John Dundon

Coming to you from the procedural trenches of the tax compliance industry, today’s post is about the sharing economy – tax war stories.

Most recently I had the privilege of leading a group discussion about the tax implications of this ubiquitous ‘Sharing Economy’ business model we are all currently experiencing with 60 or so members of the National Association of Tax Professionals.

I love my tax nerd friends and our discussion was a real barn burner! After addressing many questions and getting a fair amount of valuable input it is safe to write that we came to 5 general conclusions:

  1. Much like quantum entanglement, what the sharing economy ‘is’ originates predominately from the observer’s perspective at this point. It can be one thing to you and another to me.
  2. Much like the grEAt wild west, this relatively untamed voyage involves the collection, organization and digital storage of what was once deemed private information… by LARGE corporations.
  3. This collection and analysis of our private data causes each of us to be systematically ‘profiled’ which can be both good and evil.
  4. Our individually compiled profiles in the hands of the wrong people or governments (think Enron or Nixon or Clinton) is a scary proposition, particularly in light of our history.
  5. Big Brother and lemming references aside, the procedural mechanics required to maintain regulatory compliance has many overt challenges for the average taxpayer and tax professional alike.

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