Back in the spring, in a rare show of bipartisan action, the House and Senate passed a law intended to give Americans an incentive to save for retirement. The bill received over 400 votes in the House and over 80 in the Senate. The bill, dubbed SECURE 2.0, is a follow-up to the SECURE Act. […]
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IRS Raises Tax Brackets and Standard Deduction in Response to Inflation
In the largest automatic adjustment to the standard deduction since core features of the tax system were indexed to inflation in 1985, the IRS has increased key tax code parameters for 2023 to reflect high inflation rates. The top 37% top marginal tax rate will apply to individual income above $578,125 and married couples’ income […]
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IRS Waiving Late Filing Penalties
The IRS announced yesterday its waiving $1.2 billion in late-filing penalties for income tax returns, letting about 1.6 million taxpayers off the hook. What is behind this decision from an agency not known for forgiveness? From our perspective, the reason is less about caring for taxpayers and more about an organizational disaster. The IRS has […]
Continue reading…IRS Actuarial Tables Updated, Retirees Can Keep More in their IRAs
It has been 20 years since the IRS last updated its actuarial tables – the ones used to indicate how much taxpayers must take from their retirement accounts. For the first time in many years, retirees can keep more money in their tax-deferred accounts starting at age 72. The new tables reflect a longer lifespan, […]
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When Can You Use E-Signatures on IRS Forms?
In the past two years, many traditional processes in the world of taxes and the law have been transformed by necessity, using digital signatures, or e-signatures, for many financial and legal documents. With many offices and courts re-opening and returning to pre-COVID processes, the IRS has recently reported that it will continue to allow taxpayers […]
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Here’s How Wrong the IRS Can Be: Michael Jackson’s Estate Big Tax Court Win
Seven years after it began, the estate of Michael Jackson has won big in U. S Tax Court. Following a ruling that found the singer’s name and likeness was worth far less at his time of death than what the IRS had claimed, the estate will pay far less than the $700 million initially deemed […]
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Proposed Legislation “For the 99.5% Act” Takes Direct Aim at Estate Taxes
Last week, Senator Bernie Sanders (I, VT) and Senator Shelton Whitehouse (D, RI) introduced the “For the 99.5% Act,” which includes a reduction in the estate tax exemption to $3.5 million per individual and $7 million per couple. Sanders also introduced a bill to raise the corporate tax to 35% and reduce a corporation’s ability […]
Continue reading…IRS Extends Tax Deadline to May 17 – Note: New York State Deadlines Have Not Changed
The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service announced that the federal income tax filing due date for individuals for the 2020 tax year will be automatically extended from April 15, 2021, to May 17, 2021. It is important to note that this deadline change is only for federal taxes. As of this writing, New York […]
Continue reading…IRS STOPS ISSUING EINs – AT THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME
I’m outraged – and you should be too. In the busiest time of year for estate planning attorneys, bankers, business owners and financial services, the IRS began a planned outage from December 23, 2020 – January 4, 2021. If you need to have an EIN issued for a client or business that establishes a legal […]
Continue reading…IRS and Treasury Announce Intent to Issue Regulations: State and Local Income Taxes Will be Deductible for Businesses Structured as Passthrough Entities
Anyone who owns rental property and has not yet re-structured ownership into a passthrough entity now has another reason to make this change. We encourage you to call our office to get this done before year’s end to make the most out of this opportunity from the Treasury and the IRS. The $10,000 limit on […]
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