In Mesa and throughout the state, many people face financial challenges that make filing for bankruptcy the wisest option to help them get through it. It is not a decision that is meant to shirk one's responsibility to debtors, but one that is designed to meet one's obligations while staying on sound financial footing. Financial matters can be complex and having to go through a personal bankruptcy while in the public eye can make the situation more complicated.
A woman who is a candidate for the state's corporation commission is under scrutiny from the Internal Revenue Service over $100,000. She and her husband had filed for personal bankruptcy after their restaurant business failed. The money is from payroll taxes. The claim states that the woman and her husband owe money on those federal taxes that had been withheld from the pay of employees beginning in 2007. The couple had run the restaurant, but the struggling economy forced them to sell assets back to the parent company in 2010. Since then, the woman's husband has been trying to clear debts through personal bankruptcy. The filing was made in district court and has become an issue in the woman's political campaign just as voting is set to take place.
No matter the personal or professional situation, it is important to make sure that filing for bankruptcy and its aftermath are handled correctly to avoid long-term problems. Every circumstance is different and people will face a wide variety of financial challenges that run the gamut from making personal mistakes and overspending to losing a business to losing one's job and not knowing how to pay bills. When the IRS gets involved, it is especially important to be fully prepared and well-represented to protect one's own interests in the immediate and for the future.
In this incident, the woman and her husband decided that filing for bankruptcy was their best possible option to deal with debts due to their failed business. The IRS is pursuing them for $100,000, and it is come at the worst possible time for the wife as she's seeking a political office. While most people are not in this exact situation, filing for bankruptcy will have aftereffects for anyone. It is important to understand them and the best way to achieve a satisfying resolution is to discuss the matter with an experienced legal professional prior to embarking on the process.
Source: The Arizona Republic, "Commission candidate Sandra Kennedy faces $100,000 IRS claim," Ryan Randazzo, Nov. 1, 2014
