Subject: I support our great country, pay my taxes and ask to be fairly subjected to taxes on money that I have earned and not on “Paper Gains” Please reform the ISO-AMT provision Comment: Michael J. Quesnette 1901 South Ocean Blvd., #502 Boca Raton, Florida 33432-8069 To the Honorable Members of the President’s Tax Reform Advisory Panel: I would like to ask for your support of ISO-AMT Reform. I am one of a number of constituents from the Honorable Clay Shaw’s district in South Florida who found themselves in an enormous AMT Tax liability as a result of exercising Incentive Stock Options (ISO's) granted to us from our respective employers. Taxes owed from a stock option exercise are currently assessed on the value of the stock on the date of the transaction (purchase date). In addition, the IRS has tax laws set up such that it is favorable to hold such investments for more than a year to receive long term capital gains tax relief (~20% vs. short term of ~40%). Subsequently, I was assessed a tax on a stock value that has since dropped more than 90% of it's taxed value. I did not get the choice to hold the investment for long-term treatment and get taxed when I sold the stock, but rather was forced to liquidate all my holdings to pay taxes on a value I did NOT even realize. Furthermore, going forward I am subject to quarterly estimated tax payments on values I no longer even possess. The current AMT law needs to be amended to grant relief to many facing financial ruin and to make it fair for those who work very hard to drive such an important part of our economy. I support our great country, pay my taxes and ask to be fairly subjected only to taxes on money that I have earned and not on that which I have received no gain from. I thank you for your time and will be happy to answer any inquiries you may have. Thank you and best regards, Michael J. Quesnette |