Stock Act

The Stock Act is an Act of Congress designed to combat Congressional insider trading. It was signed into law by President Barack Obama on April 4, 2012. The law prohibits the use of non-public information for private profit, including insider trading by members of...

Illegal Activities

Did you know that income from all illegal activities, such as money from dealing with drugs, must be included as income on Schedule 1 so it can flow onto your 1040? You will also be taxed for self-employment taxes as well, so both side of FICA.

China has a short-sighted approach to R&D

Beyond forcing outside companies partnering and sharing design plans with the government. China will have to invest more in productivity enhancements like basic scientific research. Traditionally, Beijing has been loath to spend money on R&D that doesn’t promise...

Who controls the US’s future?

As the US continues to issue debt obligations (why live within our means), China continues to pony up to collect our debts and thus hold our future in their hands. We can look for China to continue to buy a hefty portion of America’s Treasuries. Beijing holds about...

The distant past, and Schedule A

Sometime ago the cost of an MBA could be deducted, as illustrated here. A man worked as an investment analyst and owned technology ventures. He left his job to get an MBA degree and deducted the cost on Schedule A as an unreimbursed employee business expense subject...

Child Tax Payments – Form 8812

IRS is disbursed its last monthly child credit payment for 2021 on Dec. 15. Taxpayers who file a federal return next year will use Schedule 8812 to reconcile their 2021 advance payments with the child credit they are entitled to. For most, the credit will exceed the...

Self-Employed Contributions Act (SECA)

There are some LLC and LP members who don’t pay SECA taxes that are now on the IRS’s radar. The IRS has an ongoing audit campaign on when limited partners and LLC members owe self-employment tax on their distributive share of the firm’s income. In 2017, the Tax Court...

Tax Criminals have few worries…

It seems that the IRS’s Criminal Investigation division is pursuing fewer payroll tax dodges… In 2021, the CI began 215 of these cases, compared with 298 the prior year. Apparently the probes of nonfilers, abusive tax schemes and cross-border crimes are also down. But...

Cannot rely on the IRS

When having an issue with your taxes and calling the IRS of instructions, is what we have been instructed to do, it is in the instructions.  They are supposed to be the experts. Relying on an IRS phone operator’s incorrect advice doesn’t avoid a tax bill. A man called...

Start-up expenses

Expenses incurred before business starts aren’t deductible right away. An engineer bought vacant land with the intent to eventually farm and develop it. Although he spent time and money working on the land, began constructing a barn, and even came up with a business...

Who pay what in Federal Taxes?

The tax burden on the highest income earners has actually gone down, according to IRS statistics. That is not to say that they are not paying their share. The top 1% of individual filers paid 38.77% of all U.S. income taxes for 2019, the most recent year IRS has...

OIC and refunds

OIC (Offer in Compromise) is an easing for people wanting to settle tax debts for less than what they owe. Starting with offers in compromise accepted by IRS after Oct. 31, 2021, the Service is no longer recouping a taxpayer’s refund for the calendar year in which an...

Discharged Indebtedness

Are you one of the millions that you have income from the cancellation or discharge of indebtedness? if so, keep in mind that insolvent taxpayers can escape tax on forgiven debts, in rare occasions. Where those taxpayers whose liabilities are greater than the fair...

Chinese Military

China has been building up its military. At present its navy is the world’s largest, by number of warships, enabling increasingly aggressive maritime posturing in the East and South China seas and the Taiwan Strait. Unfortunately, the US did not prosper in this...

China

I was reading that it is believed that trade with China and the U.S. is likely to remain strong into 2030 and beyond. We two countries rely on each other for so many things that disentangling us would be too difficult. In China’s case: Food for its immense population....

Future Jobs and Money

I am always curious about where the world is going as far as job creation and investable companies and industries. Having lived through the birth of the PC (anyone else remember the IBM Chaplin ad?s) to basically Star Trek communications.  It is a different world,...

Orbit

Besides the making of an SNL skit about petty billionaires going into orbit as a lark, I was curious what is out there and how much after the story about the Chinese space station, needing to make a course correction because of a wayward satellite. Apparently, there...

Immigration

The reasons for immigration have drastically changed over the past centuries. Today it is surmised that primarily, immigrants choose to leave their home country in order to improve their quality of life. Economic reasons for immigrating include seeking higher wage...

Audio logo

I have thought about getting one years ago.  You know those little background chines that you hear on commercials, website or when you turn on electronics. AOL had one whether it was planned or not had one, the static and dialing when you used to log on.  Whenever you...

Pay yourself First

Are you saving enough money?  Are you saving any money whatsoever? Most people don’t, they are expecting better times in the future. Rather than more of the same… There is the old saying to pay yourself first.  This is above and beyond your paycheck if you run your...

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