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William Byrnes (Texas A&M) tax & compliance articles

Archive for May, 2020

COVID Weekly by William Byrnes and Robert Bloink (Friday May 29, 2020)

Posted by William Byrnes on May 28, 2020


Texas A&M University School of Law has launched its online wealth management, risk management, and international tax risk management graduate curricula for industry professionals.

Apply now for fall courses that begin in August: Enterprise Risk Analytics; Information Security Risk Management; Terrorism Risk Management; International Tax Risk Management, Data, and Analytics II; International Tax & Tax Treaties I and II; Securities Regulation; Investment & Portfolio Management; Financial Innovation (and Risk)

Texas A&M University is a public university and is ranked 1st among public universities for its superior education at an affordable cost (Fiske, 2018) and ranked 1st of Texas public universities for best value (Money, 2018).

 

 

 

 Prof. William H. Byrnes
        Robert Bloink, J.D., LL.M.
This week we have more information about the CARES Act, including details on qualified plan loans and health expenses paid by employers for furloughed workers. We also have the annual updates to the HSA numbers that will be in effect for 2021. How was your Memorial Day?
Calculating CARES Act Qualified Plan Loans & The One-Year Look-back Rule

The CARES Act allows plan sponsors to double the qualified plan loan limit for qualified individuals. Plan loans made between March 27, 2020 and September 23, 2020 are limited to the lesser of (1) $100,000 or (2) 100% of the participant’s vested account balance. Despite this, even if the individual is qualified, plan sponsors must remain aware of the one-year look-back rule For more information on the qualified plan loan rules, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More
2021 HSA Inflation-Adjustments

The IRS has released Revenue Procedure 2020-32 with the 2021 inflation adjusted amounts for taxpayers who contribute to health savings accounts (HSAs). For more information on the contribution limits that apply to HSAs, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More
Treasury Allows Tax Credit for Health Expenses of Furloughed Workers

Clearing up confusion (and revising initial guidance), the Treasury has announced that if an employer continues to pay an employee’s health insurance costs during a furlough period, the employer is entitled to claim a tax credit with respect to those expenses. This is the case even if the employer is not currently paying the employee’s wages. For more information on the employee retention tax credit, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More

2020’s Tax Facts Offers a Complete Web, App-Based, and Print Experience

Reducing complicated tax questions to understandable answers that can be immediately put into real-life practice, Tax Facts works when and where you need it….on your desktop, at home on your laptop, and on the go through your tablet or smartphone.  Questions? Contact customer service: TaxFactsHelp@alm.com| 800-543-087
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TaxFacts Covid-19 Weekly by William Byrnes and Robert Bloink (Friday May 22, 2020)

Posted by William Byrnes on May 22, 2020


Texas A&M University School of Law has launched its online wealth management, risk management, and international tax risk management graduate curricula for industry professionals. Apply now for fall courses that begin in August: Enterprise Risk Analytics; Information Security Risk Management; Terrorism Risk Management; International Tax Risk Management, Data, and Analytics II; International Tax & Tax Treaties I and II; Securities Regulation; Investment & Portfolio Management; Financial Innovation (and Risk) Texas A&M University is a public university and is ranked 1st among public universities for its superior education at an affordable cost (Fiske, 2018) and ranked 1st of Texas public universities for best value (Money, 2018).

 

 Prof. William H. Byrnes
        Robert Bloink, J.D., LL.M.
This week brings two updates that may affect employee benefits. The first is that mid-year changes to cafeteria plan elections are permissible. This includes FSA and dependent care accounts, which may be important as both healthcare and childcare expenditures for many people are wildly different than what they had anticipated at the end of 2019. The IRS also made some temporary FSA changes permanent. Finally in some non-COVID updates (yes there is some!), the IRS released proposed rules that change how some administrative expenses incurred by trusts and estates can be deducted.
IRS Provides Relief for Cafeteria Plan Participants in Response to COVID-19

Under normal circumstances, cafeteria plans are not permitted to allow participants to make mid-year election changes except in limited situations. Notice 2020-29 permits employees to allow certain mid-year elections made during calendar year 2020 that would otherwise be impermissible, including changes to salary reduction contribution elections. For more information on the mid-year election rules for cafeteria plans, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More
IRS Makes Temporary & Permanent Changes to the FSA Grace Period Rules

IRS Notice 2020-33 and Notice 2020-29, released concurrently, provides relief with respect to unused funds in a flexible spending account. Under Notice 2020-29, if an employee has unused amounts remaining in a health FSA or a dependent care assistance program at the end of a grace period (or plan year) ending in 2020, a cafeteria plan may permit employees to apply those unused amounts to pay or reimburse medical care expenses or dependent care expenses incurred through December 31, 2020. Notice 2020-33 makes a change to the carryover rules that apply to health FSAs, so that the amount that can be carried over to the following year will equal 20 percent of the maximum inflation-indexed salary reduction amount under Section 125 (increasing the carryover amount from $500 to $550 for 2020). For more information on the rules governing health FSAs, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More
IRS Proposes Rules Allowing Deduction of Administrative Fees for Trusts & Estates

