Federal Government Looking for Ways to Get to Retirement Funds

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.
Tax Relief Courtesy of Hurricane Harvey
While Hurricane Harvey continues to devastate the Gulf Coast, Texans can expect to receive a little extra relief this upcoming tax year from Uncle Sam. Taxpayers in the federally declared disaster area have the option of claiming disaster-related casualty losses for either the year that the event occurred or the year prior. This means that…
Trade Secrets and How to Protect Them
Trade Secrets and How to Protect Them A trade secret is a type of intellectual property distinguished from three others, namely copyrights, trademarks, and patents. Advantages of a Trade Secret No time limit like patents and copyrights No requirement for public disclosure No requirement to file with the government Trade secrets bring value to the…
You Must Give Up These 5 Things to Be Debt Free
You Must Give Up These 5 Things to Be Debt Free No matter who you are, almost everyone carries some debt. According to some recent statistics from ValuePenguin.com, the total U.S. consumer debt is $3.4 trillion. Additionally, nearly 40 percent of all American households have some level of credit card debt, while the average household…
Give These New Hobbies a Try in 2017
Give These New Hobbies a Try in 2017 Are you looking for something new to try this year? You better get going because the year is practically half over. If you’re tired of all the old, run-of-the-mill hobbies and you want a new adventure to pass some time, then there are several options you should…