Taxes

On May 27, 2022, the IRS released its sixth pronouncement regarding the types of businesses that can qualify for the qualified small business stock (QSBS) exclusion. The ruling is the fourth time the IRS has addressed the health exclusion in section 1202(e)(3), the third time it has addressed the exclusion for businesses where the principal

Tax Notes reporter Benjamin Valdez discusses the Florida legislation eliminating Disney’s special tax district, what led to its passage, and what to expect in the future. David D. Stewart: Welcome to the podcast. I’m David Stewart, editor in chief of Tax Notes Today International. This week: the most magical tax break on earth. In April,

The federal government is running out of resources to procure COVID vaccines, tests, and treatments right as the nation faces yet another wave of infections. A $10 billion emergency appropriation to fund these critical needs has been stalled in Congress since March amid fights about how to pay for it and what amendments on other

A recent case illustrates the importance of strictly complying with the substantiation requirements (including the contemporaneous written acknowledgement requirement) for a charitable contribution deduction under § 170. In the case, the taxpayer donated to a museum items from a collection of Native American jewelry and artifacts. As part of that donation, the taxpayer and the

The 2022 proxy season is underway, and it is chaotic. At Shell PLC’s recent annual general meeting, climate protestors bombarded the room, reportedly gluing themselves to seats, forcing company Chair Andrew Mackenzie to delay the meeting until they were all cleared out. At Twitter, the specter of Elon Musk’s pending $44 billion takeover hung over

Today’s Social Security column addresses questions about how and when spousal benefits can be available for each spouse in turn, drawing divorced spousal benefits with multiple exes and when first payments can be expected. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning, Inc. See

A new report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office shows that the amount of money spent by the federal government each year to service our national debt is on track to reach unprecedented highs within the next 10 years. These findings should give Congressional Democrats renewed urgency to pass a reconciliation bill that reduces federal

Recent testimony in the U.S. Tax Court’s Facebook v. Commissioner trial highlighted a problem with the U.S. cost-sharing regulations, which establish valuation rules for a type of related-party intangible property transfer that has long been popular among U.S. tech giants. The issue isn’t with the underlying concepts adopted by the regs, which are solidly grounded

The federal government may once again have an opportunity to learn a painful lesson about the price of increasing debt and rising interest rates in an uncertain economy. The Congressional Budget Office, in its just-issued Budget and Economic Outlook, forecasts a hair-raising increase in federal borrowing costs over the next decade. CBO estimates that net

The Supreme Court does not muck around with Tax Court decisions very much. So Boechler, P.C v, Commissioner of Internal Revenue has a small but passionate group of people excited. It was a unanimous opinion delivered by Amy Coney Barrett. She managed to work in a hat tip to the late Justice Antonin Scalia, whom

“Behold the Florida SLAT, Which can now provide that, If your spouse dies first, The contributor spouse can be a beneficiary, to make the death less worse. But will the contributor spouse with a heartfelt shrug, Be more inclined to pull the beneficiary’s plug? This and more, We below explore.” On May 10th, Governor Ron

The IRS announced today that it has provided a much requested update to their “Where’s My Refund?” tool. The update now allows taxpayers to check the status of the current tax year’s refund and the two previous years. Before the update taxpayers could only check the status of their current year refund and once the

Most legal settlements are taxable, even for a devastating fire loss. That grim fact can be an unpleasant surprise to fire victims, and seems particularly unfair. There are federal and California tax bills pending that if passed, could make certain fire lawsuit recoveries nontaxable. It is not clear how either one of these bills will

Tax Notes reporters Paul Jones and Nathan Richman discuss the $141 million settlement over Intuit’s INTU TurboTax Free Edition program and the potential tax break for Intuit. 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. This

Over the past two years manufacturers and resellers have struggled to maintain inventory levels due to global supply chain issues, and now are facing the highest inflation rates since 1981. Unfortunately, a deteriorated supply chain and increased inflation most likely will increase the tax bill for businesses that use the LIFO method of accounting. It

Stanley S. Surrey was one of the giants of 20th-century U.S. tax policy. Even today, nearly 40 years after his death, he is still revered for his many contributions to the field. But like most giants, Surrey has attracted his share of giant slayers. Some came for the great man during his lifetime, others posthumously.

If you follow the stock market, you know that markets have been highly volatile in 2022. You have likely seen the value of some of your investments drop below what you have paid for them. This may be a great time to revisit tax-loss harvesting and use the stock market drop to help you lower

Today’s Social Security column addresses questions about whether survivor’s benefits reduce full retirement age for all benefits and the earnings test, earning more or paying more to increase benefits and the earnings test and survivor’s benefits. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning,

There may be a major turning point in the Year 15 Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) controversy with the Sixth Circuit’s opinion in SunAmerica Housing Fund 1050 v Pathway of Pontiac Inc. The Sixth Circuit is taking the Sesame Street approach advanced by not for profit sponsors in their view of LIHTC rights of

Crypto markets are notoriously volatile, but even so, the recent activity has been unsettling. Whether you are a buy and hold investor or an active trader with high frequency moves, it is nerve-wracking, and it may not be over yet. For some, it can be downright devastating, particularly if you had put all your nest