The Devil Rays ownership group, led by Managing General
Partner Vince Naimoli, is "appealing" to U.S. Tax Court to
overturn an IRS finding that the team "underreported its
income by more than" $7M in '95 and '96, according to Jerry
Moskal of the TAMPA TRIBUNE. The dispute "involves how the
partnership accounted for income from advance sales of
tickets and suites at Tropicana Field, and from sponsorships
and promotional events." The team "argued the income should
be recognized" in '98, when it began play. But the IRS
"ruled the income had to be reported in the years the
payments were received." If the IRS' ruling is upheld, the
partnership's owners would be subject to additional taxes on
their share of the proceeds." It's "not clear how much
additional tax the owners would owe." The team says the
"advance sales were recorded as a liability on the team's
books, rather than income, because there were no assurances
at the time that the team would ever take the field," as the
franchise had to reach "certain conditions." If the IRS and
the team can't reach a settlement, the case "could go to
trial before a tax court judge" (TAMPA TRIBUNE, 7/27).
