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NHLPA's Kelly speaks: Part Two
NHLPA supports continuing Victoria Cup, iffy on no-touch icing
Paul Kelly contemplates a question from IIHF.com. Photo: Matthew Manor / HHoF-IIHF Images.
BERNE - In Part Two of IIHF.com's exclusive interview with Paul Kelly, the NHLPA Executive Director discusses player safety, draft rights, the need for a transfer agreement and other issues.
Each year, there are a number of 18- and 19-year-old players who are eligible to play in the World Juniors but are not released by their NHL clubs for what is a never-to-be-repeated opportunity. Is there enough interest on the part of the eligible players to make being released for the tournament something that you would want to include in a future CBA?
I tracked that this year fairly closely because I knew a lot of the young players: Steve Stamkos, Drew Doughty, Luke Schenn, fellows that were playing full-time for NHL teams and had played successfully in the World Juniors the year before. I can tell you that once those guys cross that threshold and are playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs or whomever, their focus is on playing for their NHL team. I don't think that they really would have liked to have been pulled out of that environment and put into the World Juniors for two or three weeks. And they would rightfully fear how that would be taken by their teammates and fans of the team. They want to continue to develop. So it's not an issue we feel strongly about at this point. It actually gives an opportunity for a new generation of players to participate in the tournament each year and show their talents, expose themselves to scouts and teams around the world. I would envision a lot of resistance from NHL general managers about losing those young kids at critical points in the season. That's a fight I don't want to pick at this point.
One thing that the IIHF wants, and that you aren't in favour of, is extending the two-year period for signing drafted European players to four years. Why are you opposed to this?
We believe that players should be treated equally, regardless of what country they're from, in terms of their NHL draft rights. We don't see a reason why Russian and European players should be treated differently than North American players and therefore be exposed to a larger signing window. I have heard the argument that players from some European countries are believed to mature later than their North American counterparts. I don't know if that is accurate or not. I suspect you could come up with examples that would support it and examples that would contradict it. We're for fairness across the board. Getting the signing window to two years was the product of long, detailed negotiations. It's fully supported by our membership and the agents who represent them. I see virtually no likelihood that we will change.
We offered to enlarge the mandatory return provision as a kind of middle ground. Under the old transfer agreement, only 18- and 19-year-old players had to be returned to their home country if they didn't make an NHL roster within the first 10 days or two weeks of a season. We offered to expand that to cover 20- and 21-year-olds, and perhaps to consider other modifications, to give the player other options if he doesn't make an NHL lineup to start the season. To play in the minor leagues in Canada, or to play in his home country. If it's a better fit for him to go back home, even if his NHL GM would prefer to see him play in Manitoba or some place, it should be the player's right to choose. If you did that, I believe more players would go back and play for their European teams for another year or two. I think that would be a good thing for hockey generally.
Is having a player transfer agreement important to the NHLPA and the health of international hockey?
Yes, it is. I'd like to see us have a new agreement in place, one that works for everybody. One that provides enough financial support to the European countries so that they can continue their developmental programs, but does not damage their programs. We recognize it's important for the European clubs to be strong, to have enough talent to stock their teams and bring crowds into the buildings and provide players for their national teams. There are a lot of competing interests here, but when you don't have a transfer agreement, what you have is hostility. I don't know that hockey without a transfer agreement is in the best interest of the European or Russian hockey communities, because most young hockey players that have a certain level of talent will want to play in the NHL. They will want to follow in the footsteps of their countrymen that have excelled in the NHL and gone on to make lots of money and live in nice places, and come home as heroes. That will not only always exist, but I think it'll continue to expand. So that draw of the NHL will always be there. The NHL will exist without a transfer agreement, and in fact, will flourish without a transfer agreement.
But I'm not so sure that the flip side of that is true. A transfer agreement will help to ease relationships. We went a whole year without money flowing back to the European federations, millions of dollars that could be used to develop those programs. That's unfortunate. It saved money for the NHL and NHL clubs. But for hockey generally, we should find something that works. The IIHF has made a proposal. We've responded. They've sent back a counter-proposal. Now the ball is in the court of the NHL and NHLPA to respond again, and I hope we find something that works.
If a NHLer signs with a KHL club, for instance, are you happy for the player? Or is the PA only intended for active NHL players under contract?
We represent players, so any time a player can end up in a situation that's good for him and his family, we're happy for him. If Jaromir Jagr, at the end of his career, is able to get a contract that pays him handsomely to play hockey in the KHL, we're fine with that. I don't think there are a large number of NHLers who would seriously consider playing in the KHL. I think it would be difficult for many guys from the US or Canada to play in any other city than Moscow or St. Petersburg. It's a huge leap for European players as well as North Americans. I don't think there's a risk that pure dollars are suddenly going to siphon off players from the NHL. Yes, there'll be three or four or five guys every year, and that's fine. We wish them well. I understand Richard Zednik, who played for Florida last year, has committed to the KHL for next season. Richard's a fine player and we enjoyed having him, but I'm sure he'll do well in the KHL. He's opened up a spot for another young guy to come in and take his NHL role.
What about the Victoria Cup? How do you see this event evolving in the future?
We hope it stays as it is. The NHLPA strongly supports the Champions Hockey League. We think it's good for hockey. I know the NHL strongly supports it as well. My understanding is that the NHL had a chance to show its financial support to the CHL. We're not in a position as a union to do that, but if we can show support to the CHL and European hockey generally by having one of our NHL teams participate in the Victoria Cup, then that's something we'll do. I know they originally wanted to have the Stanley Cup champion, and I tend to agree with the NHL that that's a difficult thing for us to commit to long-term. The Stanley Cup champion team plays until the middle of June. They have a very short off-season. To then require that team to get up to par quickly so they can participate in a competitive world championship in September is, I think, asking a bit too much of our players. Finding one of our stronger, high-profile teams, like the Rangers last year or the Blackhawks this year, to represent the NHL is a good balance. It makes for exciting hockey.
From the standpoint of player safety, what is the PA's position on potentially adopting IIHF rules on things like hits to the head or no-touch icing?
No-touch icing is something we've discussed with our Competition Committee. I can tell you there isn't a great deal of support or traction for it. What we did do is modify our icing rule to make it clear there can be no physical contact between two players, either body-to-body or stick-to-body, on a race to the puck on an icing play. If there is, it's met with very strong penalties and possible suspensions. That worked very well this year in our sport. Last year we had a very bad injury to Kurtis Foster of the Minnesota Wild as a result of one of those contacts in a race for the puck. That's what we want to eliminate. But for the most part, we like the fact that touch icing keeps the game flowing. If an offensive player beats the defenceman back and keeps the play alive, it can generate scoring and excitement in the game. We don't look to go to no-touch icing.
When it comes to player safety and head shots, I think we have been on the cutting edge of that in the NHL. We have actually proposed that the league adopt a rule prohibiting certain hits to the head, not all. We think it needs to involve the following elements. First, you have to have a player who's in a vulnerable position. Second, you need to have an attacking player who either intentionally or recklessly targets the head of the opposing player and makes contact with a hand, elbow or a shoulder, which is different from how it is now. Right now, in the NHL, you can see a guy coming across the ice with his head turned, and you can drop your shoulder and strike him in the head and do serious damage, and there would be no penalty. Those are the types of hits that we feel need to be eliminated. We're not in favour of eliminating all hits to the head, simply because in our sport, there are many times when it's a truly accidental or inadvertent hit to the head. It just happens. Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins is 6-foot-9. He hits guys in the head all the time, because he towers over them, and it's impossible for him to play the game without making contact with the heads of other players. We have a lot of guys that are 6-foot-6, 6-foot-7. We also don't want to stifle the physical play in the sport. In NHL hockey, you've got to be tough. It's a tough, tough game. Fans like the hitting. Players like the hitting. If you adopt a no-hits-to-the-head rule, you are going to impact that somewhat. We're trying to ensure player safety without altering the game.
