New Tax Laws - Linkenheimer LLP CPAs & Advisors

California Tax Updates for 9/15

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Emergency tax relief is available for business owners and feepayers directly affected by declared disasters, through the California Dept. of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA). “Thank you to the President for your partnership and granting this urgent Major Disaster Declaration. California is battling two of the largest fires in our history and has seen nearly 600 new fires in the last week caused by dry lightning strikes,” reported Governor Gavin Newsom, adding, “CA is strong, we will get through this.” Relief may include extension of tax return due dates, relief of penalty and interest, or replacement copies of records lost due to disasters. Here’s more: https://bit.ly/2QrTV02

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California’s Sonoma County enacts emergency paid sick leave ordinance, for certain employers for COVID-19 related reasons. The ordinance took effect Aug. 18, 2020 and will remain in effect through 2020, unless the federal Families First Act (FFA) is extended. The ordinance now requires employers with 500 or […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-15T20:17:59+00:00September 15th, 2020|ca, CA tax, california, disaster, employer, New Tax Laws|0 Comments

Employers Have Questions And Concerns About Deferring Employees’ Social Security Taxes

The IRS has provided guidance to employers regarding the recent presidential action to allow employers to defer the withholding, deposit and payment of certain payroll tax obligations.

The three-page guidance in Notice 2020-65 was issued to implement President Trump’s executive memorandum signed on August 8.

Private employers still have questions and concerns about whether, and how, to implement the optional deferral. The President’s action only defers the employee’s share of Social Security taxes; it doesn’t forgive them, meaning employees will still have to pay the taxes later unless Congress acts to eliminate the liability. (The payroll services provider for federal employers announced that federal employees will have their taxes deferred.)

Deferral basics

President Trump issued the memorandum in light of the COVID-19 crisis. He directed the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to use his authority under the tax code to defer the withholding, deposit and payment of certain payroll tax obligations.

For purposes of the Notice, “applicable wages” means wages or compensation paid to an employee on a pay date beginning September 1, 2020, and ending December 31, 2020, but only if the amount paid for a biweekly pay period is less than $4,000, or the equivalent amount with respect […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-08T23:07:39+00:00September 8th, 2020|employer, New Tax Laws, social security, tax|0 Comments

Back-To-School Tax Breaks On The Books

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, students are going back to school this fall, either remotely, in-person or under a hybrid schedule. In any event, parents may be eligible for certain tax breaks to help defray the cost of education.

Here is a summary of some of the tax breaks available for education.

1. Higher education tax credits. Generally, you may be able to claim either one of two tax credits for higher education expenses — but not both.

With the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC), you can save a maximum of $2,500 from your tax bill for each full-time college or grad school student. This applies to qualified expenses including tuition, room and board, books and computer equipment and other supplies. But the credit is phased out for moderate-to-upper income taxpayers. No credit is allowed if your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is over $90,000 ($180,000 for joint filers).
The Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC) is similar to the AOTC, but there are a few important distinctions. In this case, the maximum credit is $2,000 instead of $2,500. Furthermore, this is the […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:01:58+00:00September 3rd, 2020|Blog, college tax credit, education credit, New Tax Laws|0 Comments

5 Key Points About Bonus Depreciation

You’re probably aware of the 100% bonus depreciation tax break that’s available for a wide range of qualifying property. Here are five important points to be aware of when it comes to this powerful tax-saving tool.

1. Bonus depreciation is scheduled to phase out

Under current law, 100% bonus depreciation will be phased out in steps for property placed in service in calendar years 2023 through 2027. Thus, an 80% rate will apply to property placed in service in 2023, 60% in 2024, 40% in 2025, and 20% in 2026, and a 0% rate will apply in 2027 and later years.

For certain aircraft (generally, company planes) and for the pre-January 1, 2027 costs of certain property with a long production period, the phaseout is scheduled to take place a year later, from 2024 to 2028.

Of course, Congress could pass legislation to extend or revise the above rules.

2. Bonus depreciation is available for new and most used property

In the past, used property didn’t qualify. It currently qualifies unless:

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:01:58+00:00September 2nd, 2020|Blog, bonus, depreciation, New Tax Laws|0 Comments

California Tax Updates for August 28

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The California Employment Development Dept. (EDD) has released the latest issue of its quarterly newsletter for employers. Among other things, it includes information about COVID-19 employer resources and a list of additional COVID-19 business resources and changes to CA’s Paid Family Leave Program. You’ll also find pdfs reporting the latest figures for unemployment benefits in CA by week. It does not include new information about withholding. Here’s the newsletter from EDD: https://bit.ly/30YYvJk

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The California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) just updated its COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). The FAQs now state that paper returns and other documents must be signed with an original signature by a taxpayer, the taxpayer’s representative or both, but the FTB will not require an original signature through December 31, 2020. This is an extension from the previous end date of July 15, 2020, except for Powers of Attorney. The update is in the section on “Original signatures for paper returns and other documents” and is the only update the FTB made.

If you have […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:01:59+00:00August 28th, 2020|Blog, ca, CA tax, New Tax Laws|0 Comments