Tag: tax rates

What Is Really The Tax Filing Season

The 2020 tax filing season is delayed until February 12, so the Internal Revenue Service can do additional programming and testing following the December tax law changes.

“If filing season were opened without the correct programming in place, then there could be a delay in issuing refunds to taxpayers,” the Internal Revenue Service said in a press release. “These changes ensure that eligible people will receive any remaining stimulus money as a Recovery Rebate Credit when they file their 2020 tax return.”

The filing season usually opens in late January when the IRS begins accepting and processing returns. Last year, the season started on January 27.“While I am disappointed that this year’s filing season will begin later than usual, I recognize that the IRS has faced extraordinary challenges throughout the COVID crisis,” Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA) said in a statement on Friday.

The $900 billion stimulus deal and government-funding bill that passed together at the end of December included some key tax changes for the 2020 tax year.

Eligible taxpayers who didn’t receive the second round of stimulus payments included in the latest stimulus bill or didn’t receive the full amount they were entitled to can claim them on their 2020 tax returns. They can also claim the first round of payments. How the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit are calculated for the 2020 tax year also changed under the stimulus deal.

Under the government-funding bill, medical expenses now must exceed only 7.5% of adjusted gross income to be taken as an itemized deduction. Before, that threshold was 10%.

Read more: Here’s what to do if you haven’t gotten your stimulus check

The IRS urges taxpayers to file electronically and use direct deposit as a payment method as soon as possible. The agency anticipates 9 out of 10 taxpayers will. receive their refund within 21 days if they file their returns electronically, used direct deposit, and no issues popped up with their return.

People eligible for free tax filing can begin their taxes now and the returns will be transmitted to the IRS on February 12. These are providers participating in the IRS Free File for 2021:

  • 1040Now
  • ezTaxReturn.com
  • FreeTaxReturn.com
  • FileYourTaxes.com
  • Intuit (TurboTax)
  • On-Line Taxes (OLT.com)
  • TaxAct
  • TaxHawk (FreeTaxUSA)
  • TaxSlayer

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Furlough vs. Layoff: What’s the Difference for Your Taxes?When a company chooses to reduce its workforce, it may approach that reduction in a few different ways. How a company makes these staffing changes could result in different implications for you and your taxes. Here’s what you should know about the differences between a furlough and a layoff.

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Read MoreBrought to you byTurboTax.comGreat Ways to Get Charitable Tax DeductionsGenerally, when you give money to a charity, you can use the amount of that donation as an itemized deduction on your tax return. However, not all charities qualify as tax-deductible organizations. While there are many types of charities, they must all meet certain criteria to be classified by the IRS as tax-deductible organizations. There are legitimate tax-deductible organizations in many popular categories, such as those listed below.

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Stimulus Check Qualification Rules Could Change With a Second Payment

Congress is scrambling to piece together another relief package before the end of the year that would, if some legislators have their say, include a second economic stimulus check for individuals and families who meet the requirements.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent, and Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican, are looking to modify a $908 billion plan with an amendment that would authorize a second check for up to $1,200. The unamended proposal doesn’t include another direct payment. If Sanders and Hawley’s amendment is successful, the new payment would likely follow the same outlines of the first stimulus check for speed and simplicity, but even minor changes could have a significant impact for millions.

Another new proposal, this time from the White House, would provide $600 apiece for each qualifying adult and child, Though it’s less likely we’ll see this proposal become law, if it did it would clearly affect how much money a household could get, by halving the share per qualifying adult and increasing it by $100 per eligible child dependent. 

Even if no stimulus check is approved in 2020, the discussions happening now could impact the stimulus check conversation in early 2021. There’s clearly enough support for a second round of aid before there are enough available doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to inoculate the US population.

Read on for more information about what may happen to stimulus eligibility now. We update this story often.

