Tax Purposes

PHOENIX -- The Cincinnati Bengals declared themselves free agents yesterday.Mike Brown, the owner of the Cininnati Bengals, said at the annual NFL owners meetings that the city of Cincinnati has breached his team's lease with a late payment and he is free to move at the end of the 1995 season -- or any other for that matter."

THE CATACLYSMIC losses that Hurricane Katrina inflicted on Gulf Coast property owners shine fresh light on a murky corner of the federal tax code: tax write-offs for storm damage to houses. It's a subject worth the attention of any homeowner, anywhere in the country, since it applies not just to monster hurricanes, but to floods, tornadoes, fires and earthquakes. The Internal Revenue Code allows owners of houses damaged by natural disasters to seek and obtain tax relief for losses not covered by insurance.

In the six months that have passed since Margaret Fulcher received her most recent homeowners insurance policy, she has moved on from being shocked to simply incensed. The premium to fully insure her Baltimore rowhouse increased fourfold last year — to a sum she can ill afford and one that she thinks does not accurately represent the cost of replacing her home. "This is a case of homeowners insurance underwater," said Fulcher, comparing her premium to a mortgage that is worth more than the home to which it is attached.

They're some of the priciest condos in the city, but they're taxed like empty lots. At the Ritz-Carlton Residences along Baltimore's Inner Harbor — where a recent sale topped $1.5 million — the tax bill for most of the condos was $1,309 apiece this year. At Silo Point, an industrial conversion with gourmet kitchens, hardwood floors and sweeping views of the city, the bill for many of the units is $238 each. Even though they were built years ago, and city inspectors declared them ready to live in, they are still valued for tax purposes as though construction never got off the ground.

On June 24, 2011, a middle-aged Harford County woman drove to the Hollywood Casino in Perryville to give authorities permission to arrest her for trespassing if she ever set foot again in one of Maryland's casinos. Before she signed the paperwork she wanted one last taste and lost hundreds of dollars at slot machines. "I considered it my last hurrah. That I was going to gamble and then I was going to sign myself out," said the 50-year-old woman, before a recent Gamblers Anonymous meeting at Mountain Christian Church in Joppa.

A year ago, new federal regulations were issued that prohibit the dumping of almost anything -- plastic, paper, food, metal and glass -- into U.S. waters. The cost for violating the law includes a civil penalty of up to $25,000, a fine of up to $50,000 and a maximum of five years in prison.Regulations also require skippers of recreationalboats 26 feet and larger to prominently display a 9- by 4-inch anti-pollution placard. Over the past year, thousands of boaters have obtained the placard, but many others are still unaware of the requirement.

The Riviera Beach Spirit, the Riviera Girls Softball League's 12 and under team, is to represent Maryland as the Central Atlantic Champion in the American Softball Association national championships Aug. 4-10 in Midland, Texas.But the team needs to raise about $20,000 to get there.The team will send a letter of appreciation acknowledging donations for tax purposes or its Federal Tax ID No. 31004865 can be used.Information: 410-787-0052.Pub Date: 7/31/97

25 years agoAnne Arundel County Circuit Judge James Wray has ruled that (( the state's method of assessing residential property for tax purposes is illegal and orders it to institute annual reassessment whenever necessary. -- The Sun, Sept. 5, 1973.Two men painting a pier on the parallel Bay Bridge fell 40 feet into the bay when scaffolding lines gave way. William Vasliadis is still missing. Robert Daley was rescued with minor injuries. -- The Sun, Sept. 7, 1973.Anne Arundel County Executive Joseph W. Alton is calling for an independent study of the county's non-competitive bidding to let citizens know "whether there has been any waste of tax dollars."

Fusion Systems Corp. said yesterday it reached a settlement in its case against the Internal Revenue Service, resulting in a $7.2 million benefit.The settlement provides for the allowance of a significant portion of tax benefits claimed by the Rockville-based company that had been previously disallowed by the IRS.As a result, the company will recognize a gain for financial reporting purposes of about $7.2 million in the third quarter, which ended Friday....

Dear Mr. Azrael: My husband passed away 10 years ago. The house we own is in his name and mine. I would like to remove my husband's name from the deed and add my daughter's name to it. Since she is our only child, I have a will that leaves everything to her, including the house when I pass away. But for tax purposes, I would like her name on the deed along with mine. I would like to know how I go about doing this. Dear reader: After your husband died, you became sole owner of the home.