TRN Podcast

In this week’s episode of the TRN Podcast, Eric is chatting about the eight things he personally believes are the secret to life and practice. Throughout his career, he’s commonly asked questions like, “How did you stay motivated to building a practice?” and “What did it take for you to go out on your own?”

Eric openly admits that he’s not a motivational speaker, yet he has learned many valuable lessons and tips along his journey—lessons and tips he wants to share with listeners today.

His first piece of advice: Wake up early!

Waking up early is the easiest way for you to build a practice. He originally built his practice on the side of his day job. To accomplish this, he got up every morning at 4:30 and would work on his own projects until 7:30 or 8:00 AM, and then he would go to his regular job.

Think of it this way: It’s important to invest at least 15 hours a week into your side hustle—whatever that side hustle is for you. And don’t use the excuse, “I don’t have time.” If something matters to you and it’s important to you, you’ll find the time to get it done.

Interested in learning Eric’s other seven secrets to building a successful life and practice? Don’t miss the full episode of the TRN Podcast—available now!

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During this week’s episode of the TRN Podcast, Eric makes the conversation short and sweet, as he discusses an important topic: tax rep clients. Specifically, he asks if the tax rep client is an ugly stepsister or pure gold?

He brings up this question because he’s recently noticed these two schools of thought within the industry. Many accountants and many accounting firms view the tax rep client—the person that comes to them with a problem—as the ugly stepsister, as if something is wrong with them. Further, if the person in question is an existing client, then he or she is often thought of as some sort of failure and can’t be trusted.

Eric uses examples from his own practice to show why he doesn’t agree with this method.

Eric states, “My clients run the gamut. I have some people at one end who are criminals; at the other end, I have people that have had horrific things happen to them. So, this idea that somehow a tax rep client falls into one bucket or another, is just not accurate.

“You kind of take people the way you find them. Some people come in really broken, some people come in basically evil, and there’s every kind of stripe and color and flavor in between.”

Have you thought about this particular issue? Where do you fall on the spectrum?

To listen to Eric’s full in-depth discussion, don’t miss the latest episode of the TRN Podcast—available now!

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This week’s podcast topic is offers-in-compromise with the IRS. It’s common to believe that when you receive a rejection for your offer from the IRS—whatever the circumstances may be—that the rejection is final. However, that’s not always the case. Attorney Eric Green shares an example from a recent encounter that prompted this particular conversation in which an offer—a good offer—had been rejected.

The takeaway? It’s imperative for you to not always assume that the IRS employees know what they’re talking about or are offering you good, transparent information.

As Eric states, “Don’t assume that the IRS person at the other end is trained, that the IRS person at the other end cares, or that they’re going to go out of their way to help you or even fix it.”

Eric provides tips for if or when you happen to find yourself in a similar situation. Just remember, you will need to do the work and have the facts that support your case readily available. Yet, don’t be afraid to fight for your rights.

Could you use some more guidance when it comes to an offer-in-compromise with the IRS? Listen to the full episode of this week’s Podcast right here!

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On this week’s episode of the Tax Rep Network Podcast, we have Marcelino Dodge joining us. For those of you listening who don’t already know, Marcelino is the President of Cash Tracks Financial, a firm that provides personalized professional tax, insurance, and investment services to individuals and businesses. Additionally, he’s the voice of the Tax Answers Advisor Podcast, where he offers insight and planning tips.

Today, Marcelino is here to discuss a topic that is particularly hot: helping taxpayers work better with a tax professional.

To begin the conversation, Marcelino states what important qualities someone should look for in a tax professional, such as finding someone who is an Enrolled Agent. He mentions that while CPAs do great work, not all CPAs specialize in tax. Further, there are different levels of commitment when searching for tax assistance. For example, there are year-round businesses, individuals who only work a few months out of the year, and some who only open their offices a day or two a week.

The point is argued that it may be in your best interest—depending on your specific situation—to find a tax professional who is at the top of their game and knows the industry inside and out. This, of course, means someone who dedicates their full time to staying up-to-date on trends and how the tax world is constantly evolving.

If you’ve ever wondered whether or not you have the best tax professional on your side, this episode of the podcast is for you. Listen now!

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This week’s episode of the TRN Podcast is a quick one, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less important. In fact, we felt it was necessary to give a fast update because this topic is so significant right now.

The IRS recently posted a new announcement to its website stating that the IRS Enforcement and Compliance Operations are officially now back to normal. What does this mean? It means that the IRS has flipped the switch on automated levies and on automated notices of federal taxing.

The switch was officially flipped on June 15^th. As a result, roughly millions upon millions upon millions (yes, it’s that rough) of final notices and LT11s, will go out to taxpayers. Additionally, notices of federal tax liens will go out, because, since April 2020, the IRS has held off on this tactic due to COVID-19.

Simply put, it seems as if the IRS is viewing the world as “back to normal.” As such, it’s time to start enforcing normal responsibilities again. That being said, with LT11s and final notices of intent-to-levies going out, what do you need to know? What should you be doing right now?

Tune in to this week’s podcast episode. These questions—and plenty more—will be answered in detail to help ensure you’re taking the right measures for yourself and your business.

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We have John Nail and Laura Gavioli joining Eric for this week’s episode of the TRN Podcast, and the discussion revolves around voluntary disclosure.

John is a tax controversy attorney with Chamberlain Hrdlicka in Atlanta, Georgia. He focuses on civilly and criminally representing taxpayers before the IRS and exams appeal litigation in federal district court and US tax court.