How the qualifications could change with a new bill

While many members of Congress agree on the need for more aid, they differ on the specifics, and the two sides continue to discuss who needs assistance and how much to spend. Based on proposals that’ve been on the table this fall, here’s what lawmakers could do (or have already done):

Update the definition of a dependent: The CARES Act capped eligible dependents at kids age 16 and younger. One proposal this summer expanded the definition to any dependent, child or adult, you could claim on federal taxes. That means families with older kids or older adults at home could potentially see $500 more in their check total per individual if that proposal is adopted.

Read more: Nobody can take your stimulus check away, right? Not quite

money-dollars-bills-sock-american-flag
If the definition of a dependent changes, your family could benefit. Angela Lang/CNET

Raise the amount of money per child dependent: One White House proposal from October would’ve kept the definition of a child dependent used in the CARES Act but increased the sum per individual to $1,000 on the final household check. (Based on that, here’s how to estimate your total stimulus money and here’s the IRS’ formula for families.)

The White House’s new Dec. 8 proposal would reportedly raise the sum for each qualifying child to $600, up from $500 in the CARES Act.

Stop seizing overdue child support: The Democrats this summer pushed to let a parent who owed child support receive a payment; the original CARES Act allowed the government to redirect payments to cover overdue support.

Send checks to people who are incarcerated: After months of back and forth, the IRS is sending checks to those who are incarcerated and eligible for a payment. A Republican plan this summer would’ve excluded the payments.

Include noncitizens: The CARES Act made a Social Security number a requirement for a payment. Other proposals would’ve expanded the eligibility to those with an ITIN instead of a Social Security number because they’re classified as a resident or nonresident alien. A Republican plan this summer would’ve excluded those with an ITIN.

Who could qualify for a second stimulus check

Qualifying groupLikely to be covered by the final bill
IndividualsAn AGI of less than $99,000 (Same as CARES)
Head of householdAn AGI of less than $146,500 (Same as CARES)
Couple filing jointlyAn AGI less than $198,000 (Same as CARES)
Dependents of any ageNo limit (HEALS proposal; up to 3 in Heroes)
US citizens living abroadYes, same as CARES
Citizens of US territoriesLikely, with payments handled by each territory’s tax authority (CARES)
SSDI and tax nonfilersLikely, but with an extra step to file (more below)
Uncertain statusCould be set by court ruling or bill
Incarcerated peopleExcluded under CARES through IRS interpretation, judge overturned
Undocumented immigrantsQualifying “alien residents” are currently included under CARES
Disqualified groupUnlikely to be covered by the final bill
Noncitizens who pay taxes (ITIN)Proposed in Heroes, unlikely to pass in Senate
Spouses, kids of ITIN filersExcluded under CARES, more below
People who owe child supportIncluded in Heroes proposal, but excluded under CARES

Would the income limits be similar with another check?

Under the CARES Act, here are the income limits based on your adjusted gross income for the previous year that would qualify you for a stimulus check, assuming you met all the other requirements. (More below for people who don’t normally file taxes.) With the amendment proposed by Sanders and Hawley on Dec. 10, the requirements guidelines would follow those set out in the CARES Act.

  • You’re a single tax filer and earn less than $99,000.
  • You file as the head of a household and earn under $146,500.
  • You file jointly with a spouse and earn less than $198,000 combined.

What role do my taxes play in how much I could get? What if I don’t file taxes? 

For most people, taxes and stimulus checks are tightly connected. For example, the most important factor in setting income limits is adjusted gross income, or AGI, which determines how much of the total amount you could receive, be it $600 or $1,200 for individuals and $1,200 or $2,400 for married couples (excluding children for now).

Our stimulus check calculator can show you how much money you could potentially expect from a second check, based on your most recent tax filing and a $1,200 per person cap. Read below for your eligibility if you don’t typically file taxes.

coins-measuring-spoons
How much stimulus money you could get depends on who you are. Angela Lang/CNET

What should retired and older adults know?

