Income Tax Fundamentals 2011 (with H&R BLOCK At Home™ Tax Preparation Software CD-ROM) - Softcover

About This Edition

Trust the number one tax preparation text to introduce students to individual income tax preparation using a proven forms approach with a hands-on workbook format. As the market-leading tax preparation text for 29 years, Income Tax Fundamentals, 2011 Edition, provides a concise, practical, and time-tested introduction to the most important areas of the tax law. Easy-to-read sections incorporate real examples using actual tax forms. This edition presents intriguing, real, and often humorous tax situations to maintain student interest. Self-study problems and solutions encourage students to work in a step-by-step manner to build on concepts gradually. Strong end-of-chapter reinforcement, including online interactive quizzes, further prepares students for career success. Whittenburg and Altus-Buller's text provides up-to-the-minute tax information and is revised annually. With the help of Income Tax Fundamentals' comprehensive support package and complete presentation, students will leave the course with the knowledge and skills to handle the challenges of today's tax preparers.

New Features

• The 2011 Edition will be updated to reflect the following tax changes and anticipated tax changes for tax year 2010. Due to the back-up of tax bills in Congress, any bills affecting 2010 which are not passed when we go to press will be covered in detail on the Whittenburg website.


• The two health care reform acts signed into law in March of 2010 (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act) contain numerous tax provisions. The text will highlight several of the most prominent tax changes for 2010 and future years.


• The HIRE Act became law in March of 2010, with tax provisions to help the unemployed and an extension of the 2009 Section 179 expensing rules to 2010.


• As of September 2010, Congress has tax bills under consideration which will affect numerous 2010 tax laws retroactively, including the likely extension of the sales tax deduction, the standard deduction for property taxes, the qualified tuition deduction, and bonus depreciation. The president's proposed budget includes the extension of the 2009 Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) exemption amounts to 2010. This change is likely to pass before year-end since the law as it currently stands will force an estimated one in five taxpayers to pay AMT for 2010.


• Among the provisions passed in prior years which affect 2010 are the complete elimination of the phase-outs for itemized deductions and exemption deductions. The elimination of phase-outs is expected to be in effect for the 2010 tax year only, with reinstatement in 2011.


• The end-of-chapter questions, all tax return problems, test bank problems, and internet quizzes will be updated for relevant new law changes as well as the dozens of standard changes due to yearly cost of living increases for tax rates and phase-ins and phase-outs of tax benefits.


• New Test Bank Questions: Approximately 100 new multiple choice questions will be added to the test bank.

Additional Features

• The tax equation is referenced and emphasized on the quick tax reference guide inside the back cover.


• An additional set of interactive internet quizzes provides expanded self-study problems. The interactive quizzes are on the companion website.


• H&R Block's popular "At Home" software as well as RIA Checkpoint tax research software both come with each new copy of this text.

Dr. Gerald E. Whittenburg was a professor of accounting and taxation at San Diego State University. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Houston and his professional designations included Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Enrolled Agent (EA). Dr. Whittenburg's research interests focused on corporate and individual taxation as well as the tax research process. His articles on these and other topics appeared in such journals as the Accounting Review, Advances in Taxation, Accounting Education: An International Journal, Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, Journal of Taxation, Taxes, Management Accounting, Practical Tax Strategies Journal of Taxation of Investments, Valuation Strategies, Journal of Small Business Strategy, Journal of Taxation of Financial Institutions, The Tax Adviser, Tax Notes, Real Estate Accounting and Taxation , and Journal of Accounting Education. Dr. Whittenburg has authored several tax textbooks, including Income Tax Fundamentals and Federal Tax Research. He was a visiting scholar at the University of Adelaide (Australia) in 1999 and 2005 and the University of South Australia in 2009 and 2010. In 2003, he received a Fulbright Senior Specialist grant at the Academy of Tax Services of Ukraine.

Martha Altus-Buller is a CPA with her own tax practice in San Diego, California. She attended Reed College in Portland, Oregon for two years, holds a BA in Mathematics from the University of California at San Diego and a MS in Accounting from San Diego State University. Ms. Altus Buller was awarded the Sells award for scoring among the top in the country on the May 1983 CPA exam. Her practical experience includes work as a tax manager for Arthur Young, now Ernst & Young, one of the (then) Big 8 accounting firms. She also has more than two decades of experience with a full-time practice in tax accounting.