Marin I. and Anita J. Johnson - Page 23




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          v. Commissioner, 113 T.C. 135, 142 (1999); see also Christensen             
          v. Harris County, 526 U.S.    ,    , 120 S. Ct. 1655, 1662-1663             
          (2000) (the interpretation that an agency reaches without formal            
          notice and comment rulemaking is entitled to “respect” only when            
          it has the “power to persuade”), that ruling is unpersuasive as             
          applied to the facts herein.  The ruling applies ostensibly to              
          outside salesmen, providing examples which distinguish (1)                  
          outside salesmen who are considered to be itinerants because they           
          do not have a home or regular place of employment from (2)                  
          outside salesmen who may be regarded as having a home to be away            
          from.  Petitioner is neither an outside salesman nor an                     
          itinerant.  He is a professional seaman who accepted employment             
          away from his personal residence, most likely because he could              
          earn his living at his trade more profitably than if he attempted           
          to do so in the area of his personal residence.  He accepted that           
          employment with the understanding that he would travel at                   
          designated times to where the Falcon was docked and captain the             
          Falcon for a fixed time.  Our finding that petitioner has a tax             
          home regardless of this revenue ruling is further solidified by             
          noting that respondent does not contest petitioner’s right to               
          deduct as travel expenses the other reported travel expenses                
          which he incurred with respect to his employment.                           
               Nor do we agree with respondent that petitioner has not                
          established that he paid incidental expenses during his                     





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