Federal Government Looking for Ways to Get to Retirement Funds

Wooden,Figurine,And,Many,Piggy,Banks.,Concept,Of,Choosing,Savings

Just when you thought your retirement account was safe from the federal government, think again. That’s’ because according to the Government Accountability Office, there are around 9,000 U.S. taxpayers who have a minimum of $5 million in an individual retirement account.

Now some lawmakers are taking a closer look at these accounts because as Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden of Oregon puts it: “The IRA was never intended to be a tax shelter for millionaires.” According to the GAO report, these accounts are only possible for someone who has access to investments that are not available to most people or who has an aggressive investment strategy.

Meantime, there were an estimated 1,100 taxpayers that had more than $10 million in their IRAs as of 2001, according to the GAO report. Of those, 314 people had more than $25 million. On the other hand, that means that close to 99 percent of all people who have IRAs have less than $1 million in their accounts.

So what, if anything, is the government trying to do about these types of accounts? For starters, last year, President Obama introduced a proposal that would put limits on these kinds of accounts. Under his proposal no one would be able to add tax-favored contributions after their total account balances accumulated about 3.2 million. However, so far, the president’s proposal has not moved forward in Congress. It remains to be seen if other lawmakers will push harder for changes.

Posted in ,

International Tax Treaties

International Tax Treaties Guidance: Commencement of Application of the New Tax Convention between the United States and Japan Tax Treaty with Italy – Technical Explanation The complete texts of the following income tax treaties and corresponding technical explanations are available in Adobe PDF format. Please read the entire document (Treaty as well as any subsequent…

Player Salaries Could Be Huge Tax Break for New NBA Owner

Player Salaries Could Be Huge Tax Break for New NBA Owner

Player Salaries Could Be Huge Tax Break for New NBA Owner The ultra-wealthy have a lot of options when it comes to spending their money. Lavish houses, huge properties, remote islands, expensive yachts and exotic cars are just a few of their choices. Of course, like most anyone, the extremely wealthy are always looking to…

income tax

Tax Planning and Income Tax Return Preparation Services

Tax Planning and Income Tax Return Preparation Services Greenstein Rogoff Olsen & Co. is a full service provider of tax services and offers solutions to clients in the Corporate, Estate and Trust, Individual, Limited Liability Company, Not for Profit, Tax Exempt, Partnership, and S Corporation income tax areas. The primary objective of our tax services…

CEO leadership; §1031 EXCHANGES COMBINED WITH SELLER CARRYBACK NOTES

§1031 Exchanges Combined with Seller Carryback Notes

§1031 Exchanges Combined with Seller Carryback Notes By Steve Chacon Occasionally sellers are approached with the request they carry back an installment note to finance the purchase. Not a bad idea from a “big picture” perspective, as seller financing has been effective in environments where credit is a concern and interest rates are rising. But…