Comprehensive coverage of U.S. Federal and State tax laws. Professional insights to help you navigate complex tax regulations and compliance requirements.
Can you defer tax when you sell investment property? Often, yes. A Section 1031 exchange lets you defer capital gains tax when you swap real property held for business or investment for like-kind real property. The trade-off: strict deadlines — 45 days to identify a replacement and 180 days to close — and, since 2018,…
Are the Opportunity Zone rules changing? Yes. In IRS Notice 2026-40, the Treasury Department and the IRS announced that they intend to issue proposed regulations on Qualified Opportunity Zones under Internal Revenue Code §§ 1400Z-1 and 1400Z-2, as amended by the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). The notice provides transitional guidance for investments made…
Is the SALT deduction cap going away in 2026? No. Federal courts continue to uphold the SALT deduction cap, with a New Jersey federal court dismissing another constitutional challenge in May 2026. But there is relief: the One Big Beautiful Bill raised the cap from $10,000 to $40,000 beginning in 2025, with a 1% annual…
Can I open and manage a Trump Account online? Yes. The IRS now lets taxpayers view and submit Trump Account elections directly inside their IRS Individual Online Account using Form 4547, Trump Account Election(s). A Trump Account is a new tax-advantaged account for a child under 18 with a valid Social Security number, created by…
Is Congress about to change how crypto is taxed? Not yet — but it’s actively working on it. In June 2026, the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing on a slate of digital-asset tax bills aimed at fixing gaps in how cryptocurrency is taxed. The proposals include: a de minimis exception so small…
What were the key international tax developments in early-to-mid June 2026? The OECD pushed forward on the global minimum tax (Pillar Two) — releasing practical fixes to the GloBE Information Return (GIR) XML schema for first filings, an updated 2026 consolidated commentary, and new transfer-pricing guidance on intragroup services. In the EU, the Court of…
What changed in state and local tax in early-to-mid June 2026? A busy stretch: the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Florida’s challenge to California’s single-sales-factor apportionment; New York enacted a budget that extends its top corporate rate, decouples from some OBBBA provisions, and adds a “pied-à-terre” surcharge; Texas adopted cost-of-goods-sold rule changes for franchise…
How can summer activities affect your next tax return? Several common summer events have tax consequences worth handling now, per the IRS: (1) summer DAY CAMP costs may count toward the Child and Dependent Care Credit; (2) getting MARRIED means reporting any name change to the Social Security Administration and any address change to USPS,…
You got a letter from the IRS — what should you do? Open it and read it carefully; don’t toss it or panic. Most IRS letters and notices concern a specific issue on your federal tax return or account — a correction, a balance due, a request for more information, or a credit question —…
What is the 4% rule, and how do taxes change the picture? The 4% rule is a widely cited retirement rule of thumb: withdraw 4% of your savings in your first year of retirement, then adjust that dollar amount for inflation each year, aiming to make a portfolio last about 30 years. It’s popular because…
Is the Social Security Direct Express card changing — and do you need to do anything? Yes, for one group. The Social Security Administration (SSA) is switching the financial agent that runs its Direct Express prepaid debit card program from Comerica Bank to Fifth Third Bank, following a merger of the two institutions. This affects…
How is income from the 2026 FIFA World Cup taxed across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico? The 2026 FIFA World Cup is co-hosted by three countries, which raises a thorny question: when a national team earns prize money and other compensation, how is that income sourced among the United States, Canada, and Mexico? To avoid…
What federal tax developments landed in early June 2026? Three Treasury/IRS regulatory proposals and a busy week on Capitol Hill. On the regulatory side: (1) proposed regulations under §892 (CC-00349656-26, IR-2026-69) giving sovereign investors transition relief and new applicability dates tied to the December 2025 proposed rules; (2) proposed regulations (REG-103193-26) raising the estate tax…
What is California’s PTE elective tax, and what changed for 2026? The pass-through entity (PTE) elective tax lets a qualifying partnership or S corporation elect to pay a 9.3% entity-level California tax on its owners’ shares of income — and the owners then claim a personal income tax credit for the tax paid on their…
Can you use 401(k) money to pay long-term care insurance premiums without the 10% penalty? Yes — within limits. Under SECURE 2.0 Act §334 (effective for distributions after December 29, 2025), a defined contribution plan may permit “qualified long-term care distributions” under new IRC §401(a)(39). The annual cap is the LEAST of: (1) the amount…
