Updated, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024 Tuesday, Oct. 15, is Tax Day again, this time for most taxpayers who got an extension to file their annual tax return. (Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich) Another Monday holiday has come and gone. At the federal level, yesterday was Columbus Day. But some states and localities instead celebrated Indigenous Peoples' Day. Even the White House recognizes both, issuing separate proclamations for Christopher Columbus’ landing in the Americas and the native people already here. Technically, Columbus Day still is a legal holiday, meaning U.S. government workers had the day off and no mail was delivered. But... Read more →
Tax Tip
The deadly and destructive aftermath of Hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton, prompted the Internal Revenue Service to designate a new statewide federal tax deadline of May 1, 2025, for various tax filings and payments. Hurricane Milton seemed to take a skull shape in this radar image captured as the storm neared Florida on Oct. 8. (Image from post by @MaxVelocityWX on X, formerly Twitter) After Hurricane Debby made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend on August 5, the state got a brief respite. That changed late Sept. 26 when the same area was the target for Hurricane Helene. Helene’s doubling down... Read more →
The coming wage base bump also means more FICA taxes for higher earners. Running the numbers is important for everyone, but critical for older folks who rely on Social Security benefits, and the annual cost-of-living increases, to cover much of their expenses. (Photo by Getty Images via Unsplash) There’s some good news for the more than 72.5 million recipients of Social Security payments. The Social Security Administration (SSA) today announced they’ll soon see an increase in their retirement and/or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. Nearly 68 million retirees who receive monthly Social Security deposits will see a 2.5 percent cost-of-living... Read more →
If that sticky note retirement is your goal, then you need to save as much as possible, especially if you're self-employed. And yes, I did put that note on the board. 😉 (Photo by Kay Bell) Most IRA contributions must be made by April’s Tax Day. Unless you’re self-employed and got an extension to file your tax return. That means you also might be able to contribute to, and even establish, a retirement plan for your entrepreneurial endeavor. Here's an overview of some of the more popular, and relatively easy, self-employed retirement plans to which you can still contribute by... Read more →
Updated Friday, Oct. 11, 2024, to reflect the new tax relief provided to all Florida individual and business taxpayers in the wake of Hurricane Milton, which struck the Sunshine State's Gulf Coast on Oct. 9. In addition, the Internal Revenue Service also today announced disaster tax relief and a Feb. 3, 2025, deadline for individuals and businesses of the San Carlos Apache Tribe in the state of Arizona who were affected by the Watch Fire that began on July 10. When October rolled around, the Oct. 15 filing extension deadline was one of the tax moves that made the ol'... Read more →
If you have a big heart like the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz classic movie, consider helping out fellow taxpayers as a volunteer during the coming tax-filing season. Volunteering is getting a lot of attention right now, as people are doing what they can to help each other in areas ravaged by Hurricane Helene. These good deed doers are as critical as the official government and organized philanthropic organization workers. The Internal Revenue Service also depends on volunteers every filing season. They are the IRS-trained people who staff Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the... Read more →
Update, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024: The Internal Revenue Service today announced disaster tax relief and a Feb. 3, 2025, deadline for individuals and businesses of the San Carlos Apache Tribe in the state of Arizona who were affected by a wildfire that ignited in July. Photo by Matt Howard on Unsplash Hurricane Helene, and now Hurricane Milton, and their deadly aftermath have, naturally, garnered most attention. But other parts of the United States also have been hit by disasters. Wildfires erupted on June 22 in parts of Washington state. Less than a month later, on July 10, the lands of... Read more →
Three more states — Alaska, Idaho, and Kansas — will join the Internal Revenue Service’s Direct File next tax season. They join Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, who earlier this year joined the IRS-created-and-operated free online tax preparation and e-filing program. These 12 new Direct File states will double the states where Direct File will be available. A dozen — Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming — were part of the Direct File pilot for the 2024 filing season. Treasury said that... Read more →
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Weather Service The people whose lives have been devastated by Hurricane Helene obviously are not thinking about taxes. But the Internal Revenue Service has acted to officially ensure that they don’t have to worry about this for a while. The IRS has announced disaster tax relief for all individuals and businesses in seven states that were affected by the deadly hurricane, which made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend as a category 4 and then proceeded to wreak havoc across the south. Major disaster declarations have been issued by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the... Read more →
Updated Oct. 3, 2024, to include tax relief in newly declared major disaster areas. Photo by Vlad Chețan October is a scary month. Of course, there’s Halloween. As an adult, I’ve learned one of the most frightening things is a bad Oct. 31 costume party! It’s also the time of year when weather turns colder, sending a chill along the spines of those (me!) who prefer warmer weather. And scariest of all, it’s the start of the final quarter of the annual tax year. If you got a filing extension, you’ve got to face your fears and submit that extended... Read more →
