Know your pro

January 29, 2014 by Lisa Masciovecchio

Taxes and Hawaii are two words which create very different emotions in Americans. One is the dreaded T word, the other is paradise! Why would we place such polarizing topics together in the same sentence? Introducing Carolyn Richardson! Our highly effective and experienced tax audit professional from Hawaii! With her three decades of tax experience, and time spent educating our next generation of Tax Professionals, Carolyn is an amazing member of our team who’s always glad to help out when someone finds themselves saying “why am I being audited?!”

Please say “hello” to Carolyn Richardson –

Position: Education and Research Manager
Years with TaxAudit.com: 6+ (Approx. 12, 480 Hours Worked)
Members Helped: Over 1400

1. How long have you been working in the tax field?
   30 years this summer! I started out taking accounting courses in college which were ‘terminally boring,’ however, that all changed when I took my first Income Tax class. Before joining the team at TaxAudit.com, I worked as a Revenue Agent for IRS and then spent 17 years as a tax programmer.


2. What is the most rewarding part of your job?
   Teaching as part of our Continuing Education is my favorite part of the job, and I also enjoy helping our Members as part of our Customer Care team.


3. What advice would you give to the average person who’s doing their own taxes?
   Keep those receipts! Whether you’re holding onto the original copies in a box or you’ve scanned them all into your computer, when dealing with an IRS Audit, it’s important to have those receipts and not rely on bank and credit card statements alone.


4. If you could spend one day with a famous person who’s passed on, who would it be and what would you do?
   I’d spend a day with Albert Einstein. I’ve always been fascinated by physics, and if anyone could explain how physics work to me, it would be him!


5. What is the most Interesting case you have ever worked and why?
   The IRS had issued a notice to a Member regarding an IRA distribution where the funds were rolled over, only to find the firm handling this wasn’t real! The IRS was assessing massive interest and penalties against the member but I was determined to help her as best we could and ultimately was able to prove the loss of her funds and help alleviate some of the liability. 


6. What is the funniest or most interesting thing a member has ever said to you?
   Well, this wasn’t a member but one of the audits I did when I was a revenue agent. The taxpayer owned at least a dozen rental properties. I met with him several times about his income, property sales, etc., and at one point he turned to me and said, “Why are you making a federal case out of this?” I had to explain to him that since it was an IRS audit, it WAS a “federal case.”