If you could do something that might not help the PA very much but would be good for the general health of the game, would you do it?
Let me put it this way. I have a fiduciary responsibility, a duty, to represent my members. That means I have an obligation to all of them. I can't just allow my personal views to govern my actions if my views are different from those of my members. That said, there are occasions where I'm called upon to make decisions that perhaps aren't embraced by all my members. One example would be the question of fighting in the NHL. I probably have 60 or 70 players who are fighters, enforcers, and don't want there to be any changes whatsoever to fighting in hockey. That said, I do think we could make changes. I don't think we should allow take-downs; I do think that guys should keep their helmets on in a fight. I don't particularly like pre-arranged or staged fights that don't arise from the emotion of the game. I think that fights that arise from coming to the defence of a teammate, particularly a goalie, are part of the sport, and as long as they don't get carried away, I don't have a problem with it. I have advocated positions that haven't made all my members happy. But that's part of the job. I won't hesitate to take positions that are good for the sport as a whole, and good for my members in terms of health, safety, working conditions, and compensation, and I'll continue to do that.
As a leader on the grand jury investigation into Alan Eagleson in the 1990s, you know better than anybody about what went wrong with the relationship between the NHLPA and its involvement in international hockey at that time. What kind of checks and balances does the PA have in place today to make sure that nobody uses international hockey as a means to illicit personal profit again?
It's remarkable, the extent to which we have checks and balances now. We have an ombudsman. We have an advisory board. We've separated the role of general counsel from the role of executive director. Mr. Eagleson was the executive director and general counsel. In addition, at the same time as he was running the union, he was the lead agent for probably most of the players in the NHL--certainly most of the star players. He also sat on a number of boards. He had no ombudsman, no advisory board, no oversight whatsoever. He also had young players, most of whom didn't have more than a high school education and didn't have the necessary background to call him when they thought things were suspicious or questionable.
Things have changed dramatically. Players are smarter. They pay attention. There are layers of audits and checks. The pendulum has probably swung too far, but if anyone understands why, it's me. [laughs] I saw what happens when you allow too free a rein. Of course, I come from an anti-corruption environment. For many years, I put people in jail for dishonesty. Drug trafficking, corruption, bribery. I'm really hostile to that. I really try in a very careful way to avoid it or any appearance of it. So even if I didn't have an ombudsman, an advisory board, and all these layers of checks and balances, I would never cross that line. Needless to say, I don't think there will be any more Alan Eagleson-type stories in the National Hockey League Players Association, certainly not while I'm around.
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Brady Expects "Phase Two" Tax Reform Outline by August
A "phase two" tax reform outline could be unveiled by House GOP tax writers by August. Republicans have started to increase their tax meetings related to the effort, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Tex., told reporters on June 13.
Tax Reform "2.0" Timeline
The precise timing of a "phase two" tax reform bill or discussion draft release remains "to-be-determined," a House Ways and Means Committee spokesperson told Wolters Kluwer on June 14. However, Brady told reporters he expects to see a legislative package outlined before the House's August recess.
Previously, White House Legislative Affairs Director Marc Short predicted a late-summer release of the House's tax bill. Further, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has predicted that the House will approve the measure before midterm elections in November.
Individual Tax Cuts
Brady reiterated to reporters that "phase two" will focus on the individual side of the tax code. Moreover, making permanent the individual tax cuts enacted under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) ( P.L. 115-97) will be the "centerpiece" of a " phase two" bill, Brady reportedly said. Additionally, Republican tax writers are considering proposals that would streamline the retirement savings process, a Ways and Means spokesperson previously told Wolters Kluwer.
Phase Two Fate Uncertain
The next major tax bill's fate in the Senate remains uncertain. At least nine Democratic votes will be needed to reach the Senate's 60-vote threshold. Brady has said he is hopeful for Democratic support.
However, Democratic lawmakers in the House and Senate remain largely opposed to the TCJA. Democrats have criticized the TCJA for primarily benefiting corporations. However, House Republicans are hopeful for bipartisan support on a new measure that focuses primarily on individual tax cuts.
Senate, House Lawmakers Introduce Bipartisan Historic Rehabilitation Credit Bill
A bipartisan group of House and Senate lawmakers have introduced companion Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit (HTC) bills. The measure aims to strengthen the HTC by encouraging investment and minimizing administrative burdens, according to the lawmakers.
Rehabilitation Credit
As amended by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) ( P.L. 115-97), the rehabilitation credit under Code Sec. 47 is limited to 20 percent of qualified rehabilitation expenditures (QREs) of the taxpayer for qualified rehabilitated buildings. The credit is claimed ratably over a five-year period beginning in the tax year in which the rehabilitated building is placed in service. A "qualified rehabilitated building" (QRB) is a building and its structural components for which depreciation is allowable, and that has been substantially rehabilitated and placed in service before the beginning of the rehabilitation. The building must be a certified historic structure, but any expenditure attributable to rehabilitation of the structure is not a QRE unless it is a certified rehabilitation.
Property is considered substantially rehabilitated only if the expenditures during an elected 24-month measurement period (60-month period for phased rehabilitations) ending with or within the tax year are greater than the adjusted basis of the property or $5,000.
Basis-Adjustment Requirement
The bipartisan Historic Tax Credit Enhancement Bill, introduced June 13, would eliminate the existing basis-adjustment requirement. Eliminating this requirement would "bring the HTC in line with other tax credits claimed over multiple years," according to a joint press release by the bill's sponsors.
The measure was introduced by Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., Ben Cardin, D-Md., and Susan Collins, R-Me., and Reps. Darin LaHood, R-Ill., and Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore. "Protecting this credit was one of my top priorities in tax reform, and I'm glad there is bipartisan support for making it even better," Cassidy said in the joint press release. Cardin praised the measure for helping to create economic growth.
Improved HTC
Likewise, Collins said the bill would make the HTC easier to use as well as create economic development across the country. Additionally, an improved HTC would create jobs, according to Blumenauer. "Strengthening the Historic Tax Credit will further revitalize American cities while creating local jobs and spurring economic development in communities large and small," Blumenauer said.
Ways and Means Approves IRS Hiring, Agriculture Tax Reform Bills
House tax writers have moved two bills through committee. The bills focus on IRS hiring and the tax treatment of mutual ditch irrigation companies. The House Ways and Means Committee approved the measures in a June 21 markup.
IRS Hiring
The Ensuring Integrity in the IRS Workforce bill (HR 3500) would set certain restrictions on the IRS's hiring policy. The bipartisan bill would amend Code Sec. 7804 to prohibit the rehiring of any employee previously dismissed for certain misconduct issues.
The bill comes after two Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) reports noted that the IRS rehired hundreds of former employees with conduct violations. Over 200 of the more than 2,000 former employees rehired between January 2015 and March 2016 were previously terminated from the IRS for a substantiated conduct or performance issue, according to a July 2017 TIGTA report. Inspector General J. Russell George previously told lawmakers that the particular IRS hiring process is "bad decision making."