The IRS has released proposed regulations that would permit the deduction for certain administrative fees incurred by trusts and estates (including the S portion of an ESBT). The guidance addresses the treatment of these expenses in light of the suspension of all miscellaneous itemized deductions for 2018-2025 under the 2017 tax reform legislation. For more information on the tax treatment of trusts and estates, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More

2020’s Tax Facts Offers a Complete Web, App-Based, and Print Experience

Reducing complicated tax questions to understandable answers that can be immediately put into real-life practice, Tax Facts works when and where you need it….on your desktop, at home on your laptop, and on the go through your tablet or smartphone.  Questions? Contact customer service: TaxFactsHelp@alm.com| 800-543-0874

Posted in Retirement Planning, Tax Policy, Taxation, Wealth Management | Tagged: , , | Leave a Comment »

TaxFacts Covid-19 Intelligence Weekly by William Byrnes and Robert Bloink (May 18, 2020)

Posted by William Byrnes on May 18, 2020


Texas A&M University School of Law has launched its online wealth management, risk management, and international tax risk management graduate curricula for industry professionals. Apply now for Summer courses that begin May: Legal Risk Management; Intro to Risk Management; FATCA & CRS Risk Management; International Tax Risk Management, Data, and Analytics I  Texas A&M University is a public university and is ranked 1st among public universities for its superior education at an affordable cost (Fiske, 2018) and ranked 1st of Texas public universities for best value (Money, 2018).

 

 

 Prof. William H. Byrnes
        Robert Bloink, J.D., LL.M.

The devil is in the details, but where exactly? This week we are starting to see how the broad changes in the recent spate of COVID-19 legislation will be administered. We have new notices on loan forgiveness procedures (did you get your PPP loan yet?), COBRA and Medicare, and FFCRA paid leave issues.

The Finer Points of PPP Loan Forgiveness

Loan forgiveness offers powerful assistance to those small businesses who were actually able to receive Paycheck Protection Program loan funds. However, loan forgiveness is not without its costs. While amounts forgiven will not be included in income under the usual cancellation of indebtedness rules, business owners may not be entitled to their typical business deductions either. Notice 2020-32 clarifies that otherwise allowable deductions are disallowed if the payment of the expense (1) results in loan forgiveness under the PPP loan program and (2) the income associated with the loan forgiveness is excluded from income under CARES Act Section 1106(i). For more information on implications of loan forgiveness, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More

New Q&A on CARES Act Qualified Plan Loans & Distributions

The IRS released the first Q&A in what is likely to be a series of guidance on the CARES Act retirement-related provisions. One overarching issue is the IRS confirmation that plan sponsors can rely upon past guidance issued in response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the RMD waiver in 2009 for help implementing the CARES Act provisions. Under initial guidance, individuals are only eligible for COVID-19 related distributions or loans if they themselves are impacted (qualification cannot currently be based on a spouse or dependent’s job loss). The Q&A also clarifies that increased loan limits are currently available between March 27, 2020 and September 22, 2020. Further, the guidance confirms that the loan and distribution relief is optional for plan sponsors–and sponsors can elect to adopt one provision and not another (including the loan repayment option). For more information on the CARES Act loan provisions, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More

New COBRA Notice in Light of Growing Employment Litigation

The DOL released a revised COBRA general notice and election notice on May 1, 2020, in response to increasing furloughs and layoffs in the wake of COVID-19–and a growing risk of employment litigation. Employers are not required to post the new notices, but may wish to in light of the evolving situation. These new notices add information about how Medicare eligibility impacts COBRA eligibility (highlighting the fact that COBRA coverage is usually secondary to Medicare). Employers who use the model notices are deemed to comply with COBRA notice requirements. For more information on COBRA coverage election requirements and COVID-19, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More

Moving to Reopen, Employers Begin Evaluating FFCRA Leave Provisions

Now that many more employers are beginning to evaluate whether to reopen as governments relax restrictions, those who have been closed for upwards of two months will have to evaluate whether they must provide paid leave under the FFCRA as COVID-19 continues to spread. The FFCRA paid sick leave and expanded FMLA provisions only applied to employers who continued to operate in the wake of the pandemic–employees who were simply laid off or furloughed were required to seek unemployment benefits. Upon first glance, the new paid leave requirements under the FFCRA seem to provide 12 weeks of paid time off for most small business employees. However, the benefit triggers differ depending on whether the employee is claiming (1) 80 hours paid sick leave or (2) expanded relief under the FMLA. For more information on the benefit triggers, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More

2020’s Tax Facts Offers a Complete Web, App-Based, and Print Experience

Reducing complicated tax questions to understandable answers that can be immediately put into real-life practice, Tax Facts works when and where you need it….on your desktop, at home on your laptop, and on the go through your tablet or smartphone.  Questions? Contact customer service: TaxFactsHelp@alm.com| 800-543-0874

Posted in Retirement Planning, Tax Policy, Taxation | Tagged: , , | Leave a Comment »

Byrnes & Bloink’s Covid-19 TaxFacts Intelligence Weekly for May 7, 2020

Posted by William Byrnes on May 7, 2020


Texas A&M University School of Law has launched its online wealth management, risk management, and international tax risk management graduate curricula for industry professionals. Apply now for Summer courses that begin May: Legal Risk Management; Intro to Risk Management; FATCA & CRS Risk Management; International Tax Risk Management, Data, and Analytics I  Texas A&M University is a public university and is ranked 1st among public universities for its superior education at an affordable cost (Fiske, 2018) and ranked 1st of Texas public universities for best value (Money, 2018).

