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basis consistent with the taxpayer’s
treatment of such individual as not being an
employee,
then, for purposes of applying such taxes for
such period with respect to the taxpayer, the
individual shall be deemed not to be an
employee unless the taxpayer had no
reasonable basis for not treating such
individual as an employee.
Congress enacted section 530 to “alleviate what it perceived
as the ‘overly zealous pursuit and assessment of taxes’” against
employers who had, in good faith, classified their workers as
independent contractors. Ewens and Miller, Inc. v. Commissioner,
117 T.C. 263, 276 (2001)(quoting Boles Trucking, Inc. v. United
States, 77 F.3d 236, 239 (8th Cir. 1996)). Section 530 was
enacted both as an interim solution to the problems inherent in
increased enforcement by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of
the employment tax laws and in response to complaints by
taxpayers that proposed reclassifications by the IRS involved a
change of position by the IRS in interpreting how the common law
rules apply to their workers or industry. See Joseph M. Grey
Pub. Accountant, P.C. v. Commissioner, 119 T.C. 121, 133
(2002)(citing H. Rept. 95-1748 (1978), 1978-3 C.B. (Vol. 1) 629,
631-632). The purpose of section 530 was to “provide an interim
solution to controversies over common law employment status by,
in part, allowing taxpayers who had a reasonable basis for not
treating workers as employees under the traditional common law
tests to continue to do so”. Id. at 133. This interim solution
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