Community associations have become more prevalent in recent years. In 1964, there were fewer than 500 such associations across the United States (At-a- Glance Look at Homeowners Associations and Conflicts). As of 2003, that number had skyrocketed to about 249,000 associations (At-a-Glance Look at Homeowners Associations and Conflicts). That number further increased to about 300,000 associations by 2010 (Ross). The majority of these entities are located in Arizona, California, Florida, Texas, Nevada, and Hawaii (At-a-Glance Look at Homeowners Associations and Conflicts). Community association members are required to pay assessments. One half of these monthly assessments were between $100 and $200 in 2003 (At-a-Glance Look at Homeowners Associations and Conflicts). In 2003, the total annual revenue of United States associations was between $30 and $35 billion dollars (At-a-Glance Look at Homeowners Associations and Conflicts). Due to the large revenue inflows, lack of controls, and an atmosphere of trust, these organizations are susceptible to fraud. Lapses in control relate to issues of a lack of segregation of duties, check writing policies, detective controls such as budgets, and other related controls. Limited fraud controls are sometimes a byproduct of the atmosphere of trust. This atmosphere of trust is probably in part a result of the association's communal orientation as association members can assume that their neighbors have the community's best interest in mind. But this is not necessarily the case. Fraud is an activity which, in 2006, cost United States businesses approximately $652 billion dollars (DiNapoli 2). On average, the cost to protect organizations from fraud and abuse is estimated at between five and seven percent of their annual revenue (DiNapoli 2) (Ratley 8). This thesis explores best practices that small and large community associations can employ to deter such fraud. First, this thesis provides background information regarding community associations, including their structure and surrounding laws which are pertinent to understanding their relationship with fraud prevention. Next, fraud basics are discussed to address the motivation, organizational attributes, and personal characteristics common to this act. Then, examples of community association fraud are discussed to underscore the importance of establishing anti-fraud controls. Finally, best practices are discussed to help community association members and directors enact policies to curb this costly act.

The price charged between related parties for the transfer of goods, services, or intangibles, is known as a transfer price. A taxpayer is required to set its transfer price at arm's-length, similar to what would be charged to an unrelated party, to prevent a taxpayer from greatly reducing its global tax by shifting profits from its U.S. entity to an entity located in a jurisdiction with a lower tax rate. Section 482 of the Internal Revenue Code and its associated regulations advises taxpayers on the various methods to calculate its transfer price. These include: the Comparable Uncontrolled Transaction (CUT) method, the Comparable Profits Method (CPM), and the Profit Split Method. Section 482 also grants the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) the authority to allocate a corporation's transfer price if it is not at arm's-length. With millions and sometimes billions of dollars at stake, it is important for the IRS to resolve the incredibly complex issue of transfer pricing without placing an unnecessary burden on U.S. corporations.

Imagine, after enjoying 40 years with a person you love, and promise to live with ‘till death do us part,’ you are taxed over $360,000 upon the death of your spouse. Edith Windsor, who was legally married experienced discriminatory tax treatment simply because her spouse was a woman. On June 26, 2013 the Supreme Court of the United States ruled the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional violating the 5th and 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The ruling eliminated this discriminatory tax policy and the conflict of filing federal and state income taxes in states recognizing same-sex marriage. It did create a new conflict with the states that do not recognize these marriages. GayTaxGuide.com is an authoritative tool to verify the current legal standing for same-sex marriage in every state of the U.S. Visitors will find links to official state tax agencies, state income tax forms including official guidance for the public in completing state income tax returns for same-sex married taxpayers. Reading the paper component of this thesis will inform you of U.S. history of taxation and same-sex marriage dating back to the 1st century. Census data and Gallup® survey results pertaining to LGBT topics are presented along with an account of my research process. This project serves the public in untangling state income tax policy for same-sex married couples with up to date primary sources in an easy to navigate format.