John Trapani, CPA

John is speaking to the Ventura Chapter of Enrolled Agents on February 1, 2018: Avoiding Pitfalls When Reporting Tax Consequences of a Disaster

John is speaking to the CalCPA Ventura CPA Discussion Group on January 10, 2018: Avoiding Pitfalls When Reporting Tax Consequences of a Disaster

I will be speaking to CPA in Santa Rosa who will be advising clients on post disaster tax consequences of the event

I will be speaking on "AVOIDING PITFALLS IN DISASTER INCOME TAX REPORTING" For Tax Professionals Meeting at Sam’s For Play Café in Santa Rosa on December 5th

John TRAPANI, CPA is available to speak to groups on income tax consequences of disaster recovery Call (805) 497-4411 For over 20 years, John has provided free presentations to taxpayers who experience a catastrophic physical loss.

PERILS OF DISASTER TAX REPORTING ERRORS Casualty reporting errors on tax returns often turn out to be costly. A disaster after the disaster! Why do they occur? Many people who experience a catastrophic event face their circumstances with quiet resolution. They just want to move on. The tax reporting is not their first or second concern. These events often result in the destruction of a home or a source of business income. Beyond their facade of strength is often a person in...Continue reading

Happy New Year! 2017 will definitely interesting!

A Natural Disaster Can Turn Into a Personal Financial Disaster! When casualty / disaster losses strike, CPA’s want to be helpful to their clients. It is a traumatic time for the client. The CPA is a steady minded adviser, seen by the client as an expert in all things tax. The truth is that less than .5% of tax returns claim a casualty loss. The average loss claimed is about $20,000. What does this tell you? Most likely, your normal tax preparer has no experience dealing wit...Continue reading

Happy Veterans Day! And thank you to all veterans who have helped defend our freedom.

BE WARY OF FRAUDULENT IRS CP2000 LETTRS The IRS is warning taxpayers and practitioners that a new scam uses fraudulent CP2000s to solicit money from taxpayers. The fraudulent forms look convincing, and show balances due that are small enough that taxpayers just might pay rather than arguing the point. However, upon closer inspection, these forms have telltale signs of fraud: The instructions direct the taxpayer to make out a check to "I.R.S." rather than to "United States ...Treasury;" and The return address is "Austin Processing Center, P.O. Box 15264, Austin, TX 78761-5264," which does not match the address listed on the IRS website for the Austin Processing Center. Tax practitioners should advise clients to contact them if any unexpected balance due arrives from the IRS, so that the correspondence can be verified. The IRS has not yet posted an alert about this phishing scam variation, but information is forthcoming and it will be available at the following page: www.irs.gov/uac/latest-news Always call me if you receive a notice from any tax authority. Never pay a balance due, regardless of how small it may seem before contacting me. Please call me if you have any questions or you think you have been scammed. JOHN TRAPANI Certified Public Accountant 2975 E. Hillcrest Drive # 403 Westlake Village, CA 91362 (805) 497-4411 E-mail [email protected] Fax: (805) 497-4401 September 21, 2016

John is speaking to the Santa Barbara CPA Discussion Group on May 24, 2016 on the topic of Disaster Recovery, Tax Benefits, Responsibilities, and Opportunities.

Were you affected by the Rocky, Jerusalem or Valley fires? I will be speaking about post-disaster tax matters to residents at the Middletown Twin Pines Casino Event Center, and at the Lakeport City Hall Council Chambers on Jan. 13 & 14. Local community leaders, realtors, personal finance professionals and income tax professionals are also encouraged to attend. To download the flyer, visit: http://www.trapanicpa.com//community-workshops-on-post-di/

Are you an appraiser, CPA or attorney who advises people about IRS casualty losses? I will be speaking to tax professionals and appraisers on January 13, 2016 at Marymount College, Lucerne Campus. To download the flyer, please visit my website: http://www.trapanicpa.com//post-disaster-income-tax-works/