On the third day of Taxmas, my accountant gave to me a backdoor Roth IRA conversion before they are disallowed in the Biden Administration’s proposed legislation, the Build Back Better Act.  Under current law, if you contribute to non-deductible traditional IRA accounts, you can wait a few days then convert that contribution to a Roth IRA account. Therefore, the only taxable income would be any income earned when the funds were in the Traditional IRA.    

For the period January 1, 2021, through December 31, 2022, businesses may claim 100% of food and beverage expenses paid to restaurants (if certain conditions are met). This is an increase from the historical 50% allowable deduction.  This temporary deduction was introduced in the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021 to increase economic recovery in the food and beverage industry.

Taxpayers who do not itemize can take advantage of the charitable donation deduction – those filing single or married filing separately can claim a deduction of up to $300 for cash contributions. Married individuals filing joint returns can deduct up to $600 of cash contributions on their 2021 tax returns.

Life happens – and fast. For many of us, before we can even register that it happened, we’ve — Sold a home Received an inheritance Had a new grandchild Started a business Moved across the country Got a promotion — or had any number of exciting new experiences. It’s important to track these major life […]

Every year, businesses submit thousands of research and development (R&D) claims to the IRS and state taxing authorities for tax credits in the hundreds of millions of dollars.  Both corporations and individuals benefit from credits for research. Claims are filed in accordance with Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 41. If substantial, they can be subject to examination by the IRS and states, often using significant resources for both taxing authorities and taxpayers.  To improve tax administration and reduce the number of disputes over claims, the IRS released Notice 2021-203 on October 15, 2021.

The Biden Administration’s Build Back Better Act (the Act) is designed to reduce costs, create new jobs, and cut taxes for working families. In addition, there are proposed investments in health and childcare, higher education, workforce training, and teachers and schools. The cost of the legislation, which is estimated at $3.5T, will be paid for by increased taxes on corporations and the wealthiest Americans.

Since earlier this year, the Biden Administration has been pursuing a legislative agenda that focuses on COVID-19 economic recovery and re-energizing the American economy. It started with the American Rescue Plan Act and has continued with several other proposals culminating in the Build Back Better Act (the Act). The Act is designed to reduce costs, create new jobs, and cut taxes for working families. There are proposed investments in health and childcare, higher education, workforce training, and teachers and schools.

As federal COVID-19 relief programs continue to diminish, New Jersey and Pennsylvania-area businesses are searching for other funding opportunities. Several companies have not yet fully recovered from the pandemic’s devastating fallout, while others are concerned about the potential impact of COVID variants. There has been a reported 30% increase in COVID hospitalizations in New Jersey, while Pennsylvania reported triple-digit growth in the number of new cases. 

Recently, the IRS announced that victims of Hurricane Ida in various parts of New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania now have until January 3, 2022, to file individual and business tax returns and make certain tax payments.  The tax relief is being offered to taxpayers in any areas designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as qualifying for individual or public assistance.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit New Jersey in March 2020, many businesses were forced to close for a time, causing unemployment claims to spike.  More than 2 million state residents have filed for unemployment since the start of the pandemic, and over $33B in state and federal benefits have been paid out.  As a result, the state’s Unemployment Trust Fund (UT Fund) has been severely depleted, and the state was forced to borrow from the federal government to keep paying claims.