Many older adults, including retirees over age 65, received a first stimulus check under the CARES Act, and would likely be eligible for a second one. For older adults and retired people, factors like your tax filings, your AGI, your pension, if you’re part of the SSDI program (more below) and whether the IRS considers you a dependent would likely affect your chances of receiving a second payment. 

If I share custody or owe child support, how does that affect eligibility?

Due to a specific rule, if you and the other parent of your child dependent alternate years claiming your child on your tax return, you may both be entitled to receive $500 more in your first stimulus check, and in the second if that rule doesn’t change.If you owe child support, your stimulus money may be garnished for arrears (the amount you owe). https://playlist.megaphone.fm/?e=CBS4695642448&light=true

I haven’t submitted my federal tax return for at least two years. Can I still get money?

People who weren’t required to file a federal income tax return in 2018 or 2019 may still be eligible to receive the first stimulus check under the CARES Act. If that guideline doesn’t change for a second stimulus check, this group would qualify again. Here are reasons you might not have been required to file:

  • You’re over 24, you’re not claimed as a dependent and your income is less than $12,200.
  • You’re married filing jointly and together your income is less than $24,400.
  • You have no income.
  • You receive federal benefits, such as Supplemental Security Income or Social Security Disability Insurance. See below for more on SSDI.

With the first stimulus check, nonfilers needed to provide the IRS with some information before they could receive their payment. (If you still haven’t received a first check even though you were eligible, the IRS said you can claim it on your taxes in 2021.) This fall, the IRS attempted to contact 9 million Americans who may’ve fallen into this category but who haven’t requested their payment. Those in this group can claim their payment on next year’s taxes.

I’m part of the SSI or SSDI program. Am I eligible to get a stimulus check?

Those who are part of the SSI or SSDI program also qualify for a check under the CARES Act. Recipients wouldn’t receive their payments via their Direct Express card, which the government typically uses to distribute federal benefits, but through a non-Direct Express bank account or as a paper check. SSDI recipients can file next year to request a payment for themselves and dependents.

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For more, here’s what we know about the major proposals for another stimulus package. We also have information on unemployment insurance, what you can do if you’ve lost your job and what to know about evictions.

Coronavirus updates

First published on June 25, 2020 at 4:15 a.m. PT.BudgetingTaxesPoliticsPersonal Finance How To

By: Clifford Colby, Julie Snyder, Katie Conner

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Your Financial Year-End Checklist

2020 is over, and for many of you, it can’t end soon enough. There will be plenty of time to celebrate the end of one year and to hope for better days in the one ahead. But before we get to that, take these steps to get financially ready for 2021.

1) Review your goals: The end of the year is a great time to review the goals you made at the beginning of the year and set new ones for 2021. How did you do this year? Is there anything you’re proud of accomplishing? I like to start with bright spots because they can guide you toward success as you set new goals. But let’s be realistic, too; 2020 threw us a lot of curveballs.

Was there anything you wish you could have done better? You can also learn from any potential stumbling blocks and figure out how to use them as stepping-stones next year. You may also want to take time now to review your net worth. That’s one way to gauge the progress you’ve made in your financial health this year.

2) Update your budget: Did you save the money that you wanted to? Pay off the debt that you needed to? The end of the year gives you a solid end point to assess whether met the goals you set at the outset of 2020. What if you didn’t have a budget or financial goals? You’ve got a blank slate ahead. Why not create a budget that works? 

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3) Create a holiday bucket: Holidays can be budget breakers, so why not incorporate them into your spending goals right from the start? Christmas may look a lot different this year. But you can still create a separate bucket for holiday spending and when that money is gone, stop spending. You’ll thank yourself in January when you don’t have an unusually large credit card bill.