The bill, sponsored by Reps. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., originally passed the House with bipartisan support in the 114th Congress. However, the Senate never took up the measure. Also, Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., introduced a related bill in the Senate.
"If a person is fired for falsifying information or mishandling sensitive taxpayer data, it's common sense that individuals should not be rehired," Noem said in a June 21 press release. "Nonetheless, the IRS has done this repeatedly."
Agriculture Tax Reform
Additionally, the Ways and Means Committee approved the Water and Agriculture Tax Reform bill (HR 519). The bill aims to facilitate water leasing and transfers to promote conservation and efficiency. HR 519 would amend the "tax treatment of mutual water storage and delivery companies so that they can maintain their nonprofit status even if more than 15 percent of their revenue comes from nonmembers," according to a June 21 press release by the bill's sponsor, Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo.
HR 519 and HR 3500 are now headed to the House floor.
ABA Section of Taxation Writes Hatch, Wyden About IRS Reform
The American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Taxation has expressed concerns to top Senate tax writers about certain congressional IRS reform efforts. The ABA Section of Taxation sent a June 6 letter to Senate Finance Committee (SFC) Chairman Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah and ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., regarding the House-approved bipartisan Taxpayer First Act (HR 5444).
IRS Reform
"The administrative reforms included in the House bills are a welcome step forward," Hatch previously told Wolters Kluwer. The House passed a package of bills in April, which aims to restructure the IRS for the first time in 20 years. Hatch told Wolters Kluwer that he is looking forward to working with his colleagues to find a path forward that reflects both House and Senate views on IRS reform.
While the SFC considers the House's IRS reform package, the ABA Section of Taxation has asked Senate tax writers to consider certain suggestions to enhance IRS restructuring efforts. "We appreciate that Congress has turned its attention to the relationship between taxpayers and the agency charged with the assessment and collection of taxes," the letter said. The ABA Section of Taxation agrees with most of the House-proposed changes but has concerns with certain aspects of the bill, the letter noted.
The House bill, HR 5444, proposes the establishment of an independent Office of Appeals along with a "generally available" right to appeal for taxpayers. While the letter to Hatch and Wyden supports a statutory right to appeals, among other things, it expresses concern that the IRS could limit certain taxpayer's access to an appeal. "To the extent that the Service wishes to deny appeal rights to taxpayers, it should be required to articulate objective standards for when appeals will not be available, so that any Service determination to deny appeal rights can be measured against those standards," the letter said.
Additionally, the letter proposes that Congress remove certain limiting words from the bill's provisions that discuss taxpayers' rights to access case files. Currently, the bill states that only "specified taxpayers" will automatically be provided access to their case files. The ABA Section of Taxation urges Congress to allow all taxpayers access to information in their case file, regardless of income thresholds.
Senate Timeline
As for when the SFC will release its anticipated amendments to the House-approved IRS reform package remains unclear. The Senate's legislative efforts toward restructuring the IRS are expected among lawmakers to be bipartisan.
Railroad Stock Options Are Not Money Remuneration Under RRTA
The U.S. Supreme Court has determined that nonqualified employee stock options are not taxable compensation under the Railroad Retirement Tax Act (RRTA). The term "money remuneration" in the Act unambiguously excludes "stock."
Several railroads filed a refund claim for overpaid Railroad Retirement taxes. The railroads claimed they overpaid their taxes because they included the value of employee stock options when calculating the tax.
The IRS denied the refund request. The IRS argued that stock options were taxable "money remuneration" under the RRTA because stock can be easily converted into money.
The railroads replied that stock options are not money. Moreover, they argued that when Congress passed the RRTA, it sought to mimic existing industry pension practices. Generally, those practices ignored in-kind benefits like food, lodging, and railroad tickets.
Stock Options Not Money
When Congress adopted the RRTA in 1937, it understood "money" as "currency issued by a recognized authority as a medium of exchange." Stock options do not fall within this definition.
Further, while stock can be bought or sold for money, it is not usually considered a medium of exchange. Few people value goods and services using stock, or buy groceries or pay rent with stock.
Also, adding the word remuneration did not alter the meaning of the word money. Thus, "any form of money remuneration" indicated that Congress wanted to tax money compensation. It did not indicate that Congress wanted to tax things, like stock, that are not money.
Statutory Context
Moreover, the broader statutory context pointed to the same conclusion. For example, the 1939 Internal Revenue Code treated money and stock differently. However, the Federal Insurance Contribution Act taxes all remuneration, including benefits paid in a medium other than cash.
Further, a contemporaneous IRS rule explained that the RRTA taxed all money compensation. The rule lists examples like salaries, wages, commissions and bonuses. It also included things that could be used as money, like scrip. However, the rule did not suggest that stock was taxable compensation.
Thus, Congress knew the difference between money and other forms of compensation. The choice of Congress to use the narrower term for railroad pensions had to be respected.
Reversing and remanding CA-7, 2017-2 ustc ¶50,295.
Indian Gaming Income Distributions Were Not Excludible General Welfare Payments
A member of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida had to pay federal income tax on distributions of gaming income that she and her family received from the tribe. The payments were taxable income under the Indian Gaming Revenue Act, rather than Indian general welfare benefits that were excluded from tax under Code Sec. 139E. Both the taxpayer and the tribe were bound by the decision.
Tribal Distributions
The Miccosukee Tribe distributed income to its members in quarterly payments. Historically, these payments were in the $20 to $25 range. In 1990, however, the tribe opened a gaming center that offered high-stakes bingo, poker, and video pull-tab machines. The tribe's income, and its distributions to its members, increased substantially.
Each quarter, the tribe used the revenue of the gaming activities to fund per capita distributions to its members. But the tribe disregarded its federal tax obligations on these distributions. It neither reported the distributions nor withheld taxes on them. The tribe also told its members not to discuss the payments with outsiders, not to report them to credit card agencies, and not to cash the distribution checks in places that would report them to the IRS.
For the tax year at issue, the taxpayer received a total of $272,000, which represented payments for herself, her husband, and her two children. She did not file a tax return or pay any income tax for that year.
After the IRS assessed tax, interest and penalties against her, the taxpayer attempted to file a late return that reported the $272,000 as nontaxable income. She did not pay any of her assessment. The tribe intervened in her case as a matter of right.
District Court Decision
The District Court agreed with the IRS that the payments were distributions of gaming income that were fully taxable to the taxpayer. Most of the funds came from the gaming operation. The taxpayer and the tribe did not show what portion may have come from other, nontaxable sources.
Although the $272,000 included payments on behalf of the taxpayer's husband and children, the taxpayer was responsible for tax on the entire amount. The tribe was structured as a matriarchy. Thus, the taxpayer was the head of her household, and the payments were all made available to her. She also spent all of the payments on household expenses, and she had reported all of the payments as her income when she tried to file a late return.
IGRA vs GWEA
The main issue on appeal was whether the tribe's distributions were covered by the Indian Gaming Revenue Act or the Tribal General Welfare Exclusion Act.
The Indian Gaming Revenue Act (IGRA) was passed in 1988. It allows an Indian tribe to engage in gaming and distribute the revenue to members on a per capita basis. It also explicitly includes those distributions in a tribe member's taxable income.
Code Sec. 139E was enacted in 2014 as part of the Tribal General Welfare Exclusion Act (GWEA). It excludes from federal taxation any payment made or services provided to or on behalf of an Indian tribe member under an Indian tribal government program. To be excludible, benefits provided under the program must be for the promotion of general welfare.
