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By the Numbers 2019

The 2019 tax year started awkwardly. The Internal Revenue Service is getting ready to open a filing season that involves the first major tax law changes in more than three decades but it's stymied by a partial government shutdown.

Numbers via 123BFWhile we're waiting for the folks in Washington, D.C., to get their acts together, life and taxes go on. We still have to deal with the annual onslaught of forms and documents and, of course, numbers.

Then when that's done and we're assessed the damage, we have to make tax moves for 2019 so that our result will be less taxing this time next years.

All this means that we're going to be awash in lots and lots of tax-related numbers.

At least from my standpoint, all these figures provide plenty of fodder for the 2019 version of By the Numbers.

This is the ninth year for this numerical tradition here at the ol' blog.

And in keeping with the numeric posts of 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 2017 and 2018, I'll select a new figure each week.

The figures will range from tax rate percentages to dollar amounts to titles of tax legislation to raw numbers and much, much more. Basically, I'll choose any and every thing that can be counted in even a remote tax way as the weekly feature.

Again as in past years, I'll try to get the relevant figures up each weekend, usually on Sunday. But sometimes stuff happens, meaning the number goes up early or, more often than not, late.

Regardless of the timing, you can always find a link to the new number on the ol' blog's home page under the multicolored numbers box (pictured on this page, too!), as well as on this special page. The newest post each week will go at the top of the list.

So welcome 2019. Let's make you count!