4) Use it or lose it: Some of your benefits—like vacation days or a medical or dependent care flexible spending account (FSA)—expire at the end of the year. Take stock of what you have left and use these benefits to your advantage. MORE FOR YOUPPP Loan Forgiveness Application Guidance For The Self-Employed, Freelancers And ContractorsSBA Approving Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs): What You Need To KnowWhat You Can Do Now To Maximize Paycheck Protection Loan Forgiveness

5) Make any last charitable contributions: December 31st is the last day your charitable contributions can be deducted on your 2020 tax return. If giving to charity is a part of your spending plan, you can use these questions to help make the most of your charitable giving.

6) Pump up your 529: Just like charitable contributions, contributions to your 529 college savings plan must be made by December 31st to count for this tax year. Find out if your state is one of over 30 that allow you to deduct your contribution. You can find the specific deduction here. If your state is one of the four that allow an unlimited deduction, keep in mind the yearly gift-tax and super-funding rules.

7) Max out your 401k: While you have until April to make contributions to your traditional IRA, Roth IRA and HSA, you can only contribute to your 401k through December 31st. So, if you have extra cash and are looking to boost your savings, consider contributing your last couple of checks entirely to your 401k. Business owners can do the same with the employee portion of your Solo 401k contributions.

8) Find your tax return: You’ll be doing your taxes before you know it, so use this time to get prepared. Review last year’s return and make a mental list of records you’ll need to assemble. Year-end is also a good time to decide whether a Roth conversion makes sense for you.

9) Review your business structure: Evaluate your business structure and the QBI deduction to identify any changes you need to make to your business. You might want to set up a solo 401k, for instance, and if so, you’ll have to act before December 31st (although you can make employer/profit sharing contributions up to the business tax filing deadline).

10) Defer income and incur expenses: If you’re a business owner, you may also want to look at ways to defer income into 2021 or pay for business expenses you anticipate for early next year. This is any easy way to reduce your tax liability for 2020. However, remember not to spend money on business expenses that you wouldn’t otherwise incur just for a tax deduction. Spending a $1 to save 24 cents still costs you 76 cents.

 11) Will and trust review: The end of the year is a good time to take stock of changes in your life—like getting married or divorced, having children, starting a business or retiring.  Your estate plan should reflect these changes. Get out your will, documentation for trusts you’ve established and powers of attorney and make sure they match your current situation.

12) Insurance documents: Insurance documents also need to cover your current situation. Take a look at your life and disability insurance policies to make sure they protect your current income and those dependent on it. Your renters or homeowners insurance should cover any additional big purchases you made during the year. And lastly, you should review your health insurance policy for any upcoming changes for 2020. For those of you enrolling in the Market Place, you have until December 15th to pick your plan.

genesis-2-1

My last bonus task is to enjoy this holiday season. I love the holidays because you can reflect and appreciate what you have. We’ve been tested a lot this year, living our lives through a pandemic, racial unrest and a contentious election. I hope the end of the year brings you comfort and peace. Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website. 

Brian Thompson

Brian Thompson

As both a tax attorney and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, I provide comprehensive financial planning to LGBTQ entrepreneurs who run mission-driven businesses. I hold a special place in my heart for small-business owners. I spent a decade defending them against the IRS as a tax attorney and have become one as a financial advisor. It’s a position filled with hope and opportunity. It gives you the most flexibility to create the life that you want. I also understand the added stresses of running a business while being a person of color and a part of the LGBTQ community. You may feel like you don’t have access to the knowledge that others do. I’m here to help lift some of that weight from your shoulders.

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Critics:

A personal budget or home budget is a finance plan that allocates future personal income towards expenses, savings and debt repayment. Past spending and personal debt are considered when creating a personal budget. There are several methods and tools available for creating, using and adjusting a personal budget. For example, jobs are an income source, while bills and rent payments are expenses.

Contents

$800 Billion Of Tax Payments Are Automatically Postponed

Taken together, recent separate emergency actions by Treasury and Congress will defer an estimated $800 billion of payroll and income tax payments. These postponements are automatic, and the amounts postponed are unlimited.

These deferrals of tax, approximately equal to 3.5 percent of GDP, are in effect interest-free loans to taxpayers. They will provide much-needed cash flow to businesses with plummeting sales revenue and to individuals with lost wages.

