Hicks v. Commissioner

47 T.C. 71, 1966 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 28
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedOctober 19, 1966
DocketDocket No. 534-64
StatusPublished
Cited by67 cases

This text of 47 T.C. 71 (Hicks v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hicks v. Commissioner, 47 T.C. 71, 1966 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 28 (tax 1966).

Opinion

OPINION

Dawson, Judge:

Respondent determined a deficiency in the petitioner’s income tax for the year 1961 in the amount of $1,032.58. Petitioner claims an overpayment of $353.88.

Petitioner did not allege error in his petition as to respondent’s adjustment of his deductible automobile expenses. Since petitioner agrees that the expense allowances paid to him by his employer are includable in gross income, only two issues are presented for decision:

(1) Is petitioner entitled to deduct, under section 162(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, his traveling expenses for meals and lodging while away from Paragould, Ark., in pursuit of his business during the year 1961 ?

(2) Is petitioner entitled to deduct, as an ordinary and necessary business expense under section 162(a), transportation expense incurred in flying from a business assignment in Los Angeles to Memphis for a selective service physical examination?

All of the facts have been stipulated by the parties. The stipulation of facts and the exhibits attached thereto are incorporated herein and are adopted as our findings.

Kenneth H. Hicks (hereafter called petitioner) was, during 1961, a single person who filed his Federal income tax return for that year with the district director of internal revenue at Little Rock, Ark.

During 1961 the petitioner was employed by the James Co. of Hickory, JST.C., at an annual salary of $4,155. In addition, the company’s books and records show that in 1961 the petitioner was paid $5,184.20 based on the following expense allowance:

1. One week — January 1961 — no expense allowance except payment for reimbursement of specific expenses incurred by Mr. Hicks in traveling to our company sales meeting in December 1960— $69.20
2. Forty-eight weeks at $105 per week expense allowance- 5, 040.00
3. One-week expense allowance_ 75.00
4. Two weeks of December 1961_No allowance
Total_ 5,184.20

Petitioner’s duties as an employee of the James Co. in 1961 consisted of contacting salesmen of other organizations which sold and distributed his employer’s products. These duties required his extensive travel in the eastern and western parts of the United States. In 1961 the petitioner was physically present in Paragould, Ark., for approximately 2 weeks, in other Arkansas towns for approximately 4 weeks, in Hickory, 1ST.C., at his employer’s home office for approximately 1 week, and in other States the remainder of the year.

During 1961 petitioner maintained in Paragould, Ark., a permanent mailing address and bank account; he paid his automobile license and assessed his automobile for personal property tax purposes there; he reported to Paragould’s local draft board; and he contributed $100 toward the expenses of his parents’ residence there.

On his Federal income tax return for 1961 the petitioner deducted $1,907.84 as business expenditures in excess of his expense allowance of $5,184.20. His itemized business expenditures included meals, lodging, and tips totaling $4,380.45, all of which were disallowed as a deduction by the respondent in his notice of deficiency.

In 1961 the petitioner was required to interrupt his business travel while in Los Angeles, Calif., and proceed to Memphis, Tenn., to take a selective service physical examination ordered by his draft board. He traveled by air and claimed the transportation cost ($115.33) as a business expense. Respondent disallowed the deduction.

In order to qualify for a deduction under section 162(a) (2),11.R.C. 1954, the petitioner must show (1) that his expenses were ordinary and necessary, (2) that the expenses were incurred while he was “away from lióme,” and (3) that he incurred the expenses in pursuit of his business. Commissioner v. Flowers, 326 U.S. 465 (1946); Henry C. Deneke, 42 T.C. 981 (1964). Respondent only challenges whether petitioner’s expenses were incurred “while away from home” within the meaning of section 162(a) (2).

On these facts we hold that Paragould, Ark., was not the petitioner’s home for Federal tax purposes. While it is true that he may have believed that Paragould was his home, retained some contacts there and made an effort to return whenever possible, this was only natural for a young man leaving his parents’ residence and beginning work as a traveling salesman on his first full-time job. However, it is not sufficient to establish that Paragould was his “tax home” in 1961 for a section 162(a) (2) deduction.

This case is strikingly similar to Wilson John Fisher, 23 T.C. 218 (1954), affd. 230 F. 2d 79 (C.A. 7, 1956). In that case the taxpayer was a professional musician who was attempting to prove that Milwaukee, Wis., was his “tax home.” He was raised ha Milwaukee, voted, filed his tax returns, and procured his automobile license there. He spent several weekends with his mother-in-law at her Milwaukee apartment, used it as his mailing address, and returned there whenever possible. In addition, he contributed $5 a month toward the payment of his mother-in-law’s telephone bill. On such facts, this Court held that the taxpayer did not establish that his mother-in-law’s apartment was his home, and that while he was away from Milwaukee in the course of his employment he was not “away from home in the pursuit of his trade or business within the meaning of section 23(a) (1) (A) [the predecessor of section 162(a) (2)].” The same conclusion was reached in James v. United States, 308 F. 2d 204 (C.A. 9, 1962) (a traveling salesman); Henry C. Deneke, supra (a traveling salesman); Moses Mitnick, 13 T.C. 1 (1949) (the manager of traveling theatrical companies) ; and Charles E. Duncan, 17 B.T.A. 1088 (1929), affirmed per curiam 47 F. 2d 1082 (C.A. 2, 1931) (a traveling salesman). In each of these cases it was found that the taxpayer literally carried his home on his back.

Petitioner relies heavily on Charles G. Gustafson, 3 T.C. 998 (1944), acq. 1944 C.B. 12. The taxpayer in that case was unmarried and filed his income tax returns in Des Moines, Iowa. He was employed as national representative of the Dry Goods Journal which had its home office in Des Moines. He stayed with his sister in Greenville where he kept the things which he did not carry with him on his trips and to which he returned periodically for short weekends. He paid his own traveling expenses and in 1940 traveled the entire 52 weeks and spent $2,522 which the Commissioner disallowed. In holding that he was entitled to deduct the entire amount spent for meals, lodging, and laundry while traveling, we said (pp. 999-1000):

We think, however, that the evidence adequately shows that the petitioner, although traveling fifty-two weeks of the year, has his home with his sister in Iowa and that his “home office” is in Des Moines, to both of which he returns for home or business reasons, and that his traveling expenses are exactly within the statutory description.

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Bluebook (online)
47 T.C. 71, 1966 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 28, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hicks-v-commissioner-tax-1966.