Final regulations have been released that cover corporate predecessors, successors and taxable spin-offs. When certain requirements are met, a corporation may make a tax-free distribution of stock, or stock and securities, of a controlled corporation to the corporation’s shareholders, or to its shareholders and security holders. The IRS’s final regs provide guidance for determining whether … Read More
With the empty bottles of bubbly placed safely in the recycling bin and the confetti swept off the floor, it’s time to get back to the grind. The beginning of the year can be a busy time for business owners and executives, because you no doubt want to get off to a strong start in … Read More
In addition to a year-end funding bill, lawmakers finalized the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act. The retirement bill includes expansion of the automatic contribution to savings plans to 15% of employee pay, allows some part-time employees to participate in 401(k) plans and raises the age limit for IRA contributions from age … Read More
You already may have reviewed a preliminary draft of your company’s year-end financial statements. But without a frame of reference, they don’t mean much. That’s why it’s important to compare your company’s performance over time and against competitors. Conduct a well-rounded evaluation A comprehensive benchmarking study requires calculating ratios that gauge the following five elements: … Read More
Recently the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) sounded alarm bells about the health of multi-employer pension plans. To address the necessary legislative changes, experts from PBGC met with the bipartisan U.S. Senate Joint Committee on Taxation. The result was a joint statement, affirming the PBGC concerns. “More than 100 funds are expected to become insolvent … Read More
A significant law was recently passed that adds tax breaks and makes changes to employer-provided retirement plans. If your small business has a current plan for employees or if you’re thinking about adding one, you should familiarize yourself with the new rules. The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act) was signed … Read More
The IRS is informing employees that they can use Forms W-4 printed before Dec. 31, 2019, even though those forms list the now out-of-date 10%-of-AGI medical expense deduction. The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act, which was signed into law on Dec. 20, 2019, extended the 7.5% medical expense deduction threshold for tax years … Read More
A much-hated tax on not-for-profit organizations is on the way out. At the end of 2019, Congress repealed a provision of 2017’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) that triggered the unrelated business income tax (UBIT) of 21% on nonprofit employers that provide employees with transportation fringe benefits. Unequipped to handle the additional administrative burdens … Read More
The IRS has begun accepting and processing 2019 federal tax returns. In an information release, among other things, the IRS is reminding taxpayers about cryptocurrency reporting. Form 1040 now includes questions about virtual currency transactions. So, taxpayers who in 2019 engaged in a virtual currency transaction will need to file Schedule 1, Additional Income and … Read More
If you save for retirement with an IRA or other plan, you’ll be interested to know that Congress recently passed a law that makes significant modifications to these accounts. The SECURE Act, which was signed into law on December 20, 2019, made these four changes. Change #1: The maximum age for making traditional IRA contributions … Read More