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The question of whether a worker is an independent contractor or employee for federal income and employment tax purposes is a complex one. It is intensely factual, and the stakes can be very high. If a worker is an employee, the company must withhold federal income and payroll taxes, pay the employer's share of FICA taxes on the wages plus FUTA tax, and often provide the worker with fringe benefits it makes available to other employees. There may be state tax obligations as well. These obligations do not apply for a worker who is an independent contractor. The business sends the independent contractor a Form 1099-MISC for the year showing the amount paid to the contractor (if the amount is $600 or more), and that is it. Who is an “employee?” There is no uniform definition of the term.

Employers can qualify for a tax credit known as the work opportunity tax credit that is worth as much as $2,400 for each eligible employee ($4,800, $5,600 and $9,600 for certain veterans and $9,000 for "long-term family assistance recipients"). The credit is generally limited to eligible employees who began work for the employer before Jan. 1, 2020. The credit, calculated as described below, is available on an elective basis for employers hiring individuals from one or more of nine targeted groups.

Did you know that you can deduct "commuting" expenses between your home and temporary job locations? Daily transportation costs between your home and a regular work location are nondeductible commuting expenses. However, you may be able to deduct costs of going to and from your home and a temporary (not regular) job location.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) places new limits on individuals’ itemized deductions of non-business taxes. For tax years 2018 through 2025, the TCJA limits the aggregate deduction for state and local real property taxes; state and local personal property taxes, state and local, and foreign income, war profits, and excess profits taxes; and general sales taxes (if elected) for any tax year to $10,000 ($5,000 for married filing separately).

Under the pre-Act rules, you could deduct interest on up to a total of $1 million of mortgage debt used to acquire your principal residence and a second home, i.e., acquisition debt. For a married taxpayer filing separately, the limit was $500,000. You could also deduct interest on home equity debt, i.e., other debt secured by the qualifying homes. Qualifying home equity debt was limited to the lesser of $100,000 ($50,000 for a married taxpayer filing separately), or the taxpayer's equity in the home or homes (the excess of the value of the home over the acquisition debt). The funds obtained via a home equity loan did not have to be used to acquire or improve the homes. So you could use home equity debt to pay for education, travel, health care, etc.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the Act) has made changes to the tax treatment of alimony that you will be interested in. These changes take effect for divorce agreements and legal separation agreements executed after 2018. Current rules. Under the current rules, an individual who pays alimony or separate maintenance may deduct an amount equal to the alimony or separate maintenance payments paid during the year as an "above-the-line" deduction. (An "above-the-line" deduction, i.e., a deduction that a taxpayer need not itemize deductions to claim, is more valuable for the taxpayer than an itemized deduction.) And, under current rules, alimony and separate maintenance payments are taxable to the recipient spouse (includible in that spouse's gross income).

2017 Tax Reform: Last-minute Year-end Moves in Light of Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Congress is enacting the biggest tax reform law in thirty years, one that will make fundamental changes in the way you, your family, and your business calculate your federal income tax bill and the amount of federal tax you will pay. Since most of the changes will go into effect next year, there is still a narrow window of time before year-end to soften or avoid the impact of crackdowns and to best position yourself for the tax breaks that may be heading your way. Here is a quick rundown of last-minute moves you should think about making. Lower tax rates coming. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will reduce tax rates for many taxpayers, effective for the 2018 tax year. Additionally, many businesses, including those operated as pass-throughs such as partnerships, may see their tax bills cut. The general plan of action to take advantage of lower tax rates next year is to defer income into next year. Some possibilities follow:

Nineteen local businesses and organizations have stepped up to sponsor rooms, from Big Horn Dental and Casey Peterson, Ltd. to Norco and Gillette Community Theatre. Old classrooms have been transformed into a library, a computer lab, a game room, and a movie theater, to name a few.

GSA Releases Domestic Per Diem Rates for Fiscal Year 2018