  • 1.4 percent
    Trump's tarif
    fs caused job losses and price increases, says Federal Reserve report (Dec. 29, 2019)
  • 2020
    Tax law changes, from extenders to disaster relief to retirement and more, now official (Dec. 22, 2019)
  • 30 percent
    Greece to require digital transactions to fight tax evasion (Dec. 15, 2019)
  • 100
    IRS criminal investigators tout 2019 successes, look to year 101's tax crime challenges (Dec. 8, 2019)
  • 4
    States continue court fights over SALT deduction limit (Dec. 1, 2019)
  • 36
    Drought-stricken farmers, ranchers get more time to report tax on livestock forced-sale gains (Nov. 24, 2019)
  • $3,900
    Cryptocurrency tax compliance effort a success for asset owners and IRS (Nov. 17, 2019)
  • 10
    10-part series on the 2020 inflation adjustments to popular tax provisions (one post a day from Nov. 6, 2019, through Nov. 15, 2019; link goes to Part 1, which has an index to the other 9 posts)
  • 23 trillion
    National debt passes $23 trillion for first time ever (Nov. 2, 2019) 
  • 7.25 percent
    Chicago mayor seeks increase in city's cloud tax (Oct. 27, 2019)
  • $115,000
    Philadelphia collects $115,000 in soda tax fines (Oct. 20, 2019)
  • $?
    The last fee-free PTIN season starts Oct. 16 (Oct. 13, 2019)
  • 20
    Taxpayers in 19 states & D.C. now can get special IRS IP PIN to fight tax identity theft (Oct. 6, 2019)
  • $1 million
    KC Chiefs take $1M sales tax fight to MO Supreme Court (Sept. 29, 2019)
  • 281
    281 people arrested in connection with global email scams (Sept. 22, 2019)
  • $15 trillion
    Tax version of 'Phantom Menace' comes to $15 trillion in global tax haven money moves (Sept. 15, 2019)
  • 100
    IRS celebrating 100 years of capturing tax criminals (Sept. 8, 2019)
  • $460
    New tariffs today mean higher prices for U.S. consumers (Sept. 1, 2019)
  • $74 million
    Projecting marijuana tax revenue is an iffy exercise (Aug. 25, 2019)
  • $230,000
    Treasury and IRS tax auctions offer bargains (Aug. 17, 2019)
  • 18 U.S. Code Section 1030
    Former college student pleads guilty to trying to hack Trump's taxes (Aug. 11, 2019)
  • 229
    U.S. Coast Guard, created to collect some taxes for a young America, turns 229 (Aug. 4, 2019)
  • 1
    Tax scores upset win, this time in horse race, not Congress (July 28, 2019)
  • 34
    Remembering former IRS Commissioner Mortimer Caplin (July 21, 2019)
  • 1040
    IRS proposes Form 1040 changes for 2019 filings (July 14, 2019)
  • 900,259.362
    Tax audits drop, according to latest IRS data (July 7, 2019)
  • 85 percent and 95 percent
    Tax cheating is wrong, say most U.S. taxpayers (June 30, 2019)
  • $2,215,587 and $735,933
    Former government tax attorney pleads guilty to tax evasion (June 23, 2019)
  • $4.8 million and $1.4 million
    Tax Court judges reject companies' payment plan offers (June 15, 2019)
  • 47.6 percent
    Big Jeopardy winner owes more than $1 million in taxes (June 9, 2019)
  • W-4
    IRS reworks W-4 to help taxpayers withhold correct amounts (June 2, 2019)
  • $102 million
    Trump's golf outing costs reach $102 million and counting (May 26, 2019)
  • 570,000
    Mismatched tax ID numbers worry workers, employers and Social Security (May 19, 2019)
  • 80 percent
    Tax break gifts for moms on Mother's (and every) Day (May 12, 2019)
  • 51 percent
    Most small business owners happy with new tax law (May 5, 2019) 
  • Rev. Proc. 2019-18
    Pro athlete trades get tax relief from IRS (April 28, 2019) 
  • $2.7 billion
    IRS technology upgrade will require up to $2.7 billion (April 21, 2019)
  • 50 million
    5 tax tips for snail mail filers (April 14, 2019)
  • $50,851
    IRS audit interest piqued by DIFferent deduction amounts (April 7, 2019)
  • $2,915
    Tax refund wait prompts alleged assault (March 31, 2019)
  • 12
    2019's Dirty Dozen tax scams repeat last year's list (March 24, 2019)
  • $1,408,482,000
    More than $1.4 billion in tax refunds awaiting claims by taxpayers who didn't file in 2016 (March 18, 2019)
  • $3.50 and $16
    Taxes on your St. Patrick's Day green beer (March 17, 2019)
  • July 31
    Alabama tornado victims' tax deadline now July 31 (March 10, 2019)
  • $3,143 and $3,226
    2019's average tax refunds finally surpass 2018 amounts (March 1, 2019)
  • $2,640
    Smaller tax refunds could slow U.S. economy (Feb. 24, 2019)
  • 26
    Expired tax extenders not yet on track for renewal (Feb. 17, 2019)
  • $30,000
    Grammys swag bag worth a taxable $30,000 (Feb. 10, 2019)
  • 33
    Super Bowl prop bets could pay off nicely for gamblers and the IRS (Feb. 3, 2019)
  • 14,000
    IRS workers calling in sick by thousands during shutdown (Jan. 25, 2019)
  • $1,000
    IRS offers tax penalty relief to some who didn't have enough withheld or paid too little estimated taxes (Jan. 20, 2019)
  • 22* 35
    22 days and counting into the longest federal government shutdown ever (Jan. 12, 2019) *Day count will be updated, well, daily until the shutdown ends.
  • 6
    6 top tax issues of 2018 and what to expect in 2019
    (Jan. 6, 2019)
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Today's Tax Tip

  • White House seeks federal gas tax holiday — If your gas tank can hold out, you might soon pay a little less at your neighborhood gas station's pumps. President Joe Biden has asked Congress to enact a 3-month gas tax holiday this summer. (June 24, 2022)

  • Tax Tip; click pencil for all tax tip links

  • The 2022 Tax Tips offer ways to file your annual return, along with post-filing advice, important tax news and, of course, ways to cut your current tax year bill. You'll find the monthly assemblages on their own respective pages: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December. Remember, tax tasks and tips don't stop after you file your annual return!

