Tax & Accounting News

The Weekly (Tax)Buzz - May 13, 2020

The Weekly (Tax)Buzz - May 13, 2020

If you feel like the news is tough to keep up with these days, you aren’t alone. Every week, we publish a curated list of some of the top articles in tax and finance. Tune in every Wednesday to read the latest thought leadership pieces from our favorite bloggers, US tax proposals, tax crime stories, and much more.

The (Tax)Buzz this week: What’s inside the House Democrats’ proposed HEROES Act, how your unemployment benefits are taxable, why your stimulus payment amount may be different than expected, and more.

CNBC: House Democrats unveiled their next stimulus bill proposal Tuesday. The HEROES Act totals $3 trillion and includes relief for state and local governments, another round of $1200 stimulus checks, and hazard pay for essential workers.

Accounting Today: The IRS is “extending the claims period for health care flexible spending arrangements and dependent care assistance programs and enabling taxpayers to make mid-year changes to their accounts.”

The Motley Fool: Taxes don’t go away during a pandemic. Here are three tax planning strategic moves you may want to make now.

Forbes: Wondering about the proposed second round of stimulus checks included in the HEROES Act and how they differ from the first? Read this.

The Wall Street Journal: The IRS gave in to complaints from lawmakers and business groups and “will let companies with furloughed, unpaid employees get a tax credit for paying their health benefits.”

Tax Foundation: Here’s a breakdown of how the HEROES Act, introduced Tuesday by House Democrats, would allocate state and local aid. 

Vox: Immigrant advocates are arguing in court that “American citizens who are married to unauthorized immigrants should still be eligible for stimulus checks along with their children.”

Yahoo! Finance: Receiving unemployment benefits? Those are still taxable by the federal government and most states, so make sure you know how to avoid a big hit.

Forbes: Some Americans have received a stimulus payment amount different than what they expected. There are several reasons why this could have happened

Bonus content: 

  • 17 Free White Paper Downloads – With the constant changes in legislation and rules governing our industry, it can be hard to keep up. That’s why the tax experts at TaxCPE / ClientWhys put together 17 free white papers on the most important tax issues during COVID-19.
  • CPE Webcasts – For tax professionals seeking to understand the tax-related issues surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve created a 2-hour CPE webcast with all the important info.
  • As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to disrupt our lives across the board, we’ve received many questions about how tax and accounting pros should respond. To help, we created a Coronavirus Resource Hub with all the info you need to keep up. Be sure to explore and bookmark this page as we’re updating it daily.

Don’t miss our latest TaxBuzz posts: 

  • Economic Impact Payments: Answers to the Latest Trending Questions
  • TaxBuzz Chat: The Pros on the Frontlines of the Economic Recovery
  • Forced to Return to U.S. From a Foreign Job? IRS Has Provided Time Waivers for Exclusion
  • IRS Guidance: PPP Loan Expenses Not Tax-Deductible

Did we miss a great article this week? Let us know in the comments below!

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Lauren Detweiler

Lauren Detweiler

I am equal parts marketer, traveler, and writer, and I've been doing all three for as long as I can remember. I have spent most of my time since graduating university traveling and working remotely in Africa and Europe. My passion lies in conveying the right messaging to the right people, and being a part of the CountingWorks and TaxBuzz team means I get to do that not only for our company, but for clients across the country as well.

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