From Martin, a helpful Palms hint:  

Even as an out-of-towner, I always go down that little hallway on the right side of the Club Palm booth and on the wall there are usually all the current promotions listed. Also there are “hard stock” flyers with detailed rules (covering their butts) on all such promos. 

Thanks, Martin, for reminding me to publicize this. The Palms has many good promotions but they are also often VERY complicated. I make it a point to pick up these flyers and read them VERY carefully. It’s a job because there isn’t just a little fine print – the complete flyer rules and regulations are in fine print! 

Derek caught an omission in my August 1st blog entry about “Taxing Changes.” 

I just read your blog about states that do not allow deductions to offset your W2G winnings.  Please add Massachusetts to your list.  We have to claim the winnings but cannot deduct any gambling losses. That's why we call it "Taxachusetts." 

Oops, I missed this naughty state when I copied that list from Chapter 9 of Tax Help for Gamblers: “How All 50 States Handle Gambling Wins/Losses. 

From a reader who wants to stay anonymous, about my “beef” with Station casinos: 

If you try to make an argument for sending the same mailer to two players with the same coin–in, one who plays only Optimums and one who plays penny slots, not only are you wrong, you will never move Station management on anything.   You need to see their side of it - they are a business and they need to make a profit. 

This raises a valid point. Actually I have never said that skilled players should get the same from a casino as unskilled players. I understand and accept the difference. My main concern in the August 14th blog entry was that in a  Stations promotion that seemed to be for all 50+ seniors it was not clearly stated that you were excluded if you didn’t get the monthly mailer. 

I notice that I am not the only one who is bothered about many casino promotions and advertising. A recent article in the Las Vegas Sun says that “some casino customers are taking their complaints about ambiguous or deceptive promotions to the Gaming Control Board” and that the Board is taking them seriously. 

Thanks, Westie, for pointing out that Sun artcle and another one that talks about the theft of slot club points. A warning for all of us to monitor our slot club accounts closely and frequently.

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Hawaii residents who gamble are facing a law just passed that says they will no longer be able to offset their winnings with their losses for Hawaii state income tax purposes.   And to add insult to injury the law is retroactive to the first of this year. 

New Hampshire also recently went from not taxing gambling income at all to a 10% tax on gross wins (“gross” means no deduction for losses). The law is not clearly written, according to some experts, and there will need to be court case to determine just which wins will need to be reported on state returns and thus incur this heavy tax. Will this impact professional gamblers? What is the minimum reportable win and does it depend on the game? Many questions need to be answered about this new state law.  

Increasing taxes on gambling is not an unusual tactic used to increase state revenue.  Following is a list of states   that also do not allow deductions for gambling losses.  (This list is from Tax Help for Gamblers, where there are more details on this subject of state taxation, including exceptions and possible ways to avoid this problem.  None of this should apply to professional gamblers as they have their own separate schedule where they can net out income and expenses.)

Connecticut

Illinois

Indiana

Louisiana

Michigan

Ohio

West Virginia 

Wisconsin

I predict that more states will look at gambling as the economy worsens.  "Sin taxes" are the easiest to get passed! 

More input on this subject from Marissa Chien, co-author with me of Tax Help for Gamblers: 

What makes the Hawaii law super lousy in comparison is that in states like Indiana and Illinois where there are no below- the-line deductions to begin with, the top income tax rate is 3-4%.  But because Hawaii allows other below-the-line deductions like mortgage interest, property taxes, etc, their top marginal rate is almost 10%. Therefore a high roller who may have a couple of million in W-2Gs would owe the state of Hawaii over 200k!! 

If you want to read more about the recent state gambling tax changes in Hawaii and New Hampshire, Google the two subjects. You will find heated discussions!

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Have you been to the “LVA Store” recently, just a click from here at http://www.shoplva.com/? 

If not, you might not realize some of the new frugal options. For example, we now offer 18 titles as e-books, with prices well below their hold-in-your-hand brothers (or sisters!). Of course you will have to decide whether the book you want is one you might read just once or one that you will study over a long period of time. E-books are great for that one-time read or as a resource that you will consult just once in a while. Also you can print out small sections that you might want to use more frequently. Of course, you can print out a complete e-book if you don’t mind the expense of paper and ink. 

