Russ Sullivan — 1-2-1 Profile

My Business

What Guardian Tax Law does

We help individuals and business owners resolve stressful tax problems with the IRS and state tax agencies, and we assist with defaulted SBA loans.

Who we help

People and businesses who owe back taxes, are receiving IRS notices, are facing audits, liens or levies, or need an affordable payment solution.

Most of them come to us feeling overwhelmed and unsure what to do next. Every case starts with a free consultation, where we go over the situation and explain their rights and options.

Our role

We step in as the client’s advocate — communicating directly with the IRS on their behalf, explaining the options clearly, and building a practical plan to move forward.

Over 16 years of negotiating with the IRS and state agencies means we know which returns need filing, how to remove penalties and interest, and when a debt should expire. Our focus is restoring clarity, confidence and peace of mind.

See us in action

A short video introduction to Guardian Tax Law and how we work with clients.

Watch the video

Tops Profile · Top Products

How we resolve tax debt

The three IRS programs we use most — and two results they made possible.

Offer in Compromise

An IRS program that lets individuals and businesses with unpaid tax liabilities negotiate a settlement for less than the full amount owed.

Installment Agreements

IRS payment plans that turn a tax debt into manageable payments over time.

Currently Not Collectible

When the IRS decides you can’t afford to pay right now, it pauses collection — levies and garnishments stop.

It doesn’t erase the debt: interest and penalties can keep accruing while the account is in this status.

Get to know Russ

Business

Business name: Guardian Tax Law (Marketing Coordinator)
Industry: Legal & Accounting — Tax Law
Location: Tucson, with clients across the US
Years in the business: 4½ years (since March 2022)
Chapter roles: SoZona Mentor Program and BNI Connect Profile Director
Previous types of jobs: 37 years in the Air Force and Air National Guard — IT Superintendent (“Head Geek”), IT project manager, avionics technician and instructor. Also church security lead, high school volleyball and golf coach, and golf course starter.

Family & Home

Roots: My mother was Japanese, and I was born in Japan
Spouse: Married — and my wife is a fellow member in another SoZona chapter
Children: Four children and eight beautiful grandchildren
Pets: Seven grand-dogs — none of them in my home!
City of residence: Tucson, AZ
How long?: 53 years

Personal

Hobbies: Golf, cooking, and teaching other members how to grow their business.
Activities & interests: Travel, time with family, volunteering with Junior Achievement (from kindergartners to high school seniors), and anything Star Wars, Star Trek or NCIS.

Burning desire

Visit Japan in 2028 to find and meet my mother's family.

No one here knows

As an Army brat I attended nine schools in twelve years — three different high schools in my junior and senior years alone.

The key to my success

Integrity first, service before self, excellence in all we do — and the BNI motto, Givers Gain. Total, complete support for the people I work with and for.

4.4 · GAINS Exchange

Goals, Accomplishments, Interests, Networks, Skills

Where we might overlap, and what I can open up for you.

Goals

Professional: Double the referrals from BNI brought into Guardian in 2026 over 2025.

Networking: Be the BNI “Tool Guy” — educating BNI members to use BNI tools to help them “Grow Their Business”.

Personal: Stay close to my family, draw closer to God, serve others as much as possible, and improve my overall health and wellness.

Accomplishments

Chief Master Sergeant — top 1% of the Air Force
Chairman of the Plans Working Group for the entire Air National Guard (104 units)
Arizona State Emergency Management Superintendent on the Border Mission
BNI 2026 US National Lifelong Learning award and 2026 Most Valuable Member
BNI Top Notch Referrer — 344 referrals in 2024, 282 in 2023
#5 on the BNI Business Builders (BNI Academy) worldwide leaderboard
BNI Lifelong Learner — 762 CEUs in 2023, plus the 2023 Regional Lifelong Learning award
BNI Givers Gain Award (2016), Above & Beyond (2022, 2020) and Perfect Attendance (2019, 2018)
Junior Achievement Volunteer of the Year (2017) and Board of Directors
Volleyball Coach of the Year in my first season as head coach — 18 wins, 1 loss
Mary Kay Husband of the Year (2020, 2016)

Interests

Personal: Cooking, golf, time with my family — and starting to learn gardening alongside my grandson.

