RealGM reported today about tax problems reported by the SF Chronicle for Warriors owner Chris Cohan. These disputes originate from the 1998 sale of his cable operations. A number of tax shelters were used to protect some of the proceeeds from that sale from taxes. Cohan claims he disclosed those in good faith under the amnesty rule, and that the amount he owes is far less than the 165 million the IRS claims.

Good overview in this June, 2006 Forbes Snippet. The most disturbing part of the Forbes piece was this little number..."They reported a $14 million loss and even claimed a $1,200 refundable credit intended for lower-income families with three or more kids." I think he does indeed have 3 kids, but not sure if he qualifies as being lower-income.

The bulk of the money potentially owed comes from one shelter, and totals over 90 million in back taxes and 60 million in penalties. I don't believe that the disagreement is over the legitimacy of the shelters, but the total amount that Cohan should have to pay. It is also not clear how liquid Cohan is, and what resources he has to pay, it is likely that is the IRS amount holds up, Cohan would have to sell part of the team to make good. This is probably a good time to look at selling part ownership in the team since they are out of the basement, getting some national attention and seem to be on the upswing.