Unlike other federal emergency measures designed to inject liquidity into the economy, there are no borrower qualifications, such as being in a distressed industry, and there are no limitations on uses, such as prohibitions of layoffs, executive pay hikes, or stock buybacks.

Notice 2020-18, 2020-15 IRB 1 (released on March 20), provides “relief for taxpayers affected by the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.”

Specifically, the April 15, 2020, due date for federal income tax payments has been automatically postponed until July 15, 2020. This relief applies without limitation to income taxes paid by individuals and corporations. It applies to estimated payments by individuals and any tax due when filing an annual return.

The relief also applies to installment payments due on April 15, 2020, for section 965 transition tax on untaxed foreign earnings (not included in our estimate). It does not apply to taxes other than income taxes, such as payroll or excise taxes.

According to Treasury data for calendar year 2019, individual tax payments (excluding withholding) for the months of April, May, June, and July were $364 billion.

Also, in 2019 corporate tax payments for the months of April, May, June, and July were $111 billion. (See figures 1 and 2.)

If these payments are assumed to remain unchanged in 2020, Notice 2020-18 will inject a total of $476 million of short-term liquidity into the economy from now until the midsummer, with that entire amount scheduled to be repaid on July 15.

Medium-Term, Payroll Tax Deferral

Under section 2302 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (H.R. 748), payments by employers and self-employed individuals of the 6.2% tax on wages for Social Security are postponed until after 2020.

Half of these deferred taxes will be due in 2021 and the other half in 2022. (As of this writing, the CARES Act is expected to be signed by the president on March 27.)

As noted, postponed taxes provide critical liquidity for hard-hit employers — such as those in restaurant, entertainment, retail, and passenger transportation businesses.

However, many risk-averse individuals and businesses with strong balance sheets are seeking a safe harbor.

Paying taxes in advance to the government of the United States — yes, you read that right — can be an attractive alternative to investing in Treasury bills. Rates on Treasury bills are close to zero and even negative. (As of this writing, the yield on 10-year Treasury notes was 0.813 percent; the yield on three-month Treasury bills was -0.028 percent.) Some European taxpayers were already prepaying tax before the coronavirus outbreak. And tax administrators were trying to prevent it.

Data from Treasury’s Financial Management Service indicate that in calendar year 2019, the total employer portion of Social Security tax and one-half of the corresponding tax paid by self-employed individuals totaled $465 billion.

Calibrating that figure to correspond to the 9 months of what the statutory text calls the “payroll tax payment period” yields $349 billion of potentially postponed employer payroll taxes under the proposed legislation. Of course, we normally expect payrolls and payroll taxes to grow. These are not normal times.

On March 26 the Department of Labor reported that nationwide unemployment insurance claims for the week ending March 21 were 3.38 million.

These claims alone would increase the national unemployment rate from 3.5 percent to 5.5 percent. Based on Labor Department national occupational employment data for 2018, we tentatively surmise that about 13.6 million Americans work in restaurants, 10.2 million in retail, and another 3 million in travel, entertainment, and other nonessential businesses that require close contact with customers (for example, barbers).

Unfortunately, these figures — which do not include factory or air transport workers — suggest the new and startling unemployment claim figures may be only the beginning of a larger increase in unemployment for at least the next few months.

If, for purposes of conservatively estimating the size of payroll tax deferral, we assume taxable payroll levels for the remainder of 2020 will on average equal 90% of their 2019 levels, total deferred payroll taxes would be $314 billion.

Under the new legislation, $157 billion of that postponed payroll tax would be due without interest or penalty in 2021, and another $157 billion would be due in 2022.

The exact timing of those postponed payments is left up to Treasury. None of this will affect the Social Security Trust Fund because the Treasury general fund will make up the shortfalls.

