BBB Tip: How to choose a tax preparer | Local News

BUFFALO — This year, taxpayers must file their income tax forms before the April 18 deadline. For many people, major life changes, business ownership, or simply a lack of knowledge about the ever-changing tax laws make finding a trustworthy tax preparer a good idea. However, not all tax preparers have the same level of experience and training.

Here are Better Business Bureau’s tips for finding someone you can trust with your finances and sensitive personal information.

Review the tax preparer’s credentials. EAs, CPAs, and tax attorneys are all qualified to represent their clients to the IRS on all matters. Other preparers can help you with forms and basic matters, but cannot represent you in case of an audit. Don’t be afraid to ask about these or other qualifications before you hire someone.

Be wary of spectacular promises. If a tax preparer promises you larger refunds than the competition, this is

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Former Marine Tracking Trump’s Base Online Helps Jan. 6 Committee Investigation

  • A criminal-defense attorney began tracking Donald Trump’s base online before the 2020 election.
  • He has turned over information to a committee investigating the January 6 siege on the US Capitol.
  • His monitoring has made him concerned about the safety of school board members, he told Insider.

Ron Filipkowski, a criminal-defense attorney in Sarasota, Florida, who has been monitoring right-wing extremists online says he’s now helping the House Committee investigating the January 6 attacks on the US Capitol.

Filipkowski, a former longtime Republican, on Friday tweeted that he and his team have compiled “hundreds of very obscure interviews and podcasts from the planners, leaders and participants” of the siege on the US Capitol, most of which they’ve never posted.

“At their request, today we turned over all of them to the J6 Select Committee, catalogued and organized,” he wrote.

 

Filipkowski told

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The Olympics are putting Comcast and NBC in a tough spot

It could be a premise for a Netflix thriller: An American company is trying to run a media business inside a dictatorship that is imprisoning minorities and threatening its neighbors. The U.S. executives have to walk a fine line, placating the regime while showing the world the ugly things that are happening on the ground.

That is essentially the script for Philadelphia-based Comcast Corp., whose NBC network broadcast the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics Games early Friday. Comcast is facing challenges on every front, with advocates for the Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kong, and Taiwan residents demanding attention for legitimate concerns, while the government exacts obedience with its invasive surveillance system.

Topping it off, Comcast must also contend with homebound concerns: a traditional television audience that’s declining, and the fact that the Games will play out at inconvenient times for American and European viewers.

“Comcast is in a tough spot

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Nasdaq, S&P end higher, oil tops $92 level

U.S. stocks closed higher in what was another volatile week as investors weighed the stronger-than-expected monthly jobs report against positive earnings and rising interest rates. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
I:DJI DOW JONES AVERAGES 35089.74 -21.42 -0.06%
SP500 S&P 500 4500.53 +23.09 +0.52%
I:COMP NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX 14098.006675 +219.19 +1.58%

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended with little changed, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5% and 1.5%, respectively. For the week, all three of the major averages posted gains. 

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.93%, the highest since December 2019, lifting big banks higher. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
JPM JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. 152.56 +3.86 +2.60%
BAC BANK OF AMERICA CORP. 48.28 +1.85 +3.98%
WFC WELLS FARGO & CO. 56.33 +1.16 +2.10%

Oil tacked on 5.5% for the week, closing at

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Amazon Reveals Its Most Profitable Business

Amazon released its Q4 and full year earnings on Feb. 3. North American revenue was up 18.4% in 2021 versus 2020, which is only a slightly faster growth than the overall retail industry growth of 17.9%, as measured by the US Department of Commerce. Amazon’s growth rate is slowing by historical standards, it has previously never been below 20% since Amazon started reporting North American sales in 2014.

For the first time, Amazon broke out the revenue it collects from advertisers on its platform. Previously this revenue had been lumped into a category Amazon labeled “other.” In 2021 Amazon

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