Earlier this week, New Jersey Governor Philip Murphy announced his proposed budget for fiscal year 2021. Buried in the dense text of the 94-page document (at page 37) were several tax enforcement provisions of note. The budget reveals that the state’s Division of Taxation is implementing new auditing and enforcement measures estimated to yield $40.0
Look Out, Tax Zapper Users: Feds Join State-Level Crackdown
August 23, 2018
Articles
Law360
Two weeks ago federal prosecutors announced criminal tax charges against the owners of five Chicago-area restaurants as part of an ongoing federal investigation into the underreporting of gross receipts using sales suppression software. The charges allege that the defendants willfully avoided paying the full amount of
Minnesota Joins Widening Crackdown on “Zappers” With Announcement of State’s First Criminal Convictions for Using Sales Suppression Devices
The State of Minnesota has joined the growing list of states that are criminally prosecuting business owners for using “zapper” programs to commit tax evasion. Yesterday the Minnesota Department of Revenue and the St. Louis County Attorney’s Office announced the convictions of a Duluth restaurant and its owners for tax crimes based upon their use
State Crackdown on “Zappers” Continues: Washington State AG Files $5.6 Million Criminal Tax Case Against Restauranteur
Calling it the largest sales suppression software case in state history, Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced the filing of criminal charges last week against the owner of six restaurants for allegedly using illicit point-of-sale software to delete cash transactions and pocket more than $5.6 million in sales tax. The charges include six counts
Mississippi Is Latest State to Consider Outlawing Tax “Zapper” Software
Lawmakers in Mississippi are tackling the pervasive use of automated sales suppression devices, commonly known as “zappers,” by businesses to hide a portion of their sales and thereby avoid paying sales tax. Zapper programs are used to delete certain transactions – usually cash sales – and then reconcile the books of the business. The result
Another Restaurant and Its Owners Nabbed for Using Zapper Software
Earlier this week Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette announced that a sushi restaurant outside Detroit has been ordered to pay nearly $1 million in restitution and to serve a five-year sentence of probation for embezzling sales tax paid by customers and underreporting its income. The restaurant, Sushi Samurai Inc., entered a guilty plea in October
BNA Reports That Tax-Zapping Software Costs States $21 Billion in Taxes Annually
BNA’s Michael J. Bologna and Paul Shukovsky have written a comprehensive article about a pervasive problem facing state tax auditors: the use by restaurants and other cash-intensive businesses of electronic revenue suppression software, commonly referred to as “Zappers.” We have previously blogged about efforts by state and federal tax authorities to crack down on the
Connecticut Announces Arrest of Restaurant Owner for Using “Zapper” Tax Suppression Software
Connecticut’s Department of Revenue Services (DRS) has arrested and charged a New Haven restauranteur with various offenses for using sales tax suppression software. According to a press release announcing the charges, this is the first time the State of Connecticut has charged an individual for using “zapper” software, which it describes as “a type of
A Federal Crackdown On Tax Zapper Software
In December, the Justice Department announced criminal charges against John Yin, a software salesman who worked for a Canadian company that sells point of sale (POS) software programs that enabled restaurants to underreport their sales, thereby lowering their tax liability.[1] Commonly called “zapper” programs, these revenue suppression software (RSS) programs are used to delete some
Feds Crack Down on Use of “Tax Zapper” Software by Restaurants and Other Cash Businesses
In December, the Justice Department announced criminal charges against John Yin, a software salesman who worked for a Canadian company that sells “point of sale” software programs that enabled restaurants to underreport their sales, thereby lowering their tax liability.[1] Commonly called “Zapper” programs, these “revenue suppression software” programs are used to delete some or