Looking Ahead

Combining our estimate of $476 billion of short-term income tax relief with our estimated $314 billion of medium-term payroll tax relief yields a total of $790 billion of postponed tax payments.

As of this writing, the Joint Committee on Taxation has not provided an estimate of the payroll tax postponement legislated by Congress. Because it is not prompted by legislation, an official estimate of the effect of Notice 2020-18 is unlikely to surface.

As a delivery mechanism for injecting liquidity into the economy, postponement of tax payments is a mixed bag. The big plus is that instead of sending payments back and forth between the private sector and the federal government, the private sector just keeps cash due to the federal government.

Besides administrative ease, the positive impact on cash flow is rapid.

However, the immediate positive impact is limited. In the case of payroll tax relief, it is spread out over the following 9 months, beyond what we all hope will be the end of the crisis period.

Also, the relief is in many respects haphazardly targeted. Individuals who are self-employed benefit greatly from postponement of an April 15 estimated payment. Employed individuals who withhold gain little. For individuals who overwithheld, there is no benefit at all.

Income tax postponement does not target businesses most in need. Businesses with curtailed sales revenue (like restaurants) will get the least benefit while high-flyers (like businesses providing online services) get the most.

In 1992 President George H.W. Bush reduced income tax withholding to provide a $25 billion temporary stimulus to the economy.

In the current situation, Treasury has sort of done the opposite by leaving withholding unchanged and postponing other income tax payments. Except for that episode, and much smaller-scale relief provided during national disasters, the federal government — to the best of our knowledge — has not modified the timing of tax payments to provide humanitarian relief and fiscal stimulus.

Nobody was thinking about tax postponement a month ago. But it is likely to be a big issue for years to come.

Full coverage and live updates on the Coronavirus

Martin Sullivan

Martin Sullivan

I stood up when they said sit down. Jersey. Harvard. Northwestern. Rutgers. U.S. Treasury. Joint Committee on Tax. Now the best job ever: Chief Economist at Tax Analysts.

Source: $800 Billion Of Tax Payments Are Automatically Postponed

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Cut Payroll Taxes? Stimulate Ventilator Companies

Empty airports and restaurants, disrupted supply chains and closed schools will have devastating effects on the economy. Is there a way to counteract the damage? Here are nine stimulus schemes: two in place, six being debated by politicians and one that is not widely discussed but probably should be.

Cut interest rates. The Federal Reserve’s recent half-point reduction in the already low short-term interest rate hasn’t had a visibly positive effect. The stock market is down 12% since the cut was announced. Evidently interest rate changes don’t get people onto cruise ships.

Lend money. The $8.3 billion antivirus legislation signed last week includes authorization for more Small Business Administration loan guarantees. A loan could tide over a retailer or restaurant that might otherwise go under. Unfortunately, SBA benefits are concentrated on the least capable entrepreneurs.

Cut payroll taxes. A reduction in Social Security tax puts money in your pocket—if you haven’t lost your job. It doesn’t open a coffee shop that closed its doors because the offices on that block have employees working from home.

The anti-recession efforts put in place after the 2008-2009 financial crisis included a two-point reduction in payroll taxes. The main effect was to increase the deficit. President Trump favors a full elimination, through the end of the year, of federal payroll taxes. This would have a more powerful effect on the deficit.

Give handouts to restaurants and hotels. That’s what the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce wants its city government to do. On Monday Trump mentioned the possibility of federal aid to hotels.

Send everybody money.This has been done before. President Gerald Ford tried to combat the 1973-1974 recession by having the U.S. Treasury send, in 1975, gifts of $100 to $200 to citizens who had paid taxes the year before. Barack Obama’s stimulus plan had similar gratuities, in the $300 to $600 range.

Give tax breaks to troubled sectors. A tax reduction for airlines and cruise operators is not going to prevent worried customers from cancelling trips. On the other hand, it might not cost much; the travel industry is probably going to wind up with loss carryforwards that will eliminate income taxes for years.

