Some Large Employers Reject Trump’s Payroll-Tax Deferral Plan – Richard Rubin, WSJ($). “Some of the nation’s largest employers—including CVS Health Corp., Wells Fargo & Co. and the U.S. Postal Service—say they won’t implement President Trump’s payroll-tax deferral plan, opting to leave employee paychecks alone this fall.”
“For now, the largest group of affected workers is the one controlled by Mr. Trump—federal executive-branch employees and military-service members who will see their paychecks grow this month and then shrink in January.”
House Ditches Payroll Tax Deferral for Staff; Senate Undecided - Jonathan Curry, Tax Notes ($). “Implementing Trump’s temporary deferral of the 6.2 percent employee share of payroll taxes “would not be in the best interests of the House or our employees,” House Chief Administrative Officer Philip G. Kiko said in a September 11 memo, noting that the taxes would still have to be collected next year”
Brady Rolls Out Payroll Tax Forgiveness Bill – Jad Chamseddine, Tax Notes ($). “House Ways and Means Committee ranking member Kevin Brady, R-Texas, announced legislation September 11 that would forgive deferred payroll taxes for workers. “I call on Congress, including Democrats, who forgave these payroll taxes twice for President Obama, to act now to help our essential workers keep more of what they work so hard to earn,” Brady said in a statement.”
Implementing the payroll tax deferral, part 2 – Podcast, Journal of Accountancy. “This podcast episode follows up one posted on Aug. 20 about President Donald Trump's memorandum directing Treasury to defer the withholding, deposit, and payment of workers' 6.2% Social Security or Railroad Retirement tax for the last four months of 2020. Since then, Treasury and the IRS have issued much-anticipated guidance on just how the deferral applies and how the taxes are likely to have to be repaid.”
What Do People Think About Taxes? They Are Partisan, Dazed, And Confused - Howard Gleckman, TaxVox. “The newly-published results of an extensive survey of public views on taxes find deep partisan divisions and a widespread lack of understanding about federal income and estate taxes.”
“The study, by Harvard University economist Stefanie Stantcheva, was published in August by the National Bureau of Economic Research. It found fairness and distributional effects of tax policy far outweighed efficiency in the minds of most respondents. While the concept of fairness was critically important to people’s views of taxes, perceptions of what fairness means varied widely—and seemed to correlate with their political affiliation. For another perspective on tax fairness, take a look at this report by my TPC colleague Vanessa Williamson.”
Biden Vows Corporate Tax Increases on ‘Day 1’ of Presidency – Alexis Gravely, Tax Notes ($). “I’d make the changes on the corporate taxes on day 1,” and not wait for employment to rebound, Biden told CNN’s Jake Tapper September 10. “It could raise $1.3 trillion if they’d just start paying at 28 percent instead of 21 percent.”
IRS Releases New Per Diem Rates For Taxpayers Who Travel For Business – Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes. “The new per diem numbers are now out - a little earlier than normal. It’s important to note that they are not effective until October 1, 2020. These numbers are to be used for per diem allowances paid to any employee on or after October 1, 2020, for travel away from home.”
“For purposes of the high-low substantiation method, the per diem rates are $292 for travel to any high-cost locality and $198 for travel to any other locality within the continental United States. The meals & incidental expenses only per diem for travel to those destinations remain $71 for travel to a high-cost locality and $60 for travel to any other locality within the continental United States.”
The entire list can be found here.
Third estimated tax payment due Sept. 15 – Kay Bell, Don’t Mess With Taxes. “If you get money that's not subject to income tax withholding, then this weekend's Saturday Shout Out posts are for you. Tuesday, Sept. 15 is the due date for the third quarter payment of estimated taxes.”
Ottawa Tourism will pay Canadian visitors $100 just to visit Ottawa – Ottawa Matters. “To encourage visitation to Ottawa from nearby cities like Montreal and Toronto, Ottawa Tourism giving the money away to encourage room bookings and spending in Ottawa following months of lost revenue for local businesses.”
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