Laura is also a tax controversy attorney, but with Alston Bird in New York. She represents those taxpayers facing civil and criminal tax issues.

Additionally, John, Laura, and Eric Green are committee buddies from the ABA tax section, the civil and criminal penalties’ committee, where they are all part of the subcommittee on voluntary disclosures.

Naturally, John and Laura are perfect for this conversation.

Once introductions are made to the audience, Eric begins the chat by mentioning that the IRS has had a domestic voluntary disclosure program for quite some time. Then, John describes what voluntary disclosure really is and how it works.

Specifically, today, voluntary disclosure is geared towards all types of tax—both foreign and domestic. John states, “The concept of the voluntary disclosure is the taxpayer coming forward in a timely manner, providing truthful and complete information—a lot of information—to the government.”

And if you want to hear the rest, you’ll have to listen to the full podcast—available now!

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Joining this week’s episode of the Tax Rep Network Podcast is Megan Brackney. Megan is a partner at Kostelanetz & Fink in New York, where she does civil and criminal tax controversy work.

Before joining the Kostelanetz & Fink team, Megan was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York. Additionally, she was an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Missouri. Today, she is consistently recognized as one of New York’s super lawyers. She has given speeches all over the United States and written extensively on tax controversies, matrimonial divorce issues, immigration, and tax issues.

Megan is with us now to discuss Form 8300. The 8300 is the form that reports the receipt of cash payments of over $10,000 received in trade or business. It can be administered under the Bank Secrecy Act, but also under the Internal Revenue Code.

In Megan’s words, “Essentially, the form is a way for the IRS and treasury to track cash transactions that occur in the United States. And so, as the form indicates, if you receive more than $10,000 in a transaction or related transactions in a trade or business, the business is required to file this form and take some other steps related to compliance under these statutes.”

And that’s only the beginning of our chat! There’s plenty more in store.

If you are interested in learning about Form 8300, including specific details and explanations from Megan, then you don’t want to miss the full podcast. Available now!

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Joining the Tax Rep Network Podcast this week is Alex Robnett, the Chief Strategy Officer at Elementus, a blockchain data firm headquartered in New York. With previous roles involved in front office work, risk management, and operations for several insurers, Alex now focuses his efforts on communicating Elementus’ superior ability to index blockchain information while handling business operations for a growing company.

Alex is here to continue the chat we’ve been having for a few weeks now that centers around IRS enforcement. Specifically, there is a correlation between IRS enforcement and blockchain technology, which is just one topic Alex is going to discuss in detail.

To give you a little bit of background on Alex: He holds a BS in Business Administration from the University of Tennessee and a Masters of Finance from Fairfield University.

Towards the beginning of the conversation, Alex notes that there are numerous buzzwords floating around his industry right now. He begins by referring to a ledger, in the realm of cryptocurrency, and the idea that cryptocurrency runs on decentralized technology, the notion of a decentralized ledger is considered blockchain technology.

What does this mean, exactly? You’ll have to listen to the full conversation to find out. Additionally, if you’re an accountant or related to the industry in some manner, then you’ll have no problem following along. You’ll even find the episode informative and very interesting.

The episode is available now; don’t miss it!

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On this week’s episode of the TRN Podcast, we’re talking more about whistleblower cases. Specifically, this conversation gives the IRS’s perspective. Joining us again is Mike Villa, as well as Supervisory Special Agent Gary Alford. Gary was previously on the podcast to discuss Silk Road. We felt it was important for the audience to gain a deeper, firsthand understanding of what happens when these cases are brought to the attention of an IRS professional, and what occurs afterward.

To start, for those who didn’t tune in for the first segment on whistleblower cases, Mike offers a bit of a recap. He mentions how the whistleblower program works, particularly what happens when a third party brings to the attention of the government unfiled forms, misfiled forms, and/or unpaid taxes. Of course, the person who brings this information forward is eligible for a whistleblower reward. However, before that can take place, the entire process begins with Form 211. Once Form 211 is filled out properly and filed, it is up to the IRS to either make a case or not. Please note: This is all information that was highlighted in the first podcast episode dedicated to whistleblower cases.

Moving forward, Mike and Gary share their specific encounters with whistleblower cases, giving an interesting insight into their personal experiences. We guarantee you won’t want to miss this chat! Even if you missed the previous whistleblower episode, this second edition is still enjoyable and easy to follow. Or, better yet, go back and listen to the first episode before playing this one. Available now!

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This week’s episode, Episode 100, marks a milestone for Tax Rep Network Podcast. Joining podcast host Eric Green is Amy Vetter, an accomplished entrepreneur, business executive, national speaker, CPA, yoga practitioner, and technologist. She is a third-generation woman entrepreneur who has launched and sold multiple businesses including owning and operating her own yoga studios, accounting practice, and other business ventures.

Before Amy began her entrepreneurial journey, she was Partner at a CPA firm—which is “the ultimate goal” for many in the industry. But Amy decided that it wasn’t the right path for her. So, what happens when you decide your current career isn’t what you want to be doing?

The truth is: there are many unhappy people out there who are stuck in a career they hate, but are hesitant to change the status quo. What they don’t realize is that this change doesn’t need to be the radical shift it sounds like–it’s completely doable!

In this episode, the topic of discussion is “How to Do What You Love.” Eric and Amy will discuss how those who are struggling with their job and career can make a change and begin doing what they love. Listen in as both Eric and Amy dish about how they made their major career changes and have never looked back.  Find out what you can do today to start doing what you love in TRN’s centennial podcast episode.

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