But when Congress expresses a willingness to help one industry, others line up. This is how we get 2,000-page tax bills.

Shoe retailers, for example, now say they are especially deserving of a break. Senators from North Dakota and Oklahoma say that the shale oil industry needs help.

The energy sector is indeed important to the functioning of the economy, and it employs a lot of people. But its plight is only partly attributable to the coronavirus. The immediate problem is that Saudi Arabia and Russia are engaged in a price war.

Pay for sick leave. Millions of workers don’t get paid time off for sickness. That leaves them with diminished motivation to stay home when they are coughing.

One solution, initially favored by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senator Charles Schumer, would be legislation mandating that employers pay for sick leave. Another would be to allow sick or quarantined workers to draw from unemployment compensation funds. Yet another is for the federal government to chip in for sick leave.

House Democrats are likely to take up sick leave and unemployment insurance today. The Republican-controlled Senate might have different ideas.

Buy food for kids. Children who rely on subsidized lunches are in trouble when their schools close. That problem could be addressed via changes to existing nutrition programs, now under debate in the House.

Not easily corrected: the permanent loss of productive capacity when the kids’ parents have to stay home.

There’s plenty of talk about those eight methods of stimulating. Now here’s one that doesn’t have much visibility yet.

Pay for ventilators. This would be a very roundabout way to help the economy. By allaying the fear of death, an ample supply of intensive-care equipment could restore people’s willingness to patronize restaurants and theaters.

This fear is not irrational, at least for those over 60. You can get a taste of it by perusing a November 2015 report from a task force reviewing ventilator supplies in New York. During a Spanish-flu-level pandemic, the authors posit, the state would see a peak demand of 18,619. There would be only 2,836 available (including 1,750 now in stockpiles). So doctors would have to come up with some algorithm, perhaps involving dice-throwing, to determine which patients would be permitted to live.

Hospitals, already under financial pressure, are disinclined to buy ventilators whose cost they might never recover. They would need a subsidy to add to their stockpile. They would need a subsidy to undertake, beginning sometime before the dice-throwing starts, emergency training of additional ventilator nurses. If the government wants ICU equipment right away, it would also need to pay manufacturers for incremental production capacity that may become useless six months from now.

A worthwhile investment? Probably more worthwhile than assistance to oil drillers.

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William Baldwin

William Baldwin

I aim to help you save on taxes and money management costs. I graduated from Harvard in 1973, have been a journalist for 45 years, and was editor of Forbes magazine from 1999 to 2010. Tax law is a frequent subject in my articles. I have been an Enrolled Agent since 1979. Email me at williambaldwinfinance — at — gmail — dot — com.

Source: Cut Payroll Taxes? No, Trump Should Stimulate Ventilator Companies

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After the stock market plummeted Monday, President Trump proposed a payroll tax cut through the end of the year and expanding paid leave for workers. » Subscribe to NBC News: http://nbcnews.to/SubscribeToNBC » Watch more NBC video: http://bit.ly/MoreNBCNews NBC News Digital is a collection of innovative and powerful news brands that deliver compelling, diverse and engaging news stories. NBC News Digital features NBCNews.com, MSNBC.com, TODAY.com, Nightly News, Meet the Press, Dateline, and the existing apps and digital extensions of these respective properties. We deliver the best in breaking news, live video coverage, original journalism and segments from your favorite NBC News Shows. Connect with NBC News Online! NBC News App: https://smart.link/5d0cd9df61b80 Breaking News Alerts: https://link.nbcnews.com/join/5cj/bre… Visit NBCNews.Com: http://nbcnews.to/ReadNBC Find NBC News on Facebook: http://nbcnews.to/LikeNBC Follow NBC News on Twitter: http://nbcnews.to/FollowNBC Follow NBC News on Instagram: http://nbcnews.to/InstaNBC Trump Wants Payroll Tax Cut, Other Measures To Offset Coronavirus Economic Damage | NBC Nightly News
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