I have two books now in e-book form. The first is Tax Help for Gamblers, which many people have downloaded as an e-book that they will consult when they are dealing with tax issues, both when filing their initial returns and if/when they receive scary letters from the IRS. Frugal Video Poker is also available in e-book form. Many experienced gamblers have downloaded it to read through one time to glean some possibly new kernels of information and then use as a resource when special gambling circumstances arise where they need more information, i.e., video poker tournaments or quad promotions. The beginning video poker student or infrequent recreational player may opt to pay a little more for the paperback because they will be referring to it frequently, especially if they have the companion Frugal Video Poker software and they want to practice using the lessons in the back of the book. 

Another great frugal option you might have missed in the LVA Store is the “Bargain Bin.” Some of these are damaged copies, returned unsold from bookstores, but usually just the cover is imperfect. The text inside is complete. For example, you can order a damaged copy of More Frugal Gambling for only $3 and get the information inside that has helped thousands of video poker players earn/save thousands of dollars. You can also get a damaged copy of The Frugal Gambler for $3. This is the green cover completely updated edition that replaced the original red-cover edition. 

With the economy the way it is these days, gamblers need all the information they can dig up so they can stretch their bankroll further, winning more/losing less. Hopefully the above will give you some new ideas as to where to dig.

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Recently the IRS has put out two memos that are of special interest to gamblers. 

The first you can read at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/am2008011.pdf. This seems to legitimize what Marissa and I discussed in our book Tax Help for Gamblers about using the session method in reporting gambling wins and losses. 

This memo does include an admonition: “This advice may not be used or cited as precedent.”   However, Marissa says it can still be used when dealing with the IRS at the administrative levels. 

The second memo is at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/am2008013.pdf. 

On this one Marissa has these comments: “As the memo points out, there have been two divergent tracks of court cases pertaining to whether a professional gambler can deduct expenses in excess of gambling wins. (In our book we cite the Praytor case that does not allow expenses in excess of gambling wins.) I think eventually we will see a court case, maybe even at the Supreme Court level, which will try to resolve the differences between these cases.

”For right now, it's a use-at-your-own-peril concept since this memo is just the opinion of one researcher at the IRS. And as with the first memo it says, 'This advice may not be used or cited as precedent.'"

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Gambling Podcasts

Steve Bourie interviews many well-known gambling names on his monthly podcasts, Anthony Curtis, Max Rubin, John Grochowski, to name a few. This month he and I talk about getting the most for your money when visiting a casino. Also last March we talked about gambling and taxes.  You can see the list at http://americancasinoguide.com/podcasts.shtml and click on any to listen.

Mini-slot Tournaments

Excalibur is starting midday mini slot tournaments Thursdays through Sundays. I know there are others held at Ellis Island, Terrible’s, NY-NY, to name a few. There are more listed at http://lasvegasadvisor.com/tourneyresults.cfm. However, for up-to-date information on any of these, you might want to call the casino near the time you plan to participate. These mini-tournaments have a habit of coming and going with little or no publicity. Some are free; others have a small entry fee, typically $20.

Shuttle To/From New M Resort 

There is a shuttle between the M and the Fashion Show Mall, 7 days a week. Call for schedule near the time you want to ride for up-to-date information.

Machine Stickers

For years on all video poker machines at any Harrah’s property it took $10 to earn one point. Recently in Atlantic City, a few of the video poker machines with better paytables (mainly 9/6 JoB) were changed to give one point for $20 coin-in. Fortunately the machines have a sticker informing the players of this change.

In fact, putting stickers on video poker machines is a relatively new development that players must watch for. The Palms and the new M sticker machines that aren’t eligible for promotions.  Stations casinos sticker their Optimum Play machines stating that they require $4 to earn one point (versus 1 for 1 on other machines). 

I’m all for stickers on bad-schedule video poker machines. What about this sticker: “You cannot win on this machine!"