The court held that the exemption for Indian general welfare benefits under Code Sec. 139Edoes not apply to the per capita payments an Indian tribe makes from gaming revenue.
The taxpayer and the tribe claimed that GWEA effectively amended IGRA because it was more recent. The court disagreed, clarifying that IGRA applied only to gaming income, while GWEA was a law of general application. Thus, under the rules of statutory construction, IGRA continued to apply to distributions of gaming income because it was more specific than GWEA.
The court also rejected the characterization of the payments as distributions of the tribe's tax revenues rather than its gaming income. The tax did not affect the nature of the gaming income. Instead, it was merely a mechanism to collect the income and distribute it to members.
The distributions also were not nontaxable income from Indian land, because they did not come directly from the use of the reservation land or its resources. Instead, the distributions came from improvements and related business activities–that is, gambling in the casino.
Effect on the Tribe
The tribe argued that it should not be included in the District Court's judgment. However, the tribe had intervened as a matter of right because, if the court determined the payments were taxable, the tribe would have to report them and withhold income tax from them.
As an intervenor, the tribe had the same status as an original party. It also fully participated in the trial by arguing motions, attending depositions, presenting evidence, and examining witnesses. Thus, it was bound by the District Court's judgment.
Affirming a DC Fla. decision, 2016-2 ustc ¶50,474.
Shareholder Could Not Claim S Corporation's FICA Tip Credits
An individual shareholder of an S corporation restaurant operator was not allowed to claim FICA tip credits under Code Sec. 45B that the S corporation did not claim. The shareholder could not unilaterally and retroactively nullify the S corporation's election to deduct FICA tip taxes.
The restaurants owned by the S corporation had hired "tipped employees" whose earnings came partly from customer tips. The S corporation was required to pay taxes on these tips as part of its FICA tax payments. For the two tax years at issue, the S corporation did not claim any FICA tip credits. Instead, the S corporation deducted its payments of the FICA tip taxes on its Forms 1120S, and did not later amend those returns.
On his amended Forms 1040 for those tax years, the shareholder claimed he was entitled to flowthrough FICA tip credits with respect to his interest in the S corporation.
FICA Tip Credit
Code Sec. 45B allows an employer working in the food and beverage industry to claim business tax credits for the portion of the FICA taxes—i.e., social security and Medicare taxes—that it paid on employee tips in excess of the minimum wage. The employer must have employees who receive tips from customers for providing food or beverages for consumption, and must be deemed to have paid FICA taxes on the tips in excess of the minimum wage. The employer must not have already claimed a deduction for the FICA tax payment. An employer claims its FICA tip credits on Form 8846.
Here, when the S corporation chose to deduct its FICA tax payments, it had made an election not to claim any FICA tip credits. The S corporation never claimed or intended to claim FICA tip credits. Based on this reporting position, the shareholder was not entitled to any flowthrough FICA tip credits for either tax year.
S Corporation Elections
Under Code Sec. 1363(c) and its regulations, elections that affect the computation of items derived from an S corporation generally must be made by the S corporation, not separately by its shareholders. There are two exceptions: the shareholder claims any elections (1) for the deduction and recapture of certain mining exploration expenditures, and (2) for foreign tax credits.
In this case, the shareholder argued in effect that the S corporation's election to deduct FICA tax payments could be changed unilaterally by his request, made in his capacity as a shareholder, that the S corporation amend its returns to claim the FICA tip credit. The shareholder's position was rejected based on the plain text of Code Sec. 1363(c), and of Code Sec. 45B(d), which states that the credit does not apply to a taxpayer if the taxpayer elects to have the credit provision not apply.
Further, the Tax Court stated that it refused to create a new precedent that would give each individual shareholder the power to change an S corporation's tax election unilaterally. Such a change, stated the court, would not only affect the tax liabilities of the requesting shareholder, but could also affect the tax liabilities of the shareholders who have not consented to the change.
Final Regulations Bar Corporate Partners from Using Transaction to Avoid Gain
The Treasury Department and the IRS have issued final regulations that:
- prevent a corporate partner from avoiding corporate-level gain through transactions with a partnership involving equity interests of the partner or certain related entities;
- allow consolidated group members that are partners in the same partnership to aggregate their bases in stock distributed by the partnership for purposes of limiting the application of rules that might otherwise cause basis reduction or gain recognition; and
- require certain corporations that engage in gain elimination transactions to reduce the basis of corporate assets or to recognize gain.
The Treasury Decision adopts as final certain rules set forth in proposed regulations issued in 2015, under Code Sec. 337(d) (with only minor, nonsubstantive clarifications) ( NPRM REG-149518-03), and Code Sec. 732(f) ( NPRM REG-138759-14).
The final regulations affect partnerships and their partners, and apply to transactions occurring on or after June 12, 2015. The regulations are effective on June 8, 2018.
Acquisition of Interest in Stock to Avoid Gain on Appreciated Property
A corporation that distributes appreciated property to its shareholders has to recognize gain under Code Secs. 311(b) and 336(a) as if the property were sold to the shareholders for its fair market value. However, taxpayers have tried to postpone or avoiding the recognition of that gain.
For example, if a corporation exchanges appreciated property for its own stock, the corporation would recognize gain on the exchange. But corporations have tried to avoid recognizing that gain by, for example, taking these steps:
- the corporation enters into a partnership and contributes appreciated property;
- the partnership acquires stock of that corporate partner; then
- the partnership makes a liquidating distribution of the stock to the corporate partner.
The final regulations under Code Sec. 337(d) aim to prevent a corporate partner from avoiding gain recognition when it acquires or increases its interest in stock held by a partnership in exchange for appreciated property. Under the final regulations, a corporate partner may recognize gain when it is treated as acquiring or increasing its interest in stock of the corporate partner held by a partnership in exchange for appreciated property in a manner that avoids gain recognition under Code Sec. 311(b) or Code Sec. 336(a). The final regulations also provide exceptions under which a corporate partner is not required to recognize gain.
Limit on Basis Reduction or Gain Recognition for Consolidated Group Members
The final regulations limit rules that cause basis reduction or gain recognition for consolidated group members that are partners in the same partnership. Code Sec. 732(f)limits the basis of a distributed corporation's property if—
- a corporate partner receives a distribution from a partnership of stock in another corporation (distributed corporation);
- the corporate partner has control of the distributed corporation, defined as ownership of stock meeting the requirements of Code Sec. 1504(a)(2), immediately after the distribution or at any time thereafter (control requirement); and
- the partnership's basis in the stock immediately before the distribution exceeded the corporate partner's basis in the stock immediately after the distribution.
Under these circumstances, the basis of the distributed corporation's property must be reduced by this excess. Further, the corporate partner must recognize gain to the extent that the basis of the distributed corporation's property cannot be reduced.
In applying this rule, the final regulations allow the bases of consolidated group members to be aggregated if when two conditions are met: (1) two or more of the corporate partners receive a distribution of stock in a distributed corporation from the partnership; and (2) the distributed corporation is or becomes a member of the distributee partners' consolidated group after the distribution.
Elimination Transactions
Final regulations restrict corporate partners from entering into gain elimination transactions. They focus on attempts to eliminate gain in the stock of a distributed corporation while avoiding the effects of a basis step-down in transactions. Under the regulations, in the event of a gain elimination transaction, Code Sec. 732(f) will apply as though the corporate partner acquired control of the distributed corporation immediately before the gain elimination transaction.
Future Proposed Regs?
