As the nation awaits the President’s signature on the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 – a 5,500 page spending and COVID stimulus bill – tax nerds march ahead undeterred, knowing that should that signature arrive, the need to undertake significant tax planning will be upon them before the ink is dry. UNITED STATES – DECEMBER 25:
Taxes
There’s finally certainty around the medical expense deduction for 2021 and beyond. getty Got high medical expenses in a low-income year? Congress heard your plea. As part of the $1.4 trillion spending bill Congress passed yesterday, millions of Americans will get a permanent break on the deductibility of out-of-pocket medical expenses. The threshold for claiming
Three-dimensional synthetic works can be used in any design getty President-elect Joe Biden will have his hands full once he takes office in January. A lot of people are curious about whether he will invest political capital in trying to alter some of the income tax provisions introduced by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Trying to
Economic Security Planning, Inc. Today’s column addresses questions about withdrawing an application for a retirement benefit, filing for and then suspending a retirement benefit and whether and when divorced spousal benefits might be available. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning, Inc, which
Congress just made the tax breaks for giving to charity better for 2021. getty There’s good tax news for charities and donors in the year-end spending package Congress passed yesterday. It includes two tax changes that can boost donors tax deductions for charitable giving, meaning they can give more to charity at a lower net
Worker starts production of craft beer at a factory during covid-19 pandemic. getty After promising to work all night until an agreement was reached, U.S. senators passed a bill close to midnight Monday that grants permanent federal excise tax (FET) relief to brewers, distillers, winemakers and other alcoholic beverage producers. The Craft Beverage Modernization and
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued new standard mileage rates for operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes in 2021. The IRS has issued new lower mileage rates for 2021. getty New IRS Mileage Rates The new IRS mileage rates apply to travel starting on January 1, 2021. 56 cents per
An IRS 1040 Tax Form with a pair of Handcuffs resting on the Tax Forms. getty A key to good tax practice is being able to explain things to clients and prospects. Consider this remark explaining difficult to understand promotional material: we know if we’re examined by the [IRS] they will ask for all promotion
Look, I’ve never been a particularly happy guy. But if there’s one thing that really gets me down, it’s everyone else being happy. That, I simply can’t have. It’s why, growing up outside of Philly, I rooted for the Eagles to get smoked every Sunday. It’s why whenever I leave my little ski town for
getty The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued its 2021 standard mileage rates. Beginning on January 1, 2021, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car, van, pickup or panel truck will be: 56 cents per mile for business miles driven (down from 57.5 cents in 2020) 16 cents per mile driven for medical or
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 21: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) walks to his office … [+] after leaving the Senate Floor at the U.S. Capitol on December 21, 2020 in Washington, DC. The House and Senate are set to vote today on a roughly $900 billion pandemic relief bill to bolster the U.S. economy
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 10: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin testifies before the Congressional … [+] Oversight Commission during a hearing on the “Examination of Loans to Businesses Critical to Maintaining National Security” on Capitol Hill on December 10, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Sarah Silbiger-Pool/Getty Images) Getty Images When Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid,
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 20: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer listens as Speaker of the House … [+] Nancy Pelosi speaks after the House and Senate finally came to an agreement on the coronavirus relief bill. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images) Getty Images The pandemic relief bill Congress is about to pass is loaded with
getty The widow(er)’s penalty tax is one of the least known yet most onerous of the retirement Stealth Taxes. I frequently warn people about the solo years, the years after one spouse has passed away. The surviving spouse has to maintain the household with one less Social Security benefit and perhaps a decline in other
People walk past the US Capitol in Washington, DC on December 16, 2020. – Congressional leaders on … [+] December 16, 2020 said they were nearing a long-awaited agreement on a stimulus package for the US economy, while the Federal Reserve is set to provide updated forecasts on an uncertain outlook.A federal relief package to
STERLING, VA – DECEMBER 13: U.S. President Donald Trump climbs into golf cart number 45 as he golfs … [+] at Trump National Golf Club on December 13, 2020 in Sterling, Virginia. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images) Getty Images It’s perhaps the most fitting end for a presidency plagued by crisis and mismanagement: the federal
Congressional Progressive Caucus members Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., center, accompanied by Rep. … [+] Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., speaks during a news conference on the targeted killing of Iran’s senior military commander Gen. Qassem Soleimani on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) ASSOCIATED PRESS The
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 16: House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) walks out of the House … [+] Chamber and talks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol on December 16, 2020 in Washington, DC. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi hosted a meeting as congressional negotiations on spending and economic relief legislation continued. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty
The popularity of cryptocurrency has been on the rise for years. But 2020 has been a very special year with many more retail investors getting exposure to bitcoin during the COVID-19 lockdown, public companies like MicroStrategy MSTR , Square SQ , and Grayscale beefing up their bitcoin holdings, and major fintech companies like PayPal PYPL
Close-up of Conservation easement with pen getty The Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Actis back. We learn that from a press release issued by the Senate Finance Committee. Senator Grassley uses some pretty strong language. The conservation easement program is an important tool for protecting and preserving our environment. But bad-faith scammers have taken advantage of