The new tax law has a lot of stuff in it, some of it very complex and yet to be fully fleshed out. One provision that has received much press and dialog is the cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions for individuals at $10,000. This provisions has elicited much wailing and [...]
The tax revamping proposed by the Trump Administration certainly grabbed headlines. However, many who have been asking for meaningful tax simplification might now be sorry that they asked. These proposals will be a good example of “be careful what you ask for”, as many favorite deductions and exclusions are slated to disappear. Who knows [...]
Ok, so this isn't a tax topic, but it did occur in our CPA firm so I'm gonna say it qualifies. It seems that there is just no limit to what thieves will do in this new cyber age. This episode happened to our office manager last week. She answered her cell phone and was greeted by [...]
We are in the heat of tax season, and while I should be focusing on the Piles o’ Files on my desk and office floor, I’m done for the day and need a distraction. Enter Bill Gates. Bill Gates (of Microsoft fame) recently sparked a discussion when he suggested that robots soon [...]
All the talking heads are now speculating what changes will be made to the tax code as a result of the Trump victory. Since NOTHING is certain at this point I can only list the things that others have said will likely happen. Here’s a partial list: All the taxes brought in [...]
Hi All, I have not posted in quite some time, and in the spirit of the current election hysteria, I AM NOT going to prognosticate on the results of our election!. (You're welcome!) However, I did learn of a really interesting proposal that was important enough to recharge this blog. A study has been completed by a team [...]
We get a lot of questions from clients about inquiries from IRS. Seems that when someone gets a letter or notice from our favorite federal agency most people instinctively hit the panic button. Thieves have discovered America’s paranoia over the IRS and have learned a new trick to capitalize on it, apparently with some [...]
Well, it’s finally June, and now that Spring is in the air, our hearts and minds turn to thoughts of….Filing FBARS! In case you forgot, an FBAR is the form you must file by June 30 if you have signature authority over a foreign bank account. It is part of the government’s effort to [...]
After just finishing my Nth (too many to count) tax season, its time to sit back and hear the predictable chorus of how unfair our taxing regime is and how it punishes successful people and the middle class while rewarding the wealthy. In fact, a recent study of International tax systems by German economists [...]
Every tax filing season tax scams and frauds increase exponentially. I suspect that scammers pick up on overall IRS anxiety and use that to get victims to send them money more easily. This year the Treasury Inspector General has said that so far 2014 has seen the highest level of scammer activity ever, with [...]
