Gamblers and the IRS
You really do need to pay taxes on your winnings, whether you won $10 or $1,000, and a pair of experts have come out with a book to explain it all.
And no, their initials are not IRS.
Las Vegas tax adviser Marissa Chien's book, "Tax Help for Gamblers," co-written by gambling book author Jean Scott, just might be one of the biggest revelations about gambling in years.
Paying gambling taxes is virgin territory for much of the gambling public. Many players have no clue that taxes are due, feign ignorance of tax law or view the Internal Revenue Service much the same way they view a casino - as an entity waiting to be "beat."
Others try to report their winnings, only to shortchange themselves by underestimating their losses.
Most casinos, on request, offer year-end win-loss statements for customers who use player tracking cards.
But casinos do little to educate the multitudes. You won't see any "Don't forget to pay your taxes" signs next to those 2-for-1 offers during this holiday season.
One of the few accountants specializing in gambling tax law, Chien is a keeper of esoteric knowledge that becomes more valuable each year as more people take up gambling as a hobby or a full-time job.
With the spread of gambling and the popularity of Texas hold 'em poker, the IRS is keen to get its cut of a growing pie - especially the dough generated by a multitude of poker tournaments in casinos and on the Web every year. (Yes, taxes are due on those online gambling winnings, so fess up.)
Before you're tempted to protest this tax collection as unorthodox, consider that the IRS also requires that taxes be paid on any found money, like that cash you discovered in the parking lot a year ago. Though many locals would beg to differ, the government considers winnings as more windfall than the result of hard labor.
But it's not all bad news.
The IRS allows gamblers to deduct losses up to, but not in excess of, their winnings - provided they can show evidence of those wins and losses in a log.
The agency calls for specific records but doesn't specify what they should look like, though it has accepted everything from handwritten notes to Excel spreadsheets.
Logging their gambling is the last thing people are thinking about when they're chasing that blackjack or royal flush. And yet it's the law.
That's why some gamblers can be found scrounging for sports betting receipts on casino floors this time of year. Deductions need to be backed up by documentation. And with no documentation to show for a year's worth of betting, some will attempt to make it up - or use other people's records.