Miller v. Commissioner

1989 T.C. Memo. 313, 57 T.C.M. 809, 1989 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 300
Procedural entryThis page is a short order in Miller v. Commissioner. Read the opinion of the Court — 53 T.C.M. 962
United States Tax Court·Decided June 26, 1989·No. Docket No. 31444-86.·Unpublished

Opinion

ROBERT W. MILLER, Petitioner v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
Miller v. Commissioner
Docket No. 31444-86.
United States Tax Court
T.C. Memo 1989-313; 1989 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 300; 57 T.C.M. (CCH) 809; T.C.M. (RIA) 89313;
June 26, 1989.
Robert W. Miller, pro se.
Mary E. (Betsy) Pierce, for the respondent.

WILLIAMS

MEMORANDUM FINDINGS OF FACT AND OPINION

WILLIAMS, Judge: The Commissioner determined deficiencies in petitioner's Federal income tax as follows:

Section
Deficiency6651(a)(1) 1
December 31, 1981$ 6,479.00$ 1,620.00
December 31, 19821,777.00444.00
December 31, 198313,121.003,280.00
Total$ 21,377.00$ 5,344.00
*301
Additions to the Tax
SectionSectionSectionSection
6653(a)(1)6653(a)(2)66546661
December 31, 1981$   324.00*$ 499.00
December 31, 198289.00**173.00
December 31, 1983656.00 ***805.00$ 1,312.00
Total$ 1,069.00$ 1,477.00$ 1,312.00

The issues we must decide are: (1) whether petitioner received unreported income in 1981, 1982, and 1983 in the amounts of $ 8,743, $ 9,268 and $ 39,667, respectively, and (2) whether petitioner is liable for additions to tax pursuant to sections 6651, 6653(a), 6654, and 6661.

Some of the facts in this case have been stipulated and are so found. Petitioner resided in Paskin, Wisconsin at the time he filed a petition in this case. Petitioner, the sole proprietor of an auto body repair shop, did not file a Federal income tax return for 1981, 1982 or 1983.

Respondent determined, using Bureau of Labor*302 and Statistics standards, that petitioner earned income in the amounts of $ 11,743, $ 9,268, and $ 9,617 in 1981, 1982 and 1983, respectively. In addition, respondent determined that the cash of $ 30,050 that petitioner used to purchase real property in 1983 was income to petitioner in 1983.

Respondent's determination of a deficiency is presumptively correct. Petitioner has the burden of proving the deficiency determination erroneous. Rule 142(a), Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure.

In 1983 petitioner bought residential real property in St. Paul, Minnesota for $ 30,050 at a government auction. The property was auctioned to satisfy the outstanding tax liabilities of Daniel Pilla, who was living on the property with his family. On the date of the auction, petitioner paid $ 7,512 in cash and within 10 days paid the balance of the purchase price in cash.

We must first decide whether petitioner received income in 1983 of $ 30,050. Petitioner testified that he received the funds used to pay for the real property from, (1) the sale of his house in Cumberland, Wisconsin in 1981 ($ 12,896.49), (2) cash petitioner saved from 1971 to 1976 ($ 6,633.51), (3) the sale of silver*303 in petitioner's possession ($ 6,000), and (4) cash petitioner borrowed from his stepmother ($ 4,500).

Respondent prepared a source and application of funds analysis of petitioner's income and expenses from 1980 to 1983 based upon records given to respondent by petitioner. His analysis reveals that after the application of gross receipts, including receipts from the sale of his house, to expenses, petitioner needed an additional $ 13,717.01 to pay his personal and business expenses from 1981 to 1983. Therefore, in accordance with the records given by petitioner to respondent, we believe that petitioner could not have had any funds available from the sale of his Cumberland property to apply towards the purchase price of the residential property in St. Paul.

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Miller v. Commissioner, 1989 T.C. Memo. 313, 57 T.C.M. 809, 1989 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 300 (tax 1989).

1989 T.C. Memo. 313 (Miller v. Commissioner) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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