The Treasury and IRS are considering publishing a new notice of proposed rulemaking to propose more substantive amendments to the final 337(d) regulations, and to allow for additional public comment with respect to proposals in response to certain comments received, further reflection by the Treasury IRS, and concerns raised by practitioners.
Son-of-BOSS Arrangements
Participants in the Son of BOSS tax shelter have maintained their perfect losing record in the Tax Court. Thus, another Son-of-Boss deal has failed to produce its promised loss deductions.
Son-of-BOSS Arrangements
Son-of-BOSS is a variation of a slightly older tax shelter known as the "bond and options sales strategy," or BOSS. Son-of-BOSS transactions take many forms, but they all have one thing in common: Assets that are encumbered by significant liabilities must always be transferred to a partnership. The goal is to increase basis in that partnership or in the assets themselves.
The liabilities are usually obligations to buy securities. However, they are typically not completely fixed when they are transferred to the partnership.
This contingency is supposed to let the partnership treat the liabilities as uncertain. This, in turn, is supposed to let the partnership ignore the liabilities in computing basis. The result is supposed to give the partners basis in the partnership or in the assets themselves. This increased basis is supposed to translate into large loss deductions for the partners, all with no actual economic losses.
The Tax Court has yet to fall for the scheme.
Invalid Partnerships
The court has used several theories to reject Son-of-Boss losses. In this case, the court once again relied on the fact that the two partnerships involved in the transactions did not actually exist.
The partnerships were invalid because they were created only to carry out tax avoidance schemes. Thus, their members never intended to run any business through them.
The partnerships also failed the "prongified" test for determining whether the parties intended to, and did in fact, join together for the present conduct of an undertaking or enterprise. One managed to scrupulously adhere to the formal requirements for looking like a partnership. However, it did not display any objective indication of a mutual combination for the conduct of an ongoing enterprise.
The second partnership barely even went through the motions. It filed partnership returns and issued K-1s to its purported partners. However:
- There was no evidence the purported partners made any contributions to the partnership;
- The partnership did not have a formal operating agreement;
- The partnership did not conduct any business in its own name;
- There was no real profit for the partners to control or withdraw; and
- The partnership did not keep any books or records.
Since the partnerships were invalid, they were simply disregarded. Thus, the purported partners were treated as directly engaging in the partnerships' activities and directly owning the partnerships' property. This meant that the supposedly separate long and short options that were the heart of the transaction were actually a single-option spread. Thus the options were part of one contract, and they could not be separated to produce artificial losses.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
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What is Accountability – Part 5/5
In administering the accountability process, the Spiritual Hierarchy and star nations obey the various laws that apply at different levels of the universe.
Above all are the natural or universal laws, such as the laws of karma, attraction, and free will.
These are the most basic and binding laws of all. We can think of them as God's laid-on or built-in rules for the way in which life is to proceed.
They precondition and limit any person's action in any given situation in life.
They are not usually negotiable although they may be mitigated by divine Grace. As Sri Ramakrishna reminds us: "He who has made the law can also change it." (1) SaLuSa confirms this fact: "through the Law of Grace you can be allowed to forego karma, providing you have turned to the Light. God is not unreasonable…. The soul that has transgressed and found the path of Light and Love is greeted back as a long lost son." (2)
Our space family also obey their own laws. Earlier we heard SaLuSa refer in passing to how their own courts operate.
"We have Courts that are unlike yours and presided over by many High Beings of Light. Lies and subterfuge have no place in them, because there is no point in trying to deny that which is irrevocable and recorded in the ethers of life." (3)
They also obey those of our laws that are just and equitable. Matthew confirms that accountability is "a process whereby your desires for benevolent changes are being honored within your own laws that were established in honesty and justness but subverted by dark minds to serve their purposes." (4)
The effort of the Light forces to conduct accountability fairly has led to pain-staking efforts to gather evidence. Says Matthew:
"For several years a gigantic amount of investigation has been going on that ultimately will lead to charges of wrongdoing ranging from corruption to crimes against humanity. This far-reaching effort is being accomplished within legal means that require indisputable evidence, an essential but tedious and time-consuming process, and like all legal matters, progressive developments are not publicly reported." (5)
The accountability process is not the first time in our history that the galactics have intervened in the face of attempts to dominate us, SaLuSa explains.
"On Earth you have draconian laws that are often neither fair nor justified, and are in fact introduced purely to keep a firm control over everything you do. You are also subject to Universal Law as we are, and unless they are observed even higher powers will intervene.
"It has happened many times where your civilization is concerned, resulting in meetings and councils to decide the right course of action. Wise souls adjudicate on such occasions and we observe and obey their conclusions." (6)
Ag-Agria tells us that no one in the universe can get away with harming another. All are held accountable and the results of our actions are visited upon us by the natural law.
"Not a single soul can get away with harming another one, without knowing exactly how that soul felt and the effect on their lives. How else will you learn to accept the right of another soul to live in peace, and in a manner chosen by them as part of their life experiences? …
"In the future when you have turned totally to the Light, you will live in absolute harmony and peace with all life. You will then be subject to Universal Law, and to live otherwise would be quite beyond your thinking or actions." (7)
The White Brotherhood and the star nations together will supervise the accountability process. Its purpose is not to punish, but to establish responsibility and to clear the cabal from positions of power over us.
My understanding is that incarnate, terrestrial judges and 3D courts will be used to try the perpetrators. This process of trial and sentencing concludes the legal element of the overall process of accountability.
Apparently, Earth's present-day cabal will be shocked to see the effectiveness and speed of the accountability operation.
"Come the time very soon when positive action is going to be taken against them, they will be shocked at the speed with which their destiny will change. There is not one who shall escape the net that draws ever more tightly around them.
"Justice shall eventually be seen to take place, but in a way quite different to what you have been used to. You will find that it cannot be mocked or denied by some sharp practise, and the truth of any event will be fully known and not subject to falsification or cover-up. (8)
The accountability process will not go on in Western nations alone, Matthew says, but all over the world.
"This is world transformation, not only the purging of one nation's corruption and deception. The light that is cleansing the United States knows no national boundaries—it is permeating every country in your world and beneath all the current foment, positive changes are underway worldwide." (9)
Some areas will take longer than others to transform but, Matthew informs us: "Please do not despair! Within very few years, every country in your world will have honorable, wise leaders and just laws; and tyranny, impoverishment and the inferior status of women will be only lamentable chapters in history books." (10)
Not everyone will welcome the accountability process, according to Ag-Agria: "You might imagine that the truth would be welcomed with open arms, but for many it is seen as a disturbance and interruption to their way of life." (11) But, he reminds us, the accountability process is for the good of all.
"Everyone must consider the broader picture as it is what is good for all and operates in fairness, and stands for equality and justice without favour to any particular group. It must come into being." (12)
Different people will have different reactions, he says, depending on how much they know of the truth of events.
"As evidence comes forth, emotions will be mixed: shock, disbelief, relief. To the people who believe 'official' reports, the revelations are certain to be shocking. Very likely pragmatists will scoff initially, and many, many people will reel. This is understandable, as it is almost impossible to comprehend the vastness, viciousness and secrecy of the darkness that for millennia has controlled everything that affected life on Earth.
"But to all who have been awaiting the disclosure of long-hidden truths, there will be not only relief that the time has come at last, there will be exultation, and it will shared by light beings throughout this universe!" (13)
Diane of Sirius also discusses the impact on us:
"Their actions are no longer secret but even so you will be shocked to learn the extent of their power, and the draconian and fearful measures they have used.
