The following is select recent federal and Kentucky developments that you may find interesting.
When you think about technology, what’s hotter than AI? Can AI be used to help provide tax advice? Given the subject matter, why not ask Google’s Gemini, available at gemini.google.com, and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, available at ChatGPT.com? Let’s start with the basics.
Several changes to Kentucky’s tax code would enhance Kentucky taxpayers’ rights and increase fairness to Kentucky taxpayers. What is fairness anyway? Fairness is described as “lack of favoritism toward one side or another” by Merriam-Webster Dictionary, “evenhandedness” by Dictionary.com, and “the quality of being reasonable, right, and just” by Collins Dictionary. Following are some such enhancements, all of which are supported and suggested by the Kentucky Society of CPAs.
The KyCPA publishes an annual outline of legislative priorities. For 2024, the issues are: Guiding principles of sound tax policy Accounting pipeline Tax simplification Some federal priorities, including: Fiscal state of the nation Federatl tax extension "safe harbor" Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting
The federal income tax has changed radically since its inception in 1861 during the Civil War. The tax rate was a flat 3 percent on income over $800, later repealed in 1872; then, the 16th Amendment took effect on February 25, 1913, which established Congress’ right to impose a federal income tax, which is still in effect today. Ironically, the Titanic sank not even a year prior, on April 15, 1912. Even though the first tax return under the 16th Amendment was due March 1, I have always believed that the Titanic sinking on the ultimate IRS deadline may have foreshadowed how many taxpayers feel about this recognizable date each year. Looking back over the last hundred years of the Accounting Profession in Kentucky, we want to highlight a few interesting facts in federal tax history, starting with the 1924–1949 era, compared to where we are now.
So, your company or client got audited by the Kentucky Department of Revenue (DOR), and it will not be a no-change audit. Instead, the DOR has informed the taxpayer that they will receive an assessment. What do you do?
There were many big state tax issues for 2023. This article looks at the following: Alternative apportinment PTET entities Remote workers PL 86-272 Unequal and non-uniform property tax assessments
Tax simplification would make life easier for some, but history paints an unlikely outlook for this sentiment. Temporary tax law changes passed at the end of 2017 as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) are no exception. Several temporary tax laws will expire on December 31, 2025, including all the individual changes and the estate tax exemption. But with an election year next year in 2024, their fate is anyone’s guess. We cannot predict what will happen with certainty, but a few bills out in the legislature that may provide hints about what Congress is focusing on in the near term.
