Category: Tax Laws

COVID-19 Relief Bill Includes 4% Housing Credit Floor Rate

The passage of the new COVID-19 relief bill (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021) by Congress on December 21, 2020, which was signed into law by President Trump on December 27, 2020, includes legislation that amends Internal Revenue Code Section 42. This new bill sets a minimum 4% housing credit rate for new and existing buildings that

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The capital building in Washington DC at dusk.

COVID-19 Relief Bill Clarifies Deductibility of Expenses Paid with PPP Loans

On December 21, 2020, Congress finally passed a new COVID-19 relief bill (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021) which President Trump signed into law on December 27, 2020. The bill includes clarification of the deductibility of certain eligible expenses paid with forgiven Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans.  The bill now permits taxpayers who receive PPP loan forgiveness

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New IRS Guidance: Non-Deductibility of Expenses Paid with PPP Loans

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) created under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provides loan funds to small businesses in order to help them pay eligible expenses (payroll costs, mortgage interest, rent, and utilities).  These covered loans are to be fully forgiven and not to be treated as income to the loan

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Nonprofit Purchasing Policy Considerations

Nonprofits have a multitude of compliance standards to juggle, and constructing a comprehensive nonprofit purchasing policy is no exception. Maintaining tax-exempt status requires adherence to very specific behaviors, and written policy should be reviewed periodically to ensure your organization meets or exceeds standards. Under the new procurement standards, all NPOs receiving federal awards must have

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Webinar Round-Up: PPPFA Forgivable Loan Accounting

Partners S. Scott Seamands and Stanley Woo hosted our quarterly virtual affordable housing roundtable, along with our client Mutual Housing of California. We have hosted these quarterly roundtables since the early 1990’s but in the current environment the roundtables have become virtual meetings. This quarter we outlined the issues related to obtaining loan forgiveness and

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CARES Act Key Tax Provisions for Individuals and Businesses

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was signed into law on March 27, 2020.  The CARES Act is a $2 trillion relief package aimed at providing relief to the American economy in combating the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.  While the CARES Act is not a tax relief measure, it does include

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Washington D.C. capital building at dusk.

Changes to Sec. 163(j) that Impacts LIHTC Partnerships under CARES Act

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) amended Section 163(j) to allow many taxpayers to deduct more business interest expense for taxable years beginning in 2019 and 2020 by increasing the limitation from 30% of Adjusted Taxable Income (ATI) to 50% of ATI. For partnerships, the increase to 50% of ATI applies

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Expanded Relief for Tax Filing and Payment Due Dates

The IRS has issued a series of notices (Notice 2020-17, Notice 2020-18 (superseded Notice 2020-17), Notice 2020-20, and Notice 2020-23) in an effort to provide administrative relief to those taxpayers affected by COVID-19.  Collectively, these notices extend the filing and payment deadlines to July 15, 2020 for various returns and payments. The latest IRS Notice

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Paycheck Protection Program Part II

The Senate passed a bill of nearly $480 billion on Tuesday afternoon to extend funding for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), provide additional funding for hospitals, and expand funding for COVID-19 testing. Some $310 billion is earmarked for the PPP, which last week had exhausted all of the program’s initial $349 billion funding in less

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Manage Your Partnership Interests: Technical Termination Rules for California

On July 1, 2019, California’s Governor, Gavin Newsom, signed Assembly Bill 91 (A.B. 91) into law. This bill conforms selective tax laws in California to the changes made under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA). These changes impacted technical terminations for partnerships as follows: Repeals the partnership technical termination provision to conform

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Tax Reform Impact for Closely-held Businesses

When the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) went into effect, there were a lot of benefits for businesses and individuals in the area of corporate and personal taxes. Many new deductions were created for S-Corps and owners of pass-through entities. Along with the benefits, there is still a layer of complexity to the

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‘Creative’ Estate Planning Requires Caution with Section 199A Reform

Entrepreneurs and closely held family businesses that have established multiple trusts, or plan to create trusts based on tax reform, should pay attention to certain opportunities and dangers for new tax compliance, especially regarding Section 199A. You have probably heard that a new 20 percent federal income tax deduction is available for Qualified Business Income,

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LIHTC Partnerships Impacted by Limitations on Business Interest

Due to the changes in the federal tax law resulting from the passage of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the deduction for business interest can be severely limited for many taxpayers for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017. The interest deduction cannot exceed the sum of: Business interest income for the tax

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Tax Deferral ‘Opportunity Zones’ Approved for California

As part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, the Governors of each state spent the first few months of 2018 requesting public comment and nominating certain census tracts as Opportunity Zones. Out of 3,516 census tracts in the state, 879 were designated by the Governor and all were certified by the U.S.

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Important Tax Update for Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefits

by Stanley Woo, CPA Due to the changes in the Federal tax law brought on by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the transportation fringe benefits provided by an employer to employees are no longer deductible by the employer. This change in the law will impact employers in the for-profit sector and surprisingly, employers

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Are We Destined for Four Interest Rate Hikes in 2018?

Economists globally are paying close attention to the Federal Reserve’s focus on “further gradual increases in the federal funds rate” in 2018. According to Bloomberg reports, Fed officials announced three tentative interest rate increases for the year as part of quarterly projections in December. They reiterated that plan at the end of January. However, Bloomberg’s

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Repeal of Partnership Technical Termination

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed by Congress and signed by President Trump on December 22, 2017 has repealed the “technical termination” of partnerships.  When there is a sale or exchange of 50% or more of a partnership interest, such event will no longer cause the partnership to be treated as terminated.  Hence,

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Tax Reform Updates 12/22/2017

Congress is enacting the biggest tax reform law in thirty years, one that will make fundamental changes in the way you, your family and your business calculate your federal income tax bill, and the amount of federal tax you will pay. Since most of the changes will go into effect next year, there’s still a

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Repealing the Federal Estate Tax Can Be Bad for Giving

Two bills introduced in Congress in January 2017 called for elimination of the federal estate tax. One was introduced by a Republican Representative from South Dakota and another was introduced by a Republican Representative from Texas. Both bills were introduced to the House Ways and Means Committee, and that is all the action that has

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Reporting Collaborative Activities: A Complex Issue for Not-For-Profits

More and more not-for-profits are joining forces to better serve their clients and cut costs. But such relationships can come with complicated financial reporting obligations. Starting with the simplest For accounting purposes, the simplest relationship between nonprofits may be a collaborative arrangement. These are typically contractual agreements in which two or more organizations are active

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Universal Charitable Deduction Could Reduce Taxes, Boost Giving

Itemizing your charitable giving on your tax return has always been a great incentive to give — along with the warm feeling of supporting good causes. However, tax reform proposals by Republican lawmakers and the Trump administration that would increase the standard deduction for individuals and families may take away that incentive. After all, it’s

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What Really Motivates Not-For-Profit Donors

What do charitable donors want? The classic answer is: Go ask each one individually. However, research provides some insight into donor motivation that can help your not-for-profit grow its financial support. Taxing matters The biennial U.S. Trust® Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy, conducted in partnership with the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy,

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