Blogging Beyond the Numbers

One of the changes made to the tax laws by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was to disallow a tax deduction for qualified transportation fringe benefits businesses provide to their employees.  This nondeductible expense has been dubbed the “Parking Lot Tax”. Items subject to disallowance as a Qualified Transportation Fringe benefits (QTFs) include: Parking expensesCommuter vehicle transport...

Download a pdf of the articleDownload Congress recently passed - and the President signed into law - the SECURE Act, landmark legislation that may affect how you plan for your retirement. Many of the provisions go into effect in 2020, which means now is the time to consider how these new rules may affect your tax and retirement-planning situation. Here is a look at some of the more important elements...

On December 20, 2019 the President signed the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act) into law.  This law made a lot of positive changes in IRAs and retirement plans.  Below are a couple key tax law provisions impacting retirement plans effective as of January 1, 2020 New Plans Can be Adopted AFTER the Close of Year  Under the old rule, for a qualifie...

On December 20, 2019 the President signed the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act) into law.  This law made a lot of positive changes in IRAs and retirement plans.  Below is a summary of the major items that you may want to consider when discussing your taxes with your tax adviser between now and April 15th, 2020. The following changes are effective as of Janu...

The “Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020” was signed into law on December 20, 2019, and includes a variety of provisions that provided tax relief to businesses and employers. The new law includes an extension (generally through 2020) of more than 30 provisions that were set to expire or already expired. Two other laws were passed as part of the law (The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Rel...

In the spirit of giving during the holiday season, a package of tax provisions passed by Congress could be significant for some taxpayers. The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 was signed into law by President Trump on December 20th, 2019. While the primary purpose of the bill is to appropriate federal budget among various departments and programs for 2020, the Act also includes several tax l...

Do you receive income from one of the online platforms offering goods and services (e.g., Uber, Lyft, Airbnb or DoorDash)?  Keep in mind there are tax consequences for the people who perform these and other side jobs.  If you receive income from a “gig” or other sharing economy jobs, it’s almost ALWAYS taxable.  Even if you don’t receive a Form 1099 or W-2 reporting the amount of mon...

We have all heard people complain about the high costs of medical expenses.  But it might be possible to get a tax deduction for those medical expenses if you qualify. While not all individuals will be able to take advantage of this medical deduction, if properly planned, there could be great tax benefits. General Information For 2019, if you are claiming itemized deductions on your 1040 tax ret...

December 31 means more than just New Year’s Eve celebrations. For tax purposes, it also affects the tax return filing status that will be checked on your tax return for the year. The filing status is important as it determines:  filing requirements, standard deduction, eligibility for certain tax credits, and ultimately the tax tables you’ll use to calculate the income tax.  When you file...

401k plans are a good way to save money for retirement as well as an easy way to reduce your current year taxable income.  There are two different 401k plans that employers offer to their employees:  a traditional 401k plan and a Roth 401k plan.    Traditional 401k Contributing to a Traditional 401K plan through payroll (or as a solo 401k if you are a self-employed individual...