Giving back: Teaching, and volunteering with Junior Achievement.

Business: Learning networking to build real relationships with others.

Networks

BNI Achievers
Golf and volleyball communities
High school coaches
Junior Achievement
Air National Guard (29 years) and Air Force (8 years)

Skills

Project and personnel management
Marketing, networking and fundraising
Leadership, team building, supervision and delegation
Teaching, instructing and coaching sports
Organised, structured, detailed and methodical — proactive planning and time management

4.5 · Contact Sphere Planning

Who naturally refers me business

The professionals who meet people just as tax, debt or loan trouble surfaces.

My contact sphere

Tax Advisors & Preparers
Realtors
Mortgage Brokers
Financial Advisors & Coaches
Estate Planning Attorneys
Divorce Attorneys
Personal Injury Attorneys
Bookkeepers
Certified Public Accountants
Fractional CFOs

4.6 · Best 10 Customers

What a great referral looks like

Ten recent clients, every one of them standard for us. The pattern matters more than the list — it's how you'll spot the next one.

A publicly traded corporation with 100 employees
A business owner running two corporations
A chiropractor carrying both personal and business debt
A family with a closed corporation, in trouble with the IRS and the State of Ohio
A single father, homeless in New York with his teenage son
A married couple in their 40s with children
A single man working as a contractor in Iraq
A married couple in their 60s with a disabled daughter
A single man raising his daughter
A married couple trying to sell their home in Idaho

Where my clients come from

Many are referrals from CPAs and attorney networks, plus word of mouth, Google searches and social media. Other sources: BNI, community networking, attorney referrals and a nationwide BNI search.

What we do for them: resolve complicated issues with the IRS and state tax authorities — working out payment plans and reducing or eliminating the debt — and sort out overdue Small Business Administration (SBA) loans.

Great referrals — and not a fit

Send me: people who know they're in tax trouble, are ready to deal with it, and are looking for good advice and help.

Not a fit: anyone not yet ready to address their IRS or state tax issues, or their SBA loans.

Tops Profile · Referrals

Helping me find the next client

Who to listen for, who can introduce them, and what I say about it each week.

My ideal referral

Individuals and businesses who owe $10,000 or more in tax debt to the IRS and/or state tax agencies
People dealing with wage garnishments, tax liens or bank levies
Businesses facing IRS collection action over payroll taxes
Businesses with defaulted Small Business Administration (SBA) loans

My ideal referral partners

CPAs, accountants and tax advisors
Bookkeepers
Financial advisors
Realtors and mortgage brokers
Attorneys — bankruptcy, business, family law, divorce, estate planning, probate and personal injury
HR professionals

My weekly presentations

We solve tax problems for people who owe the IRS $10,000 or more. This week I’m looking to connect with financial advisors — from time to time their clients find themselves in tax trouble and don’t know where to turn. Our attorneys have the expertise to guide them to a resolution and peace of mind, and we offer a free consultation to review their rights and options.
IRS letters are mailed out every day, and they can be confusing. Translating them is a skill we excel at — and the letters aren’t all bad! A good referral is an eastside financial advisor with clients receiving these letters. We provide a free consultation; ask them to call, text or email our office.
We’re tax debt resolution specialists with over 16 years of experience. We negotiate with the IRS, we know which tax returns need to be filed, we know how to remove penalties and interest, and we know when a debt should expire. A good referral is the owner or lead CPA at HBL CPAs at Broadway and Craycroft.
We just gave peace of mind to a client who owed the IRS $250,000 — we settled their case for $20, based on their latest financial analysis. A good referral is an independent financial advisor’s client who has tax debt. Ask them to call, text or email our office.

My favourite BNI story

At the 2017 BNI Global Convention I had a 1-2-1 with Masato from Osaka, Japan. We connected immediately — I was born in Japan — and learned a lot about each other. He invited me, my wife, my daughter and my son-in-law to visit the following year on our way to the Global Convention in Bangkok, and offered to help me find my relatives in Japan. Since my daughter is 6′4″ and my son-in-law is 6′8″, he said he’d have to find some longer futons!

We couldn’t make that trip because our grandson was born, but we’re still going — now in 2028, and taking him with us. Where else but in BNI can a connection like this happen?