What is the California LLC fee, and how do you avoid the 10% penalty? Separate from the $800 annual minimum franchise tax, California imposes a second, income-based “LLC fee” (Revenue & Taxation Code §17942) on every LLC organized, doing business, or registered in California with total California-source income of at least $250,000. The fee is…
Is your side activity a business or a hobby — and why does it matter to the IRS? Under Internal Revenue Code §183 (the “hobby loss” rule), if an activity is NOT engaged in for profit, you cannot deduct its losses against your other income. A real business reports on Schedule C and can deduct…
How did OBBBA expand the §4960 excise tax on nonprofit executive compensation? Internal Revenue Code §4960 imposes a 21% excise tax on a tax-exempt organization’s “excess remuneration” — compensation over $1 million paid to a covered employee — plus certain excess parachute (separation) payments. Under the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act, beginning with tax years…
What are the most important federal tax developments from late May 2026? Four stand out. (1) The Joint Committee on Taxation released a 341-page provision-by-provision report on the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA, P.L. 119-21) and flagged 10 provisions that may need technical correction. (2) Treasury and the IRS issued new guidance — final…
How did OBBBA change federal student loans for graduate and professional students? The One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA, Pub. L. No. 119-21) placed new caps on federal student loans and directed the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) to define which “professional degree” programs qualify for higher borrowing limits. Under the DOE’s final rule, only…
What is the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax, and why do ILITs so often get it wrong? The GST tax (Internal Revenue Code Chapter 13) is a flat 40% tax imposed — on top of gift or estate tax — on transfers that “skip” a generation, such as gifts to grandchildren or to a dynasty trust….
What home expenses can you actually deduct in 2026 — and what’s the new SALT cap? To deduct homeownership expenses you must ITEMIZE. The two main deductible items are (1) state and local real estate taxes — now subject to a $40,000 limit ($20,000 if married filing separately) under the increased SALT deduction cap —…
Which Form 990 must your nonprofit file, and what happens if you miss it? Most tax-exempt organizations must file an annual return in the Form 990 series, due by the 15th day of the 5th month after the organization’s accounting period ends (May 15 for calendar-year filers). Which form you file — 990-N, 990-EZ, 990,…
What is a Trump Account and how do you open one? A Trump Account is a new type of tax-advantaged individual retirement account for children, created by the One, Big, Beautiful Bill (OBBBA, enacted July 4, 2025). A parent, guardian, or other authorized individual can establish one for a child who is under age 18…
Do states follow the federal QSBS exclusion under OBBBA — and why does state conformity matter? Not automatically. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA, Pub. L. No. 119-21) expanded the federal Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) exclusion under IRC §1202 — but states set their own conformity. Maine and Oregon have enacted legislation DECOUPLING…
How should companies account for transferable tax credits under U.S. GAAP? The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) voted in May 2026 to advance a project on the accounting treatment of nonrefundable transferable tax credits — including the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) clean energy credits under IRC §6418, CHIPS and Science Act semiconductor credits, and One…
How do California SB 253 reporting entities measure Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions for the June 30, 2026 first filing? SB 253 (Health & Safety Code §38532) requires U.S. companies with revenues over $1 billion doing business in California to publicly disclose Scope 1 (direct) and Scope 2 (purchased energy) greenhouse gas emissions starting…
How can you tell a Social Security imposter scam from a real government contact? The Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General (SSA OIG) issued a fresh warning in 2026 about a rising imposter scam: criminals impersonate real federal employees by harvesting names from social media and sending doctored badge photos to “verify” their…
How does the IRS Offer in Compromise work, and how do you avoid OIC mills? An IRS Offer in Compromise (OIC) is a legally-binding agreement between a taxpayer and the IRS to settle outstanding tax debt for less than the full amount owed. You apply with Form 656-B (Offer in Compromise Booklet) plus a $205…
What does California SB 261 require for climate-related financial risk reporting? California’s SB 261 (Public Resources Code §38533, the Climate-Related Financial Risk Act, as amended by SB 219) requires U.S. companies with annual revenues over $500 million doing business in California to publish a biennial climate-related financial risk report. The first report is due January…
