Former Atlanta Braves Lose Bid For $48 Million Tax Deduction (2)

Former Atlanta Braves players Ryan Klesko and John Smoltz can’t claim an almost $48 million charitable contribution tax deduction for donating an easement on 1,560 acres of Georgia land, the Eleventh Circuit said Tuesday.

The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a decision that limited the value of Klesko and Smoltz’s claimed deduction on the land to $4.6 million, instead of the $47.6 million they claimed on the Jones County, Ga., land. In doing so, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the US Tax Court, rejecting the players’ arguments that the IRS violated IRC Section 6103(a).

Klesko and ...