WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump may face an IRS bill of greater than $100 million after a government audit found he suffered tax losses related to a Chicago skyscraper, a report within the New says York Times and ProPublica, which was based on years of study and public filings.
The report's findings could bring renewed focus to Trump's business profession because the presumptive Republican nominee seeks to retake the White House after his defeat in 2020.
Trump used his fame as an actual estate developer and TV star to construct a political movement but refused to release his tax returns, as previous presidential candidates had done. The tax returns known to the general public come from previous Times reports and a public release of Democratic records on the topic House Ways and Means Committee in 2022.
Trump's presidential campaign issued a press release on behalf of son Eric Trump saying the IRS investigation “was closed years ago, only to be resurrected when my father ran for office.” Us are convinced of our position.”
Tax records cited within the report show that Trump twice deducted losses on the Trump International Hotel and Tower, which opened in 2009 near the banks of the Chicago River, which flows through that city's downtown.
The report said that in his 2008 filings, Trump initially reported losses of $658 million, assuming the property met the IRS definition of “worthless” due to disappointing condo sales and retail space within the midst remained unoccupied attributable to a deep recession within the USA.
But in 2010, the published report says, Trump transferred ownership of the property to a different holding company that he also controlled, and used that move to avoid wasting taxpayer money by incurring additional losses over the following decade reported $168 million on the identical property.
The report didn’t provide any updates on the status of the IRS investigation since December 2022, but said Trump could owe greater than $100 million, including penalties, if he lost the audit dispute.
Trump, meanwhile, is appealing a New York judge's February ruling following a civil trial against Trump, his company and top executives lied about his wealth about financial reports, deceiving bankers and insurers who did business with him. In early April, Trump posted $175 million in bail, halting the gathering of the greater than $454 million he owes from the judgment and stopping the state from seizing his assets to cover the debt to settle he appeals.
The Trump campaign opposes the extra funding that Biden and the Democrats have provided to the IRS. At campaign rallies, Trump said the United States can be destroyed as a rustic if his 2017 tax cuts, most of which expire after 2025, weren’t prolonged.
image credit : www.mercurynews.com