Voters in Multiple States Choose Higher Taxes for the Wealthy
Of course, the big news from the election earlier this month was that Donald Trump shocked the world and defeated Hillary Clinton in the race to become the 45th president of the United States. However, there were several other important national, as well as local, election races and issues that were decided on November 8th. Not the least of which were several state measures aimed at raising taxes on high net worth individuals.
To that end, voters in both California and Maine decided that the rich needed to pay more taxes. In Maine, the vote to raise the state’s top tax rate from 7.15 percent to 10.15 percent was extremely close, passing by a narrow 50.4 percent to 49.6 percent margin. That means Maine will have the second highest top tax rate in the country in 2017, surpassing Oregon, which was number two in 2016 at 9.9 percent.
In California, meanwhile, the vote wasn’t even close, with 62 percent voting to extend temporary tax hikes already in place. Proposition 55 extended the hikes originally implemented in 2012 with Proposition 30. That means top earners, those who make $1 million or more a year, will continue to pay a tax rate of 13.3 percent at least until 2030. California will continue to have the highest tax rate for top earners in 2017.
So, while all signs point to Donald Trump lowering the federal tax rates, if you live in California or Maine and you’re a top earner, you won’t see any relief in the coming years in your state taxes.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleaebeling/2016/11/10/voters-okay-state-income-tax-hikes-for-the-rich/#71480a7b16d0
Does Your Company Need a Fairness Opinion?
Does Your Company Need a Fairness Opinion? Although not required by statute or regulation, fairness opinions have become an important component of the board of directors and executives deliberation process as they seek to satisfy their fiduciary duties to shareholders and act with due care in an informed manner. Fairness opinions are prepared for and…
Tax Record Retention Guide
Storing tax records: How long is long enough? Tax Record Retention April 15 has come and gone and another year of tax forms and shoeboxes full of receipts is behind us. But what should be done with those documents after your check or refund request is in the mail? Federal law requires you to maintain…
3 Reasons Why Owning a Commercial Property May Make You More Money in Real Estate Investment
Making a Commercial Property Investment If you ever have been a landlord for residential property, I am sure that you get complaints from tenants about leaking roofs in the middle of the night. But what keeps most people back from investing in commercial real estate is the fear of the unknown since not many of…
Sec 1045: Small Business Stock Rollover of Gain
The Beauty of Section 1045 Enacted as part of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 (effective for sales after August 5, 1997), a taxpayer other than a corporation may elect to roll over capital gains from the sale of qualified small business stock held for more than six months if another small business stock is…