COVID-19 & Taxes

  • COVID-19
    Coronavirus has wreaked havoc
    on the 2020 and 2021 tax seasons.
    These three Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Taxes pages have details:
    March-July 2020,
    August-December 2020,
    January-December 2021, and
    January-… 2022
    You can find medical coronavirus resource links further down this column.

All About Kay

  • OK, some about Kay
    Open sign
    Kay Bell — Native Texan (the blog title totally makes sense now, right?). Professional journalist. Tax geek.

My Other Accounts

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Tick ... Tick ... Tick

  • Tax Season 2022 continues!

    Tax Day 2022 is finally over … unless you're one of the millions who have more time to file — looking at you taxpayers abroad and those in major disaster areas — or you got an extension to file your 2021 tax year return. That's fine. In fact, the Internal Revenue Service appreciates some of us spreading out our filings, especially when we and the agency still are dealing with all the complications of COVID-19 and taxes.

    That's why the ol' blog's focus now is on all y'all still working on returns. But I haven't forgotten my organized taxpayer readers, who are already looking for ways to reduce their 2022 tax year bills. Yep, that amount is adding up, but there are moves you can make. The monthly tips and reminders a little further down this column can help everyone, regardless of which tax year you're working on.

    Those on extension should keep a keen eye on the countdown clock below. It will help you track the days tick, tick, ticking off toward that absolutely final fall filing due date of Oct. 17. Yep, it's a few days later this year.
    Note: I'm in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.


Time for Tax Tasks


  • monthly tax moves


  • Hello ☀️ June.
    We are so happy to see your sunny face, bringing us the start of summer. Some brightness and warmth and a general better times ahead feeling is definitely what we need after a tax season, although back on an April schedule, still is feeling lingering COVID-19 effects.


    via GIPHY


    June 1: While we're ready to head to the beach, this month is important for coastal areas for another, less welcome reason. Today is the start of the Atlantic/Gulf of Mexico hurricane season. At least for the first time in eight years, we didn't have a tropical system form early on the eastern and southern sides of the United States. However, Hurricane Agatha did kick off the Pacific hurricane season. Regardless of where you live, it's time to get prepared for these potentially stormy summer months.

    Hurricane satellite image

    Uncle Sam's official forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center expect 2022 to bring as many as 21 named storms, with six to 10 possibly becoming hurricanes. Three to six of those could reach major status, which is category 3, 4 or 5 with winds of 111 mph or higher. Regardless of the count, it only takes one to wreak havoc. The countdown clock below can help you keep track of how many more days you have to worry about tracking any size or type of tropical storms.



    You also might want to check out the ol' blog's special Storm Warnings.
    These multi-page collections of posts offer tax advice on preparing for, recovering from and helping those who sustain damages from the many ways that that weather goes wild. That includes claiming uninsured losses from a major natural disaster as an itemized tax deduction.

    June 5: Speaking of disasters, some other fits by Mother Nature earlier this year, delayed Tax Day for some taxpayers. Certain filers in Puerto Rico dealt with disastrous flooding in February, so the Internal Revenue Service gave them until June 15 to file their 2021 tax returns. If that's you, now's the time to get to work on those Form 1040s or file for an extension.

    June 10: Eateries are still recovering from the challenges of operating during a national health crisis. Restaurants closed, then opened, then closed again. Others relied on and have stuck with take-out and deliveries. Whether you're dining in or still getting food brought to your house because of the latest Omicron coronavirus wave, remember to tip your server or delivery person.

    restaurant check tip iStock
    If a tip isn't included in your food delivery charge, click the image above to calculate how much to tip the person who brought it to you.

    As for servers who now are back on the job, remember that your tips are taxable income. If you worked at least some of May at a job where you got gratuities, you need to account for them today if they came to at least $20 last month. Use Form 4070 to report your tips today to your employer.

