NY Daily Record Since 1908

Earlier this year, the IRS issued guidance on qualified employee discount plans in a Field Attorney Advice memorandum. While this type of IRS release cannot be used as precedent, it does show us the current IRS thinking on the issue. ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

The “Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015” (the 2015 PATH Act) included an unexpected taxpayer-friendly bonus: Beginning in 2016, eligible small businesses may claim the research credit against the alternative minimum tax (AMT) liability. Even more important to ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

There have been many changes to the tax depreciation rules over the past couple of years, most notably due to the IRS’ issuance of new repair and capitalization regulations and the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH ...

Tagged with: burton speers Keeping Your Balance

Of course everyone wants to pay less in taxes, and in 2004 Congress gave manufacturing companies a huge tax break through the Section 199 Deduction, or as it is more commonly known, the Domestic Production Activities Deduction, or simply DPAD. ...

The Research and Experimentation Tax Credit has been part of the tax code since the early 1980s, but it is something not normally associated with the construction industry. Early on, the credit was certainly geared towards technology companies, such as ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

Every year there are an increasing number of cases of identity theft. With more people filing their tax returns electronically, the incidences of tax related identity theft have also increased. The IRS has worked to prevent such thefts, and their ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

We have all seen it during one or more restaurant visits – “Parties of 8 or more are subject to a mandatory 18% gratuity;” or for catered events the contract may state “This event is subject to an 18% gratuity.” ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

Over the past few years, banks have cancelled billions of dollars of debts. As a result, taxpayers may have unexpected tax consequences when debt is cancelled. This is commonly known as Cancellation of Debt Income. A debt includes any indebtedness ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

By now, you have likely heard about virtual currencies, most notably bitcoin, especially in light of the recent stories about thefts of bitcoins at Mt Gox and other bitcoin exchanges, as well as tales of those getting rich on the ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

As the end of the year approaches, many of us that have flexible spending plans still have funds that may need to be spent, or risk losing the benefits of having put part of our salary into the plan. Flexible ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

With the rapid improvements in technology and the ease of telecommuting, more and more people are working from home each year. This results in more people thinking about claiming a home office deduction for tax purposes. Earlier this year, the ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance

As we get closer to the looming “Fiscal Cliff,” income tax change is once again in the news. Should we raise or lower taxes, get rid of loopholes, attempt major tax reform or just try to simplify the system, create ...

Tagged with: Burton S. Speer Keeping Your Balance