Court: Gambling losses can't be deducted from state taxes
(Published Tuesday, March 27, 2007 10:22:43 AM CST)
A d v e r t i s e m e n t
Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. - A River Hills man can't deduct his gambling losses from his Wisconsin taxes, a state appeals court ruled Tuesday.
The 1st District Court of Appeals ruled a state law that went into effect in 2000 prevents gamblers from counting losses against their winnings.
According to court documents, Daniel Dettwiler claimed about $100,000 in income from gambling on his 2002 state taxes. He also claimed $41,637 in gambling losses and deducted them from his winnings.
Dettwiler contended that federal tax codes permit him to subtract the losses from his income, and the federal codes are the starting point for determining his income for his state taxes.
The state Tax Appeals Commission disagreed, ruling his gambling losses didn't qualify as deductions. The appeals court said Dettwiler's arguments were "wholly contrary" to the Legislature's decision to eliminate such offsets with the 2000 law.