    June 14: Happy Flag Day! It's not a day-off-work federal holiday, but Flag Day has been an official day to celebrate the Star-Spangled Banner since 1949. If you need to buy a U.S. flag to fly today, you also might get a tax break. Several states exempt the national symbol from sales tax. Check with your state's tax department to see if you can save on your patriotic display.

    June 15: In addition to being the federal 2021 return filing due date for some Puerto Rican taxpayers, today also is the due date for annual Form 1040 filings by U.S. citizens or resident aliens living and working abroad, as well as military personnel stationed outside the United States.

    This mid-June day also is the deadline for the second estimated tax payment for the 2022 tax year.

    June 19: Happy Father's Day!

    Happy Father's Day

    Dad might not say so, but he appreciates being recognized, so take time today to let him know you care. And if your father is getting on up in years, take the time when you visit to make sure he doesn't need some added help from you. If you provide Pop a little, or even a lot of assistance, there's a chance you could get some help from a couple of tax credits.

    June 19-20: June 19 also is our newest federal holiday, Juneteenth. This date marks when Texans finally received word that all slaves were free, and is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.

    Juneteenth


    Since Juneteenth this year falls on Sunday, the federal holiday is on Monday, June 20.

    June 21: It's official at 5:14 a.m. Eastern Time. Summer is here, on this longest day of the year.

    Summer sun

    Many charitable groups help people cope with the heat. Your gift to such IRS-qualified nonprofits could be tax deductible on next year's taxes. For now, you'll have to itemize to claim it. But there's a chance that Congress might reinstate the tax deduction for charitable gifts of up to $300 for single filers, double that for married jointly filing couples, that can be claimed directly on Form 1040.

    June 30: If you missed spring cleaning, summer's still a good time to determine what you can do without. If that includes clothing or household items, you also can donate those and, if you itemize, claim what the items are worth on Schedule A. Just make sure you set the correct fair market value, or the IRS might disallow your tax break.

    Small Business Tax Calendar: Important filing, deposit and record keeping dates throughout the year that your company needs to know. You can get more tax calendar information at the IRS' online calendar page and view the full year's important business and individual tax dates in IRS Pub. 509.

State Tax Help

  • Don't forget your state taxes!
    Forty-three states and D.C. collect personal income taxes. But even if you live in of the seven states without an income levy, you still face other state (and local) taxes.

    State Tax Departments provides links to your state's Web page. The companion page, Tax Tidbits, is the compilation of blurbs about each state's tax laws. And for more state tax news, check out all our state tax bloggings.

Tax Forms

  • Tax Forms
    Thanks to our increased use of tax preparers and computer software, many of us don't see our tax forms until we sign and file them. But knowing what's on these documents, either in paper or digital form, and why the IRS wants it is key to understanding our tax system. And knowledge definitely is power, especially when it comes to tax savings. Find this valuable information in the ol' blog's special Talking Tax Forms page.

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  • AKA Disclaimer:
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    I am not a professional tax preparer.
    The content on Don't Mess With Taxes is my personal opinion based on my study and understanding of tax laws, policies and regulations. It is provided for your private, noncommercial, educational and informational purposes only. It is not a recommendation of any specific tax action(s) you should or should not take. Similarly, mentions of products or services are not endorsements. In other words, my ramblings on the ol' blog are free advice and you know what they say about getting what you pay for. That's why when it comes to filing your taxes, I urge you to get additional, professional, paid-for guidance from an accountant, Enrolled Agent or other qualified tax preparer who is familiar with your individual tax circumstances.

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    Call 1-800-232-0233
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Tell it to the Hill

  • DMWT Politics Posts
  • While it's easy to rail at the IRS, for the most part we can thank — or blame — our tax laws on Congress and the White House. So if you have an issue with tax legislation or want a tax bill passed, you need to let your federal legislators and the White House occupant know of your concerns. You can find out who in Washington, D.C., to contact (and how), as well as get information on your local lawmakers for matters, tax or otherwise, closer to home, at USA Gov.

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