Meet the “gay tax” man.
A Park Slope number cruncher is making sure marriage remains bliss for Brooklyn’s gay newlyweds by curing tax season headaches caused by conflicting federal laws and recently altered state laws.
Accountant Giacomo Campinoti specializes in helping same sex spouses cope with Uncle Sam’s head-spinning new rules, which require same-sex couples to submit both joint and separate tax returns.
“It’s not easy — but I can help,” he said.
In Brooklyn, where gay marriage is legal, hitched gay couples must prepare multiple sets of tax returns — including a so-called “dummy” return — because federal law defines marriage as solely between a man and a woman.
The federal stuff gets even more complicated when you add factors such as spousal health insurance policies, favorable head-of-household rates, and child tax credit.
While gay lovebirds are still cheering the New York state gay marriage legislation that passed last July as a civil rights victory, many admit it has sparked serious tax conundrums.
“There are so many questions and so many ‘what ifs,’ ” said Annette Fisher, who married her partner at Borough Hall.
Fisher said she chose not to file joint taxes this year because the pay-off wasn’t worth the effort.
But that’s where Campinoti comes in. The accountant, who is married but not gay, took seminars specializing in same-sex tax filings — which he claims can become too complicated for tax software programs to handle.
His rates range from $50–$1,000 depending on the complexity and amount of paperwork, and the end goal is to save gay folks some cash.
That pleases Fisher, who says it’s all about equality.
“There are benefits to getting married — and the point is that it should be fair across the whole country,” she said.
Reach reporter Natalie O'Neill at noneill@cnglocal.com or by calling her at (718) 260-4505.
