Blog & Newsroom

Effective January 1, 2018, new rules took effect for partnership taxpayers. These "Partnership Audit Rules" affect how taxes (as well as penalties and interest) are assessed when a partnership has been audited by IRS.

The IRS announced this week in IRS Notice 2019-11 that it would not penalize taxpayers whose tax withholding and estimated tax payments fell short last year due to failing to change their withholding under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).

Previously, we shared how the Whitehouse stated there would be no disruption to tax filing or the issuance of refunds.

On Tuesday, the IRS shared some details of its revamped contingency plan for operations during the government shutdown.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’ve probably heard about the battle between the President and Congress over funding for a southern border wall. The government “shutdown” created by the impasse has created a lot of uncertainty about many government-provided services.

The IRS has announced the 2019 standard mileage rates used for calculating deductible costs for operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes. 

The IRS recently issued guidance on tax withholding for the coming year. The redesign of the W-4 has been tabled until 2020 after the proposed form met with heavy criticism from groups like the American Society of CPAs. The W-4 for 2019 will be essentially the same as the 2018 with the exception of changes to the “withholding allowance” terminology used in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA.)

The Internal Revenue Service issued a warning about a fairly sophisticated new phishing scam. Phishing, a technique where a malefactor impersonates someone (in this case the IRS,) in an effort to steal sensitive information such as user names, passwords and account numbers.

The IRS has recently issued new limits on qualifying pensions and retirement related accounts (see IRS Notice 2018-83.) The new amounts, which are a cost-of-living adjustment, become effective January 1, 2019.

Current Law:

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 limits individual taxpayer's state and local tax (SALT), itemized deduction to $10,000 (including real estate taxes). The previous law allowed an unlimited deduction. This change may be detrimental to many individual taxpayers who relied heavily on these deductions in the past.

State Work-Arounds:

Some states have considered "work-arounds" to combat this limitation. Select states (California, Connecticut, Illinois, New York and New Jersey, thus far) have created state

Taxpayers who have healthcare coverage under a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) may qualify for tax relief from the Internal Revenue Service.

HDHPs, health insurance plans with lower premiums and higher deductibles than a traditional health plan, are a requirement for having a health savings account.