Herbstreit v. IRS

Blog Emperor Paul Caron reports on a lawsuit filed against the IRS by ESPN sportscaster Kirk Herbstreit, after the IRS denied Herbstreit's request for a $ 330,000 tax deduction for donating his house to the local fire department to burn down for training and exercise purposes. Apparently this is a common practice among people who want to build a new house on their property. The IRS claims it denied the deduction because Herbstreit retained an interest in the property--namely, the land, on which he would build a new house at some point in the future.