Football season is just around the corner. In case you missed it, the National Football League (NFL) announced earlier this year it decided to voluntarily end its tax-exempt status. Why did the NFL do this and what does it...more
The IRS has recently modified the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) to encourage employers to adopt automatic contribution features, and to detect and correct errors in retirement plans quickly. Revenue...more
Did you miss the last holiday in May? Friday, May 29th (5/29) was “529 Day,” referencing 529 college savings plans. If you are asking what a 529 Plan is, you are not alone. A recent Forbes article discussing the so-called...more
As high deductible health insurance plans become more prevalent, so do health savings accounts (HSAs). While most participants are aware of the tax implications of an HSA during life (contributions are deductible from gross...more
Last week the IRS announced a special tax option for contributions to taxpayers who make cash contributions to certain charitable organizations. The Slain Officer Family Support Act of 2015 applies to taxpayers making...more
In December 2014, the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act was passed by the US Senate and House and approved by the President. The ABLE Act will amend Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code to create a tax-free...more
Were you aware you could use your tax refund to buy a U.S. Savings Bond? Or that you could split the refund between multiple accounts (such as savings and checking) with direct deposit? If you prepared your own return with an...more
Access to digital assets following an individual's death continues to be a hot topic, and once again has made the news. This time, Facebook has announced a new feature called a "Legacy Contact." Essentially, this is the...more
It's the end of January, and I imagine all of those tax documents are starting to arrive, including W2's and 1099's. For couples, maybe just one spouse handles the finances and taxes, whether by actually preparing them, or by...more
For some, the end of the calendar year means more than just the deadline for charitable contributions for the tax year. December 31 is also the deadline to take certain mandatory distributions from individual retirement...more
As the holidays approach and the end of the year draws near, the IRS has again released its list of tips for giving to charity. Of course, these rules apply to obtaining a legitimate tax-deduction for the donation. If that is...more
Startup companies have unique challenges, but succession planning is one area that both startups and well-established businesses should likewise be considering. No matter the stage of your business, the time to start thinking...more
I previously posted about the increase in retirement plan contribution limits for 2015. This week the IRS announced the tax brackets, personal exemption, and standard deduction amounts for tax year 2015. To be clear, the new...more
Every year, about this time, the IRS calculates the cost of living increases, and determines whether the change is enough to trigger an adjustment to the statutory limit/threshold for various areas, including retirement...more
In early 2012, Citibank started issuing Form 1099-MISC to customers who were given "thank you points" in exchange for opening bank accounts. The points could be redeemed for an airline ticket, similar to frequent flyer miles....more
Delaware has become the first state to enact the Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (the "Act") The Uniform Law Commission describes the act as a law "that will vest fiduciaries with at least the authority to...more
Typically a taxpayer does not have to include in gross income an amount distributed from an IRA if the funds are placed into another IRA within 60 days. This is often called a rollover. To avoid abuse of the exclusion, it...more
It seems as soon as I blogged about the draft Form 1023-EZ, the IRS released the final form. So, this will serve as an update and follow-up to my June 30, 2014 post. on the Form 1023-EZ, the IRS has now released Form...more
The IRS is releasing a new Form 1023-EZ, a simpler form of the regular Form 1023 used to apply for tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) organization. The form is available to small organizations, specifically those with less than...more
On Tuesday, the IRS released what it calls the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, grouping together the rights that taxpayers have in the tax code. These rights have always existed, but now the IRS has put the rights together in a...more
In the IRS's point of view, preventing fraud and abuse of the electronic filing system is the shared responsibility of both the IRS and authorized e-file providers. In an effort to stop the fraud, abuse, and resulting...more
May 15 is a key deadline for many tax-exempt organizations. The Form 990 series returns are due on the 15th day of the 5th month after the end of the tax year. For most organizations that run on a calendar year, that...more
Your Federal Taxpayer Receipt is a tool launched by the White House that allows an individual taxpayer to see how his or her tax dollars were spent. On the website, simply insert the amount of social security tax, Medicare...more
The Florida Supreme Court Case of Aldrich v. Basile may serve as a cautionary story that online pre-printed forms that allow a user to essentially fill in the blank may not address the specific needs of the individuals using...more
In certain situations, an employee whose job is eliminated may receive a lump sum severance payment from the employer. The payments vary greatly, often dependent on the length of employment and reason for the termination. The...more