Photo by RDNE Stock project A home of one’s own has long been part of the traditional American Dream. Nowadays, though, some say it’s a nightmare trying to join the homeownership ranks. So, of course, as we head into the last few weeks of the 2024 election, candidates at all levels also are focusing on housing. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, has proposed tax breaks she says will increase the housing supply, which should lead to lower prices. She’s also promoting a first-time buyer tax to help buyers get into those homes. Using the tax code to... Read more →
Regular readers already know this, but since the college and professional football seasons are underway, and we’re about to head into Major League Baseball’s playoffs, it’s time for a reminder. Any winning sports bets are taxable income at the federal and most state levels. Sports betting’s growth: More of us are pocketing a few extra dollars after the games since the U.S. Supreme Court in 2018 ruled that states can decide whether to allow gambling within their borders. That includes online betting. Currently, 38 states and the District of Columbia allow some form of sports betting. Twenty-seven of those states... Read more →
If only online privacy was as easy as posting a sign. (Photo by Connor Danylenko) Do you look at your overflowing email box (OK, maybe that’s just me) and wonder why in the heck am I getting all this unsolicited crap? It’s probably because you checked, or didn’t check, a box when you went to some website. You either directly or implicitly consented to let that site pass along your email to “partners” who are now inundating you with unwanted email. That’s a tax issue, too, according to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). In a just released... Read more →
Photo by Francisco De Legarreta C. on Unsplash Owing a big tax bill is a terrible feeling. The only thing worse is not being able to come up with the money to pay Uncle Sam. The Internal Revenue Service offers some solutions. You can pay over time by setting up an installment plan with the tax agency. Sometimes, even spreading out payments isn’t enough. Dealing with a huge tax bill: If your tax debt is so large that you know you’ll never be able to pay it all, you can turn to an Offer in Compromise, or OIC. By submitting... Read more →
Photo by Mikael Blomkvist The third estimated tax payment deadline was Monday, Sept. 16, but today the Internal Revenue Service eased the minds of some Pennsylvanians who missed it. The IRS announced that taxpayers in areas of the Keystone State that were deluged by Tropical Storm Debby as it moved up the country’s east coast are eligible for a variety of tax relief. They’ve been given until Feb. 3, 2025, to meet a variety of tax filing and payment deadlines, including this week’s estimated tax due date. You can read more about the tax relief for storm-affected Pennsylvania individual and... Read more →
Photo by Haley Owens on Unsplash The hubby is a patient and tolerant man. I'm glad those traits apply to some of my annoying tendencies. But one thing I do that drives him crazy is picking up coins on the street. Or, in the case of the penny I found yesterday as I got out of my car at the grocery store, in parking lots. Lucky for me, he doesn’t see me do this very often. I stick the pennies and other found change in my pocket and dump them in the coin jar when I get home. And yes,... Read more →
Boo! No, it’s not Halloween yet, but today is just as scary for some. They suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia, the fear of Friday the 13th. Fear also is often associated with taxes. With another tax deadline on Monday — the Sept. 16 due date for the third estimated tax payment of the 2024 tax year — today is a good time to acknowledge, and start to overcome the associated fears of, some scary tax misinformation that just won't go away. Here are 13 tax misperceptions that once you know them and the right tax moves to make, you can become a... Read more →
Sometimes the cost of treating your illness makes you feel worse. (Photo by cottonbro studio) Not so long ago, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was a hot federal campaign issue. Republican congressional and presidential candidates vowed to repeal and replace Obamacare, the originally pejorative political term that simply became an ACA synonym. Health care did come up briefly during the debate this week of presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. The former president, who once promised a new health program within two weeks, said he had “concepts of a plan” to replace Obamacare. Meanwhile, six Capitol Hill lawmakers from... Read more →
Photo by Pavel Danilyuk The Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar today announced cities, counties, transit systems, and special purpose districts soon will be getting their share of $1.1 billion in local sales tax allocations for September. That's 6.3 percent more than last September. Sales taxes are one of the three major ways states and the assorted jurisdictions within their borders get revenue. The other two are property taxes, mostly on real estate value, and income earned by individuals and businesses. Since the Lone Star State has no personal income tax, most of us residents are resigned to generally high sales and... Read more →
Update, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024 — Deadly Hurricane Helene has changed deadlines for areas in four states — Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina — that earlier were in Hurricane Debby’s path. Instead of Debby’s Feb. 3, 2025, deadline, affected taxpayers in those states now have a later Helene-prompted deadline of May 1, 2025. UPDATE, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024: The IRS today announced tax relief, including a Feb. 3, 2025, deadline for estimated tax and other filings and payments for taxpayers in four Pennsylvania counties in the aftermath of Hurricane Debby, which made landfall in Florida on Aug. 5... Read more →