Part I:
Carol is a single mother who owns a wholesale auto parts distributorship. The business is organized as a sole proprietorship. Her business has advanced, and she can no longer devote the time necessary to do her own tax return. Because she always has prepared her own return, Carol is familiar with most tax rules applicable to her business and personal affairs. However, she has come to you for advice with respect to a number of items she paid during the current year. You are to determine whether she can take a deduction for the expenditures in the current year.
a. Carol purchased a small building on March 2 to use as a warehouse for her auto parts inventory. To purchase the building, she borrowed $180,000 on a 30-year loan and paid $20,000 in additional cash. Carol also incurred $3,200 in legal and other fees to purchase the building. The bank charged her $3,600
in points (prepaid interest) to obtain the loan. After acquiring the building, Carol spent an additional $25,000 to renovate it for use as a warehouse. The $25,000 included $8,000 for painting.
b. Carol had her office building painted at a cost of $14,000 and paid $6,000 to have it landscaped. She paid for the building renovation in part a and the office building work by borrowing $60,000 on April 1 at 7% interest. (See part f for details of the interest payments.)
c. On April 1, Carol prepaid a 1-year fire insurance policy on her 2 buildings. The policy cost $1,500, and the insurer required the prepayment. On September 1, Carol prepaid a $5,000, 2-year maintenance contract on the buildings.
d. Carol started a self-insured medical reimbursement plan for her employees this year. Based on actuarial assumptions, she deposited $13,500 in a fund to pay employees’ medical expenses. Actual payments from the fund totaled $11,200.
e. Carol purchased a new automobile costing $32,000. She can document that her business use of the automobile came to 90% and that her out-of-pocket operating costs totaled $3,600.
f. Carol paid the following interest on business-related loans:
Warehouse $15,300
Office Building $4,000
Renovation Loan $5,400
The renovation loan was for $60,000. Because she spent only $45,000 renovating the new building and painting and landscaping the old one, she used the additional $15,000 to purchase city of Seattle bonds with a yield of 6%.
g. Carol became active in politics and contributed $1,000 to the presidential campaign of an independent candidate. She made the contribution because she believed that, if elected, the candidate would institute policies beneficial to her business. The candidate lost the election and immediately started a grassroots lobbying organization. The purpose of the organization is to keep track of elected officials’ campaign promises and report to the public when they vote contrary to their stated campaign promises. Carol paid $1,600 in dues to join the lobbying organization. h. Carol’s oldest son began college during the current year. She paid his tuition and living expenses, a total of $13,300, out of the company’s checking account. During the summer, her son worked for the business, and Carol paid him $4,300, the same amount she paid other college students working during the summer. Because she consults her son from time to time on the operation of the business, she thinks that at least some of the $13,300 should be deductible.
i. Carol has always itemized her deductions. This year, her mother and father retired and could no longer afford the mortgage interest and property taxes on their home. Rather than have them sell the house, Carol made the payments for them. They received a statement from their bank indicating that a total of $8,125 in mortgage interest and taxes were paid in the current year. Carol
knows that mortgage interest and property taxes are deductible as itemized deductions and would like to add them to her personal interest and property tax payments.
j. Because of the success of her business, Carol has received many offers to invest in various business ventures. One offer was to establish a chain of nursing homes in Florida. Carol spent two weeks in Florida evaluating the prospects of the proposed venture and incurred costs of $2,100. After careful consideration, she decided the venture was too risky and decided not to expand into the health-care business.

Part II:
Calzone Trucking Company is a corporation that is 100% owned by Fred Calzone. Before he incorporated in 2009, Fred had operated the business as a sole proprietorship. The taxable income (loss) of Calzone for 2010 through 2012 is as follows:
Year 2010 2011 2012
Taxable income (loss) 32,000 (64,000) 18,000
The 2011 taxable income includes a net long-term capital gain of $4,000. Calzone Trucking’s 2012 operating income is $43,300 before considering the following transactions:
a. A hailstorm caused part of the roof of the truck barn to collapse. A truck inside sustained damage from the falling debris. The truck barn had a fair market value of $59,000 before the damage and an adjusted basis of $35,000. Repairs to the roof cost $13,200, of which $9,700 was reimbursed by insurance. The truck, which had an adjusted basis of $35,000, was worth $62,000 before the damage and had a fair market value after the damage of $37,000. Calzone Trucking’s insurance company paid $16,600 for the damages.
b. Another truck was totally destroyed when its brakes failed and it plunged off a cliff. Fortunately, the driver was able to jump from the truck and escaped unharmed. The truck, which had an adjusted basis of $24,000, was worth $30,000 before the accident. Calzone received $13,700 from its insurance company for the destruction of the truck. In addition, the company was cited for failure to properly maintain the truck and paid a $7,250 fine to the state trucking commission.
c. Calzone sold equipment that had become obsolete for $10,800. The equipment had cost $28,000, and depreciation of $15,400 had been taken on it before the sale.
d. Calzone sold stock it owned in two other companies. Retro Corporation stock, which had cost $21,400, sold for $36,200. Shares of Tread Corporation stock with a cost of $62,100 sold for $31,700. Both stocks had been purchased in 2009.
e. Fred’s son wanted to start a delivery business. To help his son out, Fred sold him one of Calzone’s used trucks for $8,000. The truck had a fair market value of $15,200 and an adjusted basis of $10,100 at the date of the sale. Calculate Calzone Trucking’s 2012 taxable income. Indicate the amount and the effect of any carryforwards or carrybacks on Calzone Trucking’s current, past, or future income.

Part I: Carol is a single mother who owns a wholesale auto parts d...