"Some people have been easily fooled, and there remains a difficult period during which we will have to provide much evidence of what has been taking place in your name. That will not tax our ability to do so, and we shall make the truth known on a world-wide basis. Your media will be unable to stifle or hide the truth, and they have been as a guilty as anyone at hiding it." (14)
SaLuSa tells us that over the course of the centuries, almost all of us have been compromised by the cabal or accepted their authority.
""No one likes to be shown as susceptible to the falsehoods that have been presented as the truth. …
"All of you have at various times succumbed to the dark forces, and in your innocence accepted their authority." (15)
Accountability will bring changes in the public sphere, Matthew explains.
"You will see changes in the president's closest advisors. As I told my mother when she was surprised about his appointments and nominees for posts, most notably Hillary Clinton, 'These are not cast in marble,' and I said that Obama was operating in the wisdom of 'Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.'
"You will also see changes in Congress, either a lessening of opposition because members are turning to the light or they will be leaving in disgrace, as will persons in the previous administration." (16)
A new era of openness will follow, says Diane of Sirius. "In the future your leaders will be chosen for their honesty and integrity, and their spiritual awareness. They will speak openly and truthfully and shall intuitively know what is needed.
"Our presence will be as ones who assist in ensuring the new plan eventually works for all people wherever they are, and equality will be our byword as the standards of your lives are raised up. So many problems will be overcome in the first few months of our contact with you." (17)
Our individual sovereignty, dignity, and wellbeing will be restored, SaLuSa says.
"Dear Ones, your time has arrived when your freedom and sovereignty falsely taken from you shall be restored. It may take time to fully do so, but it shall be done with our help. Many reforms will be made with a view to bringing back justice, and seeking out corruption and criminal activity.
"You want a society based upon fairness and honesty where you can trust each other, and that is what you will get. Be assured that the plans for this have already been meticulously made to ensure absolute success. Our allies simply wait their instructions to proceed, and that is not too far away." (18)
Changes will be made to the legal system to make it fair and just, says SaLuSa:
"There will be changes in your laws so that justice can be seen to be operating in a fair manner. Your rights will be restored and fully protected, so that you cannot be held or imprisoned without sufficient evidence. It is also important that you are allowed legal representation as your right, and not held guilty until it is proven.
"Equally as important will be a re-structuring of the powers given to those who apply the law and police your streets. In actual fact, once we come to your Earth and address your problems, and people see a brighter future ahead, the level of crime will dramatically fall. Clearly removing inequality and poverty will by itself remove conditions that often lead to crime. We also see that the need to take drugs to escape your reality, or for social occasions will decline." (19)
Matthew advises us to let go of our anxieties about any current laws or situations.
"Please dismiss concerns about any current or proposed laws, bills, doctrines, customs, policies, treaties or procedures that are based in unfairness or unjustness or present harm to mind, body or spirit. Like everything else in your world that derives from darkness, those will end incrementally along Earth's journey to fourth density, where no darkness can exist." (20)
Although we've been deprived of choice by the Illuminati for many millennia, according to SaLuSa, all that will now end.
"The problem on Earth has been that because the Illuminati have set up a powerful system of control, you have not had any choice in the matter. Through fair means or foul they have repeatedly manipulated voting all over the world, and disposed of people that have stood in their way. …
"They are fearful Beings that live off your fear, but the tables are turning and it is they who are in fear of the consequences of their deeds. No one is so big or clever that they can avoid justice, and of necessity some culprits will be tried under your laws so that the truth can come out. Ultimately every soul stands before the Light, and only the truth can remain within it. (21)
The cabal's own greed is what has finally brought them down, SaLuSa tells us.
"They have been cunning and all-powerful using whatever means that supported their agenda, but power corrupts and it has brought them down. They have imploded through their own greed and egotistical belief in their own immortality. All through your history you will find that the most powerful leaders and their minions, have been the architects of their own demise." (22)
Nonetheless, we are encouraged to refrain from judging them. Correction of their faults will occur as a result of their own life reviews. (23) Ker-On tells us:
"Have no fear that in the long run all will answer for their crimes, but spare your judgment as they will be their own strongest critics when their life reviews take place. Do not spend your energy focusing on the dark and their deeds, but turn to all that is of the Light. That is how you will do your best work, and bring Ascension so much nearer." (24)
This then is the accountability process which will soon be initiated and which will deprive the cabal of position and power. Once it has been concluded, we will know the truth of our history and our individual sovereignty will have been restored. All will proceed according to law and nothing unfair or unjust in our present situation will be permitted to continue.
(See "What is Accountability? – Part 1.)
(1) Paramahansa Ramakrishna, GSR, 817.
(2) SaLuSa, Dec. 11, 2009, at http://www.treeofthegoldenlight.com/First_Contact/Channeled_Messages_by_Mike_Quinsey.htm.
(3) SaLuSa, Sept. 28, 2009, ibid.
(4) Matthew's Message, July 4, 2008, at http://www.matthewbooks.com/mattsmessage.htm.
(5) Matthew's Message, March 10, 2009, ibid.
(6) SaLuSa, May 26, 2010, ibid.
(7) Ag-Agria of Sirius, 1 September 2008, at http://www.treeofthegoldenlight.com/First_Contact/Channeled_Messages_by_Mike_Quinsey.htm
(8) SaLuSa, Sept. 28, 2009, ibid.
(9) Matthew's Message, March 10, 2009, ibid.
(10) Matthew's Message, March 10, 2009, ibid.
(11) Ag-Agria, Dec. 3, 2008, ibid.
(12) Loc. cit.
(13) Loc. cit.
(14) Diane of Sirius, Oct. 8, 2008, at http://www.treeofthegoldenlight.com/First_Contact/Channeled_Messages_by_Mike_Quinsey.htm
(15) SaLuSa, Nov. 26, 2008, ibid.
(16) Matthew's Message, March 10, 2009, ibid.
(17) Diane of Sirius, Oct. 8, 2008, ibid.
(18) SaLuSa, Feb. 10, 2010,, ibid.
(19) SaLuSa, June 14, 2010, ibid.
(20) Matthew's Message, March 29, 2010, ibid.
(21) SaLuSa, Sept. 11, 2009, ibid.
(22) SaLuSa, Nov. 26, 2008, ibid.
(23) On the life review or "judgment," see New Maps of Heaven, "The Judgment," at http://www.angelfire.com/space2/light11/nmh/judge1.html and First Contact, "The Judgment," at http://www.angelfire.com/space2/light11/fc/life1.html#judge10 .
(24) Ker-On of Venus, Jan. 21, 2009, at http://www.treeofthegoldenlight.com/First_Contact/Channeled_Messages_by_Mike_Quinsey.htm .


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Asgaard Farm
A brief photo essay resulting from a weekend stay at Emerson House on the grounds of Asgaard Farm & Dairy, AuSable Forks, NY. At the outset I wish to acknowledge present owners, David Brunner and Rhonda Butler. The property has been an active business since 2003 and welcomes visitors. For specific details about their enterprise the viewer is encouraged to visit their Web Site at www.asgaardfarm.com. Asgaard Farm is the former residence of the American Modernist painter and illustrator, Rockwell Kent (1882-1971). The property and surrounding vistas were often inspirations for his Adirondack subjects, a few examples of which are included (credits are noted as available). Kent traveled widely and spent considerable time in austere but beautiful locations - from Greenland to Tierra Del Fuego. A liberal progressive, transcendentalist and mystic, he was also politically controversial, particularly during the McCarthy era. HIs works may be viewed at the world's great art museums.Read More
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Signpost, Asgaard Farm & Dairy


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text: Touchdown! Showcasing your team spirit has never been easier. Explore our wide range of officially licensed NFL décor, accessories, and entertaining essentials. Find perfect gifts for the football fanatics in your life or snag exclusive products for yourself. From house and garden flags and outdoor-safe statues to spirited wall art and decked out drinkware, we have what you need to cheer on your favorite pro team both inside and outdoors.