 

 

 Prof. William H. Byrnes
        Robert Bloink, J.D., LL.M.

Some interesting updates this week. We already knew that NOLs could be applied retroactively under the CARES Act, but now it seems that corporate AMT credits (remember those?) can be, as well.

Also, the last item on extending the COBRA election period might end up being a big deal. Importantly, the election period (the period that you have to decide whether to take the COBRA benefits) has been extended for an unknown amount of time. There has always been a risk of “moral hazard” with the election period since you can wait to see if you need the coverage before making the decision to commit to paying the premiums. However, that risk seemed low when the election period had a hard cut-off at sixty days. Now the election period is extended to sixty days after the end of the COVID-19 national emergency, which doesn’t seem to be likely to occur anytime soon. It will be interesting to see how group health carriers react to this change.

CARES Act Provides NOL Relief for Struggling Businesses

The CARES Act allows corporations to carry back net operating losses (NOLs) incurred in 2018, 2019, and 2020 for five years (excluding offset to untaxed foreign earnings transition tax). Post-tax reform, these NOLs could only be carried forward. For tax years beginning prior to January 1, 2021, businesses can offset 100% of taxable income with NOL carryovers and carrybacks (the 80% taxable income limitation was lifted). With respect to partnerships and pass-through entities, the CARES Act amended the effective date for the new excess business loss rules created by the 2017 tax reform legislation. The new rules will only apply beginning in 2021 (rather than 2018). Pass-through taxpayers who have filed a return reflecting excess business losses will presumably be entitled to refund by filing an amended return, absent guidance to the contrary. For more information, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More
CARES Act Permits Penalty-Free Payroll Tax Deferral for Employers

The CARES Act allows both employers and independent contractors to defer payment of employer payroll taxes without penalty. Importantly, employers with fewer than 500 employees are entitled to withhold payroll taxes as an advance repayment of the tax credit for paid sick leave and expanded FMLA leave under the FFCRA. Under the CARES Act payroll tax deferral, employers are permitted to defer the employer portion of the payroll tax on wages paid through December 31, 2020 for up to two years. Payroll taxes are generally due in two installments under CARES: 50% by December 31, 2021 and the remaining 50% by December 31, 2022. Economic hardship is presumed, meaning the employer does not have to produce documentation establishing that COVID-19 impacted the business. Payroll tax deferral options apparently apply to all employers, regardless of size. However, employers who have loans forgiven under the CARES Act Payroll Protection Loan program are not eligible for the deferral. For more information, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More
CARES Act Employee Retention Tax Credit

The CARES Act creates a new refundable tax credit designed to help employers who retain employees during the COVID-19 health crisis. The credit is taken against employment taxes and is equal to 50% of the first $10,000 of qualified wages paid to the employee. The credit is available for calendar quarters where either (1) operations were either fully or partially suspended because of a government-issued order relating to COVID-19 or (2) the business’ gross receipts declined by more than 50% when compared to the same calendar quarter in 2019. For more information, visit Tax Facts Online. Read More

2020’s Tax Facts Offers a Complete Web, App-Based, and Print Experience

Reducing complicated tax questions to understandable answers that can be immediately put into real-life practice, Tax Facts works when and where you need it….on your desktop, at home on your laptop, and on the go through your tablet or smartphone.  Questions? Contact customer service: TaxFactsHelp@alm.com| 800-543-0874

Posted in Retirement Planning, Tax Policy, Taxation | Tagged: , | Leave a Comment »

Covid-19 Stimulus: Are Tax Credits or SBA Loan Forgiveness Better for a Small Business After IRS Denies Tax Deductions If Loan Forgiven (Notice 2020-32)?

Posted by William Byrnes on May 3, 2020


 

Professor William Byrnes of Texas A&M’s School of Law discusses the IRS’ Notice 2020-32 (issued April 30, 2020) denying tax deductions for payroll and other operational expenses for small business owners that take advantage of the tax-free loan forgiveness program (PPP) of the SBA. William Byrnes then presents an example when a small business may be better off using the combined Employee Retention Tax Credit (CARES Act), the Families First Act Tax Credit, and the deferral of payment of payroll tax instead of the SBA loan forgiveness.

See my article below this post for additional analysis: The IRS Just Issued Notice Denying Deductions for PPP Loan Forgiveness and Its Dead Wrong

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