The online news machine is abuzz with President Obama’s new tax plan. Calling it the Buffett Tax after famed investor Warren Buffett, the president is proposing a plethera of new taxes. These new taxes include new taxes on millionaires and new taxes on the “rich,” meaning married couples who make more than $250,000. And to [...]

Growing up, I had always been under the impression that the IRS was the most brutal of government agencies.  To receive an audit from them was nothing short of misery and once the IRS had you in their sights, there was no escaping the financial nightmare.  Now, having experienced the IRS a few times on [...]

When my wife and I adopted our children (in the 1990s), there weren’t any adoption tax credits for us to take advantage of. Today, however, if you’ve adopted a child, you may be able to claim an income exclusion of $13,170 from your income and a tax credit for the same amount, depending on the [...]

If you’ve read a bit about personal finance, chances are that you’ve heard the term Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). A fair bit of tax considerations are based on AGI, so it’s well worth familiarizing yourself with the term. Here’s a quick introduction to AGI and when you might need to consider yours. Calculating Adjusted Gross [...]

Although many outside of the service industry are unaware, employees are required to report cash and charge tips to the IRS. Employers then account for the tip in their tax accounting and withholding. Employees are required to issue a written report during any month in which they receive $20 or more in tips. If an [...]

Have you ever found yourself shelling out a bit of cash because of your job for things that your employer doesn’t reimburse? Perhaps you had to travel for work, or use your cell phone for work for the convenience of your employer. You may be pleasantly surprised to find out that you can deduct some [...]

While it may be difficult to stomach, the fact is that social security benefits may be taxable. Generally, if your only income is from social security, your benefits are probably not taxable and you may not need to file a tax return. If you have sources of income in addition to social security, however, then [...]

Most people are familiar with common taxes: income taxes, sales taxes, and additional taxes on products like cigarettes and gasoline. But what you may not know is that there are many peculiar taxes around the world. Here are a few from America you may never have known you paid. A tax on illegal drugs That [...]

Do the rich pay their fair share in taxes? Rep. Janice Schakowsky [D-IL9] doesn’t think so. On March 16, 2011, Schakowsky introduced H.R. 1124 “to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose increased rates of tax with respect to taxpayers with more than $1,000,000 taxable income, and for other purposes.” The bill would [...]