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Pro-choice? You Should Still Oppose Abortion Clinic Anti-Protest Laws. Here's why:
From GreenIsTheNewRed
The Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments about a Massachusetts law that prohibits anyone from entering a 35-foot "buffer zone" around abortion clinics. The target of the law is anti-abortion protesters who protest at clinic entrances. I spoke with Kirsten Powers of the Daily Beast recently about how these types of restrictions on freedom of speech place all protesters at risk. Her great column sums up the danger: "If it's upheld, unions and environmentalists could be next."
If you are pro-choice, it's tempting to support a law like this. Anti-abortion protesters have a history of violence and bloodshed against doctors and clinic workers, and protests at clinics have at times escalated to harassment and intimidation of women who are attempting to exercise their rights. I completely support the right of all women to make their own decisions about their bodies and their health care, but I've seen firsthand the dangers of singling out people with new legislation because of what they believe.
Here's an excerpt:
Ironically, a law championed by liberals could end up having dire implications for many liberal causes. Will Potter is a journalist and author of Green is the New Red: An Insider's Account of a Social Movement Under Siege, which chronicles the political, legal, and public relations strategies that threaten even acts of nonviolent civil disobedience. He told me that the Massachusetts bill, "is setting the precedent of applying this approach to the animal rights and environmental movements." Despite being pro-abortion rights, Potter says of the abortion clinic buffer zone, "I would oppose these kinds laws [because] it's about restricting speech." He points out that, "Oregon passed a law to allow loggers to sue protestors who disrupt business using the same kind of language…it's identical…to [the Massachusetts law]." (more…)


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The stinky rumor floating around the internet is that Vitor Vianna lost control of his bowels after taking this picture-perfect flying knee from Brian Rogers during a quarterfinal fight of a Bellator middleweight tournament. Whatever. We've all soiled the silk before, usually without the excuse of being parted from our senses. Nothing messy about that knee though. Rogers put it right on the point of Vianna's chin.
More from Deadspin


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Weekly Standard
Nov 24, 2012
The U.N. wants to use drones, the French news agency Agence France-Presse reports. "The United Nations wants to use drones for the first time to monitor fighting in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where Rwanda has been accused of aiding rebels," says the report, quoting U.N. officials.
The international body "is considering a range of ways to strengthen the capabilities of MONUSCO to protect civilians from the threat of armed groups in the vast area of eastern DR Congo," a U.N. spokesman says.
"Unarmed aerial vehicles, drones for monitoring the movements of armed groups, are one tool we are considering."
The spokesman, Kieran Dwyer, insists the U.N.'s use of drones would be done carefully.
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Help Sojourners counter Islamophobia & the anti-Muslim ads in the New York City subway stations!
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Man charged with making terroristic threat
By Danny Robbins
Associated Press
KAUFMAN, Texas (AP) — Texas authorities investigating the killing of a district attorney and his wife are working to build a case against a former justice of the peace prosecuted last year by the slain official's office, a law enforcement official said Monday.
Eric Lyle Williams, 46, was arrested over the weekend and remains jailed on a charge of making a terroristic threat. He is being held on $3 million bond.
Authorities allege he emailed an anonymous threat to law officers from his personal computer one day after Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, were found dead in their home on March 30. The email implied that if authorities didn't respond to various demands, there'd be another attack, according to a probable cause affidavit released by the sheriff's office.
Williams' arrest came after federal and local agents investigating the couple's deaths searched Williams' home and a storage facility, and investigators are now focused on trying to build a case against him, according to the law enforcement official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the ongoing investigation.
The official said at least 20 weapons found in Williams' storage locker are being tested by ballistics experts. A Ford Crown Victoria similar to one seen and video recorded in the McLellands' neighborhood on the day they died also was found at the locker, the official said.
A state law enforcement official spent two-and-half hours visiting with the storage facility's manager Monday. The official went into the manager's office with a small black duffel bag and left with the bag as well as what appeared to be several documents. The manager, Larry Mathis, declined to comment after the meeting.
The storage locker is located in Seagoville, about 15 miles west of Williams' home, where two signs on the front doors Monday instructed media seeking comment to contact David Sergi, Williams' attorney in the theft case. However, a woman who answered the phone at Sergi's office said he would not have any comment on the case Monday.
Authorities have said little about their investigation into the McLellands' deaths and have not named any suspects. Previous possible culprits mentioned included a white supremacist prison gang known as the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas, which had been targeted by a task force that included McLelland's office.
Two others have been arrested for making terroristic threats during the investigation into the slayings, but authorities said they had no connection to the deaths.
The McLellands were killed about two months after one of McLelland's prosecutors, Mark Hasse, was slain outside the local courthouse. McLelland and Hasse both participated in last year's prosecution of Williams on charges he stole three computer monitors from an office building.
Williams has said he submitted to gunshot residue tests and turned over his cellphone after both McLelland and Hasse were found dead.
Both prosecutors gave closing arguments before a jury convicted Williams last March. They questioned his character and suggested he was prone to threatening others. Williams received two years' probation, but lost his position as justice of the peace — an elected judicial officer who typically handles smaller civil and administrative matters — as well as his law license.
Williams has appealed the verdict, and on March 29 — one day before the McLellands were found dead — a state appeals court in Dallas agreed to hear oral arguments in the case.


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Release Date: 1999 |
Killtacular (4)Twolliebollie (5)Mathematical, dissonant, harsh and speedy; one of the most groundbreaking albums ever to b...Confessed2005 (5)Classic. Every time I hear it I love it. Maybe you should too......Neoteric (4)
ThePalaceOfWisdom (5)When good bands write good songs....Kaden (4.5)DivergentThinking (5)Control begets chaos....
Great review, and an equally great album.
Album Rating: 4.0Rule sauce.
Hard to get into, but it's an awesome album.
Album Rating: 2.0I can respect these guys more than any other band in the genre, but I still hate the genre with a passion. Good review anyway.
Album Rating: 3.5I still havent heard this, Miss Machine was amazing though.
Great eviewThis Message Edited On 08.12.05
Album Rating: 4.5"Do a workout before you pick up this album. Yes, it is that heavy. "
I think that describes this album perfectly.
I thought Dillinger Escape Plan fell under grindcore, not metalcore.
Album Rating: 5.0I didn't do that, that is curtosey of whoever started the band page. This album falls under Grindcore but Miss Machine I'd put under hardcore.
Album Rating: 5.0i dont get it, i love metalcore, but i just cant get into these guys and zao. and everyone effing loves them. o well.
Album Rating: 4.5"I thought Dillinger Escape Plan fell under grindcore, not metalcore."
Ask yourself, "Do we really NEED a grindcore genre?" Just call them metalcore, I think metalcore, hardcore and emocore are more than enough at this point and I refuse to add any more.
Anyway with that out of the way, this album rocks, not a 5 in my opinion but damn close.
