Don't Mess With Taxes

12/07/2025

Texans are still reeling from the deadly and catastrophic flooding around the July 4 holiday. While many are still seeking answers about pre- and post-disaster governmental actions, both local and federal, there’s at least a bit of tax certainty. The IRS has granted tax relief to those in the Lone Star State disaster areas, including a new Feb. 2, 2026, filing deadline.

Rescue and recovery efforts continue in the Kerrville, Texas, area, which was the hardest hit when the Guadalupe River flooded as the July 4 holiday period was beginning. (Photo by World Central Kitchen, whose volunteers were among the earliest responders, CC BY 4.0) Thousands of Texans are now deal...

11/07/2025

Sharing interests usually allows couples to spend more time together. But a septuagenarian pair that shared a criminal insurance and tax scheme will be spending their golden years apart, in separate federal prisons.

Sharing interests usually allows couples to spend more time together. But a septuagenarian pair that shared a criminal insurance and tax scheme will be spending their golden years apart, in separate federal prisons. If you’re like me, when you hear about fraud and older people, you wonder how much...

10/07/2025

Summer is going strong, but before you know it, school will be back in session. That’s why several states hold annual sales-tax holidays, tying the no-tax events to back-to-school needs. There are 17 state sales tax holidays scheduled this summer, with four July events (starting this weekend!), and the remainder in August.
https://www.dontmesswithtaxes.com/2025/07/4-back-to-school-sales-tax-holidays-in-july-kick-off-2025s-no-tax-summer-events-in-17-states.html

10/07/2025

A lot of tax law is changed by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, but some provisions that affect most filers remain pretty much the same. The seven tax rates and the larger standard deduction amounts, which would have expired on Dec. 31 if Congress hadn’t acted, are now permanent. Plus, the new law bumps up the standard amounts for 2025, and adds some inflation protections for filers in the lower tax brackets.

The latest comprehensive tax law also makes the seven ordinary income tax rates created by the 2017 tax reform law permanent. Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich The individual tax breaks created by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) were a prime focus of the massive tax and spending measure signed duri...

09/07/2025

Most of us pay sales tax on our purchases. This tax year, the One Big Beautiful Bill's increase to the state and local taxes (SALT) deduction cap will mean some of us will be deducting them on our federal tax returns. Just where does your state’s sales tax rate stand?

Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya It’s been a tax crazy July and we’re just a week into the month. There’s the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) Act that was signed into law on July 4. We’re all still sorting through its many provisions to see just how it might help us on our 2025 taxes and beyond. Mos...

08/07/2025

The one big bill’s tax law changes could be a big tax headache for filers. As you peruse the provisions, you might want to get some professional help in determining just what they mean and how they might affect your tax filings. These tips can help you pick the perfect tax pro for your financial and tax circumstances.

Any time Congress messes around with the tax code, there’s a price to be paid. It could be literal dollars if the Internal Revenue Code changes don’t favor your tax situation. But even when the tax revisions benefit you, you need to know exactly how they apply, and then properly file to claim th...

07/07/2025

Some Social Security benefits recipients will still owe tax on those federal retirement payments. But a new senior bonus tax deduction in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act could provide older taxpayers with some relief at return filing time. The tax break also benefits lawmakers, who rewarded a loyal, and growing, bloc of aging Americans.

Photo by olia danilevich The senior bonus is one of the new tax breaks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that became law on July 4. It’s not tax-free Social Security benefits that Donald J. Trump promised. But the $6,000 maximum tax break, or $12,000 for married jointly filing couples where each s...

05/07/2025

It’s official. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act is law, signed at a White House July 4th ceremony. Taxes are a major part of the nearly 1,000-page measure. Here’s a collection of articles on what the new law could mean for your tax bill and planning.

Donald J. Trump signs the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, with its many tax provisions, into law during a July 4th ceremony at the White House. (Credit: White House Facebook photo) America’s birthday party is over, but we taxpayers are still unwrapping the tax law gift that the Republican-controlled C...

04/07/2025

Almost all fireworks sold — or used in displays on holidays like the United States’ Independence Day — come from China. As America celebrates today, there are concerns by the fireworks industry that tariffs could raise the price of the pyrotechnic exhibitions planned for the country’s 250th birthday on July 4, 2026.

Photo by Anna-Louise Happy 249th Birthday, America! As we celebrate tonight — or before sunset today, or for the last week as some of my neighbors have — we can thank a Founding Father for the pyrotechnic tradition. On July 3, 1776, a day after the Continental Congress in Philadelphia voted for ...

03/07/2025

It’s a busy Fourth of July holiday, especially if you’re hitting the nation’s highways. Of the 72.2 million people projected by AAA to travel this long Independence Day break, almost 62 million are expected to drive. And in 12 states, motorists will pay higher gasoline excise taxes when they refill their vehicles.

If you’re reading this post, it probably means that you haven’t started your long July 4th holiday yet. Sorry. I share your delayed break frustration. Millions of Americans, however, are on the road or have already arrived at their Independence Day destination. Increased July 4 travel: AAA expec...

03/07/2025

The House and Senate have different ideas on how to deal with various tax provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Here’s a look at how they differ when it comes to individual tax benefits, ranging from new ones to some popular ones already in the Internal Revenue Code.

Will U.S. Representatives be able to celebrate July 4th at home? It depends on how quickly they can resolve the differences between the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) tax and budget bill they sent to the Senate and the version the upper chamber sent back to the House. There’s debate on how beautifu...

02/07/2025

The Senate approved the Trump administration's massive tax and domestic agenda bill, sending it back to the House for final approval so it can go to the White House to be signed into law. To help get to that end point, Senators reversed their state and local taxes (SALT) stand, and agreed to the House's increased cap of $40,000. Will it be enough?

The one big tax and domestic policy bill continues its legislative ping pong, with the latest volley being from the Senate. That chamber's version has gone back to the House for approval. Or not. (Image by djimenezhdez from Pixabay) The Senate approved the Trump administration's massive tax and dome...