then you have to wait almost a half hour to start playing again. It would be a common occurrence. The casino would need a lot more slot attendants to have on the payroll and the customers wouldn't put up with it. Bean counters and their idiotic ideas. They aren't even talking more tax revenue. Just more head aches and expensive audits paying high salary IRS agents to chase pennies. Tax revenue from the casino would plummet. What total and complete idiot thought this one up. There is no upside for the player, the casino or the government. Everyone losses.

      I didn't think the IRS initiated tax law. I guess this isn't a new tax but only reporting threshold so maybe they are within their power but if this is what passes vetting at the IRS they have proven that they can't be trusted with any decisions.
    1. Norm's Avatar
      Norm -
      The inflation thingy came to my mind also. I imagine this is more a reaction to the $900,000,000 in budget cuts at the IRS since 2010. With less funding for enforcement, putting the onus on the casinos to report and withhold winnings probably reduces enforcement efforts. I don’t like it and think it will clearly hurt casinos. But, I can see the rationale.
    1. Bodarc's Avatar
      Bodarc -
      Some things just don't make sense. Most people lose gambling and the government and IRS have much bigger problems than that. Take for instance identity theft of tax refunds, buying children's SS numbers from their mothers for earned income credit purposes and fraudulent medicare claims. We are talking billions of dollars and they want to waste time on 600 dollar slot machine payouts.
    1. 21forme's Avatar
      21forme -
      Quote Originally Posted by Bodarc View Post
      Some things just don't make sense. Most people lose gambling and the government and IRS have much bigger problems than that. Take for instance identity theft of tax refunds, buying children's SS numbers from their mothers for earned income credit purposes and fraudulent medicare claims. We are talking billions of dollars and they want to waste time on 600 dollar slot machine payouts.
      Plus infinity
    1. Norm's Avatar
      Norm -
      In Nevada alone, in January alone, $8.9 billion was shoved into slots. And, the largest U.S. casino isn't even in Nevada.
    1. Bodarc's Avatar
      Bodarc -
      But how much of that 8.9 billion was returned to the players and they already get a W-2G if it is at least $ 1,200.00. The US has always had a so called "volunteer tax program" and most people have always paid the tax that was due. When you over burden business and people with high taxes, regulations and record keeping, people start looking for ways to barter, deal in cash, get out of the paperwork and work around the regulations. Then you have a country like Greece.

      This could get to be political in nature I suppose so I'll not post anymore about it.
    1. 21forme's Avatar
      21forme -
      Quote Originally Posted by Norm View Post
      In Nevada alone, in January alone, $8.9 billion was shoved into slots. And, the largest U.S. casino isn't even in Nevada.
      How much came back out of those machines?

      Gambling is a losing proposition. So what if someone hits a jackpot? 99.99% of the time, the money goes right back into the machine. Is the gov't just trying to take advantage of the poor shleppers who don't have the dedcutions to itemize and write off the losses against the wins?
    1. Norm's Avatar
      Norm -
      Quote Originally Posted by 21forme View Post
      How much came back out of those machines?
      Probably a bit over 95%.
    1. 21forme's Avatar
      21forme -
      Quote Originally Posted by Norm View Post
      Probably a bit over 95%.
      that was a rhetorical question, but I think it's less than that.

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