Album Rating: 5.0Grindcore is very different from metalcore. Metalcore is about melodies while grindcore is about textures, chaos and speed.
Album Rating: 4.0Yeah, it's totally different, even though they both are fusion-genres with 'hardcore'. It's two different genres, like individual people.
Anyway, superb review. How come 1 out of 3 people found this helpful :confused:
Album Rating: 5.0Too short maybe? Or maybe they just don't like the band.
Album Rating: 2.0Metalcore and Grindcore the same thing? That makes no sense...does As I Lay Dying sound the same as old Carcass?
I don't like the album but I thought it was a good review...so I said it was helpful.
Album Rating: 5.0Nice review, this is Dillinger at their greatest. I totally agree about the tension even in the clean parts, especially the clean section in "The Running Board" (which is by far the greatest song on this album).
Album Rating: 4.0Aaah. I'm still trying to figure out "Sugar Coated Sour" on bass. There's no tabs, and it's one hard song to tab out.
Album Rating: 4.0Yes... I've figured it out!
Album Rating: 4.0Rule. That's my favorite DEP song.
Album Rating: 5.0omgsh. Also, thanks Med. This album wins.
Bands: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z


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Credit Unions Booming From Anti-Bank Outrage
I'm Michel Martin and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. Coming up, many people opted to skip the crowds this year and to do at least some of their holiday shopping online. And yes, they may have saved time and money and hassle, but what about the small business owners whose livelihoods depend on bringing customers into their stores? We'll hear how technology is affecting competition between online and traditional brick and mortar stores. That's just ahead.
But first, as 2011 winds down, we're taking some time to offer a twist on the traditional end-of-year roundup here at TELL ME MORE and in fact across NPR. We're highlighting people, movements and ideas that had a good year, and today we're going to take a look at credit unions.
Credit unions counted more than a million new members this year, according to the Credit Union National Association, which said that 1.1 million new members were added through October of 2011. The latest American customer satisfaction index showed credit union satisfaction scores jumped seven points to record high of 87 out of a possible 100 points.
We wanted to hear more about why credit unions had such a good year, so we've called upon our regular contributor on matters of personal finance and the economy, our money coach, Alvin Hall. Welcome back, Alvin. Happy holidays.
ALVIN HALL, BYLINE: Happy holidays to you.
MARTIN: Well, first, tell us, how are credit unions different from regular banks or retail banks?
HALL: Credit unions are nonprofit cooperatives, so they can't issue shares to people at all and they are made up of a group of people who come together, basically to try to use their money in ways that will help that group of people have easier access to credit. Also get mortgages much more easily, but benefit the general population and sometimes the community.
MARTIN: So members of a union, for example.
HALL: Yes.
MARTIN: Members of a particular employee group...
HALL: Armed forces division.
MARTIN: Armed forces division, like Navy Federal Credit Union. Many ads for them in the Washington, D.C. area. You know, I think that many people will intuitively understand what started the rush to credit unions this year.
Last month, for example, I spoke with Molly Catchpole, who was angry when her bank, Bank of America, planned to charge $5 a month to use debit cards for purchases. She started an online petition that gained hundreds of thousands of signatures in very short order. The bank eventually dropped the fee. I'll just play a little bit of that conversation.
MOLLY CATCHPOLE: Customers have a right to protest when they're unhappy about something, and I think people haven't been protesting enough when they're unhappy about something, and I just kind of felt like that needed to happen.
MARTIN: Alvin, is it your sense that many people were actually motivated to join credit unions out of anger over fees like the one that got Molly Catchpole started?
HALL: Absolutely. First banks said, oh, don't write checks, we're going to charge you for checks, but if you use your debit card, it'll be okay. It'll be cheaper. And then all of a sudden they added fees for debit cards. It was just one step too far for many people, and they saw this as the banks using the small guy, the guy who may not be able to maintain that minimum balance, as the source of revenues. And people said I've had enough.
MARTIN: You know, there seems to be some data to support that point. There was a grassroots effort called Bank Transfer Day in which organizers urged big bank customers to switch financial institutions on November 5. And according to the Credit Union National Association - now, let's say that this is an industry trade group, but their data showed that almost 700,000 people did, in fact, join credit unions between September 29th and the first week of November. So it does seem as though there is a data point there.
But, Alvin, I have to ask, is there any down side to a credit union?
HALL: Well, it depends upon where you live. For example, if you live in an area where there isn't a credit union that's easily accessible to you, then transferring may be difficult. Also, credit unions typically don't have as many branches. They can be part of a broad network, but it may cost you to use some of those ATMs, some of those ones that are part of the other network. So there can be downsides.
You should always look to make sure it's appropriate for you, but what people like about credit unions is the fact that they seem to be much more personal. They're not there to try to exploit you. When they hear the term shareholder value these days from these big banks, they think, oh, the shareholder value will be the fees that they charge on my account, not that rich guy's account.
MARTIN: So it can be physically inconvenient, and if you want that personal service, it can be actually harder to get because you had to travel farther to go.
What if you don't belong to a union or an employee group or the military or other groups like that that automatically have a credit - or not automatically, but for whom credit unions have been longstanding? What do you do? And if you're interested in joining one, do you have any option?
HALL: It's hard to do that because I've thought about this. I actually am one of those people who left a big bank this year to move to a smaller bank that would offer me better customer service. And I personally couldn't find a credit union that was appropriate for me and my needs.
So I think that some people won't have that as an option, but if you look, maybe there's a group you can join, a church-related organization that's affiliated with a credit union. There are all these aspects of our individual lives which may give us access to one, but we have to do the research and that's important. Do your research. Make sure that the fees are lower. Make sure that it is convenient for you and that if you wanted to support a particular cause or something in your community that is actually doing it.
MARTIN: What about the regulatory framework? Who's looking over the shoulders of these institutions? Because obviously, you know, any institution can be subject to - you already told us that there isn't the same profit incentives because these are, by definition, nonprofits. They don't have shareholders to satisfy. They only have their customers to satisfy, but they still have to be run by somebody. Is there anybody looking over the shoulder of credit unions?
HALL: The same institutions. The same institutions. They have to be a member of the Federal Reserve system so your accounts will be insured. They have to meet all of the necessary requirements from the Federal Reserve banking system. All of those are set up. And then there's their own advocacy group, which is out there making sure that the rules and regulations are fair to them.
But, you know, Michel, that's also a very good question because if credit unions eventually become very successful as a result of this movement, they will capture the attention of the big banks and the big banks will then, I think, try to challenge them, if this movement continues.
MARTIN: And do you think - that is going to be my last question, actually, in the couple of seconds that we have left. Do you think that this move away from the big banks - and obviously, the big banks still have a huge, you know, share of the market. I mean 700,000 people sounds like a lot, but it is, in the big scheme of things, you know, most people still bank at one of these large retail institutions or their own bank, as we've discussed.
Do you think that this move toward credit unions will continue?
HALL: Yes, I do. I think it will gradually spread across the economy as more and more people are trying to save money, trying to use their money most effectively. Why do they want to pay these fees? And as one lady observed in some article that I read, you know that if a bank charged a fee yesterday and they may have pulled it back, they'll come up with another fee tomorrow because they're always looking for new fees or a way to try to make up for money that they feel they have lost as a result of new regulations.
MARTIN: Alvin Hall is our regular expert on matters of personal finance and the economy. He's our money coach and he joined us from our studios in New York. Thank you, Alvin, and Happy New Year.
HALL: Happy New Year to you.
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