Tax Warrior Chronicles

Late on Friday, August 28, 2020, the IRS issued Notice 2020-65 providing highly anticipated guidance addressing the Presidential Executive Order regarding the deferral of certain payroll tax obligations. Unfortunately, the notice failed to address the most basic issues raised by the Executive Order. Today we will discuss what we know, what questions remain, and practical considerations for employers. Implementation of the deferral begins September 1, 2020 – yes, tomorrow.

Background

On August 8, 2020, the President issued an Executive Order via a memorandum to the Secretary of the Treasury directing him to use his authority to postpone the collection of tax during national disasters to

As Iowans recover from the recent derecho storm and the wildfires continue to burn in California, there is tax-related help for those who may be affected. From extending deadlines to tips for preparing for a natural disaster headed your way, The IRS has recently made several announcements to assist impacted taxpayers.

Victims of the Iowa derecho storm, which started on August 10^th and the California wildfires that began on August 14^th now have until December 15, 2020, to file various individual and business tax returns. This means individuals with a valid extension to file their 2019 return on October 15, 2020, will now have until December 15, 2020, to file. The IRS noted, however, that

As guidance in this area is being released regularly, we recommend you read all of our blogs on this subject.  All the blogs in the Paycheck Protection Program series are here: Updates#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7,#8,#9,#10, #11, #12,#13,#14, #15

Welcome to the 15^th iteration of what is new with the Paycheck Protection Program. There are no prizes for remembering anything in the first 14, but we hope to provide some clarity on specific issues addressed in the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on PPP Loan Forgiveness (Forgiveness FAQs) issued on August 4. The Forgiveness FAQs are the first piece of significant additional guidance issued since our last update on June 25^th covering changes

Working from home, once a perk at many companies, has become the norm for employees across the country. COVID-19 has forced businesses to quickly allow their employees to work remotely. The state tax implications of having a remote workforce should not be overlooked, especially as many businesses transition from temporary teleworking policies to permanent ones. Today’s blog will focus on a state tax issue many taxpayers will need to focus on as we enter the second half of 2020: nexus.

“Nexus” is a term used to describe when a taxpayer has a presence in a state. Once nexus is created with a state, the taxpayer will likely need to register to do business in that state and will be subject to

The Treasury Department offered easier access to retirement savings in March 2020 as the economic hardships resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic became a forgone conclusion.  Three months later, The IRS has expanded eligibility for coronavirus related distributions and provided further insight into how these new rules should be applied in Notice 2020-50.

Certain provisions in the CARES Act were enacted to reduce the tax burden on withdrawals from certain qualified retirement plans. If a withdrawal is considered a “coronavirus-related” distribution, the CARES Act extended the time to pay the resulting taxes or to recontribute the distributions back to the qualified plan, while widening

If you received a Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) in 2020, you should take careful note of guidance contained in the recently issued IRS Notice 2020-51 regarding the CARES Act’s waiver of 2020 RMDs and a taxpayer’s ability to rollover such distributions.

Prior to the CARES Act, distributions eligible to be rolled over to a retirement plan (including an IRA) within 60 days from the date of receipt, excluded:

• Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs),
• Distributions that were part of a series of substantially equal period payments made over a specified period, and
• Distributions made on account of a hardship experienced by an employee.

Other exclusions form eligible distributions for the

As guidance in this area is being released regularly, we recommend you read all of our blogs on this subject.  All the blogs in the Paycheck Protection Program series are here: Updates #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7,#8,#9,#10, #11, #12,#13,#14, #15

The Treasury continues to rewrite guidance based upon the changes passed within the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act (PPPFA). Overnight on Monday, June 22, the Treasury released the 20^th Interim Final Rule (IFR). There are no surprises on what to expect with the 20^th IFR: some clarifications, a few new things, and you guessed it, more unanswered questions. Today, we will focus on a significant new item and some of the clarifications.

As guidance in this area is being released regularly, we recommend you read all of our blogs on this subject.  All the blogs in the Paycheck Protection Program series are here: Updates#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7,#8,#9,#10, #11, #12,#13,#14, #15

Since our last blog, the Treasury issued two additional Interim Final Rules (the 18^th and 19^th), revised the original loan forgiveness application for changes made by the Paycheck Protection Flexibility Act (PPFA), and issued a new EZ loan forgiveness application. If you are up to date with our blogs, we are starting to compare the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to extra-innings in the longest baseball game ever recorded. It is now inning 19,

Everyone wants to maximize tax savings on their commercial real estate, and while Cost Segregation Studies have long been a solid IRS-approved strategy, these days they are more popular than ever, especially with some of the changes under the CARES Act,Today’s guest blogger, Terri S. Johnson of Capstan Tax Strategies, is here to explain why “cost seg” studies are all the rage, and to walk us through the top-three prime cost segregation scenarios.    

Simply put, Cost Segregation is an engineering-based analysis in which specific property components are identified and reallocated into modified cost recovery system (MACRS) class lives.  Treating the components as personal property or land

As guidance in this area is being released regularly, we recommend you read all of our blogs on this subject.  All the blogs in the Paycheck Protection Program series are here: Updates#1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7,#8,#9,#10, #11, #12,#13,#14, #15

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) could be compared to the longest baseball game in history (we really miss sports, humor us here).  That Triple-A International League game ended with a 3-2 score, lasted 33 innings, and clocked 8 hours and 25 minutes of playing time.  As we enter the twelfth inning on this subject, complete and clear guidance remains wanting.  Last at bat we discussed the passage of the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility