There is no authority in the tax code for the IRS to require broker reporting on purchases. Hence, only stock sales are subject to broker reporting. So, the question then becomes, why aren't options sales reported? I guess that several years ago someone in Treasury made a decision that since many options sales are "opening" transactions, they would be getting a lot of information that would not be useful to them in the administration of the tax code. 4Q
I've traded options for years and this is always a question that's bugged me. If there are any tax accountants out there who know the answer to this one, let me know.
Sbelmont, I believe I answered the question above. Is there anything specific that I can clarify for you? 4Q