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I will be live on HoldemRadio.com today, Thursday, January 08, at 7 p.m. Eastern (4 p.m. Pacific), discussing my book, Tax Help for Gamblers, and answering those thorny questions many of you gamblers will be having in the coming months as you ponder how you will handle all those W-2Gs you collected in 2008.

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Some of you gamblers who have filed your taxes have already noticed it – and many of you procrastinators will find it out when you feverishly work on your returns this weekend. What is it?

It’s that ugly subject I call the “Gambler AGI Trap.”  

Many gamblers may be looking forward to receiving the economic stimulus payment the government is giving us this year. Perhaps you plan to use it to finance a casino vacation and/or to increase your gambling bankroll.

Information about this government “bonus” from the IRS Web site:   “In most cases, payments will range from $300 to $600 for individuals and $600 to $1200 for joint filers. Taxpayers may receive $300 for each qualifying child. Payments could be less, depending on tax liability and Adjusted Gross Income. Phase-out reduction begins at $75,000 for single filers and $150,000 for joint filers.” (Bold and underlining added) 

In the new expanded edition of Tax Help for Gamblers Marissa and I list 21 possible negative effects of the AGI Trap, the requirement that you must put your gross gambling win number as income rather than using a net win figure. Here now comes #22: You may not get the max amount of the economic stimulus payment because your AGI (adjusted gross income) is too high, and the ironic thing is that it may be too high only because of your gross gambling wins. Your actual net win at the end of the year, after deducting your losses, would be much lower; in fact for most gamblers, they actually suffered a net loss. But you may still have to endure the punishment of a reduction in your bonus. 

If you have questions about how your gambling can affect your AGI or other tax questions which puzzle taxpayers, I have an announcement that will help you get answers much more quickly than before. (This is great for you procrastinators who may be scratching your heads this weekend!)  Tax Help for Gamblers is now available as an e-book. You can go to the LVA Store and download it and start getting tax information you need in mere minutes! And the price is downright rock-bottom frugal – only $9.98. 

While you are at the e-book page, you will see there are 3 other e-books besides the tax one. This is the wave of the future – so look for more titles from Huntington Press in the future.

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Today I am making a list of all the casinos where Brad and I played in 2007 and determining how I can get the win/loss statements for each one. Although there are player disadvantages in the consolidation of many casinos under one large umbrella company, this trend is a definite advantage at tax time. Requesting one win/loss statement from “mother” Harrah’s or MGM Mirage or Station will save you from contacting their umpteen “baby” casinos, since play at all of them will appear on the master statement. 

Another trend that is handy at tax time is that many casinos now handle the win/loss statements on their Web site. Harrah’s is easy: Sign in with your password and allow popups, and your Gaming History Statement will appear and you can print it out right then. MGM Mirage lets you make the request online and they will then send the win/loss statement to you by snail mail.

If you can’t do the whole operation online, at many casino Web sites you can at least download the request form, then submit it by fax/snail mail or in person at the players' club desk. Read carefully the rules for each casino’s procedures. For example, if you don’t appear in person at a Station casino, you must have the request notarized. 

A warning I gave in the book Tax Help for Gamblers: “Some people feel they can skip having a diary if they get win/loss statements from the casino at the end of the year. These are valuable as supporting evidence of play, but many tax-court decisions have upheld the IRS position that they don’t substitute for a gambling log.” 

Most knowledgeable tax preparers advise against sending in detailed gaming diaries with tax returns. Instead, a summary sheet can be attached if the taxpayer needs to include more details than there is room to put on the actual return. There is always the danger of giving the IRS too much information, and detailed records are best saved in case of an audit. 

However, Marissa takes one whole section in the book to discuss the danger of sharing win/loss statements that include detailed coin-in and coin-out information with the IRS at any time, even in an audit. They can be interpreted in a very negative way for the gambling taxpayer, especially by tax personnel who are not familiar with gaming circumstances. 

Joke of the Day - from the Internet: "As income tax time approaches, did you ever notice that when you put the two words 'The' and 'IRS' together, it spells 'THEIRS'?"

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