Taxes

Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, died in 2018 without a will. She was one more in a long line of celebrities that are very successful but that neglect how important estate planning can be. Her heirs had to endure public court battles, just one of the unfortunate aspects of a lack of binding documents

The run-up in stock prices paired with relatively low-interest rates has delivered an excellent way for rich Americans to avoid paying taxes on their investment gains. This strategy has been dubbed “Buy, Borrow, Die” and has become a way for the uber-wealthy, with tax planning experts by their sides, to fund their lifestyles while minimizing

Robert Goulder and Roxanne Bland of Tax Notes discuss non-fungible tokens, their ownership rights, and how the IRS plans to tax them. This transcript has been edited for length and clarity. Robert Goulder: Hello everyone. I’m Bob Goulder, a contributing editor with Tax Notes. Welcome to the latest edition of In the Pages. Our featured

New York is pushing a major project to repair the antiquated Penn Station, using tax-subsidized private real estate development to finance public infrastructure repair. But a new report from my colleagues at the New School’s Schwartz Center shows not only a potential $3 billion gap in project financing, but also a lack of transparency which

Today’s Social Security column addresses questions about how early retirement benefits can affect later spousal benefits, whether both working and delaying can increase retirement benefits and survivor benefits after early retirement benefits. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning, Inc. See more Ask

In Green, or Greed? A Fresh Perspective on the Valuation of Conservation Easements, by Alan Feld, Theodore Sims and Jacob Nielsen give us a fresh perspective on one of the IRS Dirty Dozen. That would be Abusive Syndicated Conservation Easement, which the IRS Dirty Dozen scam list describes like this: In syndicated conservation easements, promoters

Scrambling for a politically acceptable way to raise revenue to pay for a scaled-down social spending and climate bill, Senate Democrats are considering a plan to expand the Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT). Predictably, critics allege the plan would hurt small, family business. But a new Tax Policy Center analysis finds that in 2023 the

Nicholas Mowbray of Baker & Hostetler LLP discusses the recently enacted Superfund excise taxes on chemicals and hazardous substances and some compliance concerns and uncertainty surrounding them. This transcript has been edited for length and clarity. David Stewart: Welcome to the podcast. I’m David Stewart, editor in chief of Tax Notes Today International. This week:

Can we talk ourselves into a recession? We did so in 2008. We’re doing so again now. Loose lips sink big economies, even ours, which is currently going great guns. Recessions can happen if everyone believes they will happen. The Great Recession is a case in point. The list of culprits fingered by the Financial

It may be every politician’s favorite fantasy—weaponizing the IRS. Last week the New York Times reported that two high-ranking former FBI officials who had been fired by then President Trump were both subjected to a rare type of IRS audit. Subsequent headlines from major media outlets implied that former FBI Director James Comey and former

Last year marked the centennial of the inclusion of tax incentives for employer-sponsored retirement plans in the code. For the 101st anniversary, passage of large retirement savings tax legislation that refines the system is looking increasingly likely. What provisions will make the final bill is still an open question, and there could be several changes

Whether you love him or hate him, UK’s dethroned Prime Minister was sure different. He will be pilloried for a while yet, probably much more pilloried than praised. But anyone who has faced off with America’s powerful IRS might admire him just a little bit. After all, despite being a Brit, he came up against

Today’s Social Security column addresses questions about when delayed retirement benefits are applied to benefit payments, when it may be best to take survivor benefits and when it’s possible to receive spousal benefits. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning, Inc. See more

Judge Juan Vasquez in TCM 2022-55 has given us an opinion that has the elements of a really good novel. It is an innocent spouse case. The innocent spouse aspect is rather interesting, but the story of what created the deficiency is even more intriguing. Everybody’s name is, of course, now public record, but it

Americans don’t save enough, either individually or collectively. Yet by looking at the wrong data, many journalists and even top economists are claiming we’re saving too much and, consequently, working too little. This is hogwash. It’s time to talk turkey about U.S. saving and for journalists and professionals to either do their homework or hold

Californians know that the state’s tax agency, the Franchise Tax Board or FTB, seems tougher than the IRS. Even if you live somewhere else, you might have heard of the Golden State’s aggressive tax rules and fearsome tax collector. If you owe the IRS and the FTB, it is usually a lot easier to resolve

Depending on your income in 2021, you may be feeling the pain of paying your taxes. Perhaps, you hurt when you look at your paychecks and see all the state and federal taxes being withheld. Some of you may feel a bit more pain based on the state where you live, how you earn your

Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.) has spent more than a decade in Congress and is the only current lawmaker to hold a PhD in physics. “One of the reasons I feel occasionally useful in Congress is actually having some background in business and technology, I have some idea of where the puck is going,’’ says the

Looking for a case study of our hyper-partisan politics? No need to search any further than your local gas pump. The ongoing debate in Washington and in many state capitols over a gas tax holiday has become a classic example of our toxic partisan politics. When Democrats propose one, Republicans reflexively oppose it. And when

La Posada Tax Clinic Director Robert Wunderle discusses the importance of low-income taxpayer clinics to the tax system and how his clinic serves the Twin Falls, Idaho, community. This transcript has been edited for length and clarity. David D. Stewart: Welcome to the podcast. I’m David Stewart, editor in chief of Tax Notes Today International.