Steinbrenner saves $660M by not paying any estate tax in 2010

http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2010/07/13/how-steinbrenner-saved-his-heirs-a-6

The Saints try to skate on income tax from a Louisiana $8.5M payment

Did Tax Ploy Help Saints Win Super Bowl? [Forbes]
If you feel so inclined, you could probably blame this on Reggie Bush but otherwise it’s probably due to some clever tax attorneys, “In a just-filed U.S. Tax Court lawsuit, the partnership owning the Saints acknowledges that it didn’t treat an $8.5 million annual payment from the state of Louisiana as income and therefore didn’t pay taxes on the sum. Rather, the team said the money was an addition to “working capital” and a nontaxable transaction.

The Internal Revenue Service insists the money should have been included in income by the franchise, owned for a quarter-century by auto dealer Thomas M. Benson Jr. The Tax Court case challenges that position.”

New 1099 Rules Starting in 2012

Starting in 2012, self-employed workers, small businesses, charities and government agencies will be required to issue Form 1099s to every vendor from which they purchase more than $600 in goods during the year.

For example, a self-employed consultant who buys a $700 computer from an office supply store would be required to send a Form 1099 to the store and the IRS.

Currently, businesses are required to provide Form 1099s for services, such as payments to independent contractors, but not for goods.