By Tracy Turner
This year’s tax filing season may be confusing for some agricultural workers as they try to understand the connection between the Affordable Care Act and their income taxes, according to a taxation expert with Ohio State University’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.
The Affordable Care Act will be a big issue in taxes again this year, said Larry Gearhardt, director of the Ohio State University Income Tax School Program of Ohio State University Extension.
“Many people that received benefits from the act may not understand the reporting requirements that they’ll have on their 2014 tax returns,” he said. “So it will be a huge burden on tax preparers to make sure they have the right filing information.
“As a result, many preparers are nervous about the reporting requirements of the Affordable Care Act and being able to comply with those requirements. Many of the people that have taken advantage of the Affordable Care Act likely may not know what information they will need to provide when they file their taxes.”
To help experienced tax preparers wanting to learn about federal tax law changes and updates for this year as well as learn more about issues they may encounter when filing individual and small business 2014 tax returns, the college is offering a series of two-day income tax schools.
The OSU Income Tax Schools are an intermediate-level course that focuses on interpreting tax regulations and changes in tax laws to help tax preparers, accountants, financial planners and attorneys advise their clients, Gearhardt said.
Participants will receive the 2014 National Income Tax Workbook prepared by the Land Grant University Tax Education Foundation for the tax schools held in Ohio and 30 other states.
The tax schools will offer continuing education credit for accountants, enrolled agents, attorneys and certified financial planners, he said.
Topics will include: the Affordable Care Act (both individual and employer); Individual Taxpayer Issues; Business Issues; Agricultural and Natural Resources Issues; Sales of Business Property (Form 4797) Issues; Repair and Capitalization; New Legislation; Rulings and Cases; Foreign Tax Issues; Retirement Issues; and Net Investment Income Tax.
New this year to the school will be a separate webinar on ethics that will be broadcast at 2 p.m. Dec. 17 and 10 a.m. Dec. 19. The webinar is approved by the IRS for two hours of continuing education credits and will be available to tax school participants at no extra charge, Gearhardt said. Also new, the Ohio Department of Taxation will offer a free, half-day educational webinar Dec. 9 on Personal Income Tax and Use Tax updates. A link to the webinar will be sent to all tax school attendees, he said.
“If our attendees take advantage of all we have to offer, they can get continuing education credits at a great rate,” Gearhardt said.
The preregistration fee for each workshop is $335, with late registration $385. The fee includes all materials, lunches and refreshments. The deadline to enroll is 10 business days prior to the date of each school. This year, participants will also have a choice to attend one day of the workshop at a reduced rate of $200.
The schools run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the following dates at these locations:
Fremont – November 10-11
Ole Zim’s Wagonshed
1387 State Route 590, Gibsonburg
Columbus – November 12-13
Bridgewater Banquet & Conference Center
10561 Sawmill Parkway, Powell
Kent – November 17-18
Kent State University-Student Center
1075 Risman Drive, Kent
Dayton – November 20-21
Presidential Banquet Center
4548 Presidential Way, Kettering
Lima – Nov. 24-25
Old Barn Out Back
3175 W. Elm Street, Lima
Ashland – Dec. 1-2
Ashland University-Convocation Center
401 College Ave., Ashland
Chillicothe - Dec. 4-5
Ross County Service Center
475 Western Ave., Chillicothe
Zanesville – Dec. 10-11
Ohio University-Zanesville Branch Campus Center
1425 Newark Road, Zanesville
Source:purdue.edu