Small businesses received some welcomed news in October with passage of the Protecting Affordable Coverage for Employees (PACE) Act. The new law revises the definition of small employer for purposes of market reforms under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The PACE Act is intended to help protect small businesses from potential health care premium increases. At the same time, many small businesses wait for expected relief from potential penalties for stand-alone health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) deemed not to comply with the ACA.

After acknowledging earlier this year that hackers breached one of its popular online apps, the IRS has promised more identity theft protections in the 2016 filing season. The IRS, along with partners in the tax preparation community, has identified and tested more than 20 new data elements on returns to help detect and prevent identity-theft related filings. The agency is also working to prevent criminals from accessing tax-time financial products.

As the calendar approaches the end of 2015, it is helpful to think about ways to shift income and deductions into the following year. For example, spikes in income from selling investments or other property may push a taxpayer into a higher income tax bracket for 2015, including a top bracket of 39.6 percent for ordinary income and short-term capital gains, and a top bracket of 20 percent for dividends and long-term capital gains. Adjusted gross incomes that exceed the threshold for the net investment income (NII) tax can also trigger increased tax liability. Accordingly, traditional year-end techniques to defer income or to accelerate deductions can be useful.

For a business to start writing off the cost of depreciable equipment and property, it is necessary that the equipment be placed in service. To write off costs in 2015, the equipment must be placed in service by December 31, 2015. The "placed-in-service" requirement applies, for example, for taking depreciation, especially first-year bonus depreciation, under Code Sec. 168, expensing of the cost of property under Code Sec. 179, and other write-offs such as the investment tax credit under Code Sec. 46.

As an individual or business, it is your responsibility to be aware of and to meet your tax filing/reporting deadlines. This calendar summarizes important tax reporting and filing data for individuals, businesses and other taxpayers for the month of August 2015.

Preliminary information from the 2015 filing season shows a mixed bag of success and failures for the IRS. The IRS successfully processed returns and issued refunds, taking into account new requirements under the Affordable Care Act. At the same time, taxpayers experienced significant difficulties in contacting the IRS and tax-related identity theft increased compared to last year.

As an individual or business, it is your responsibility to be aware of and to meet your tax filing/reporting deadlines. This calendar summarizes important federal tax reporting and filing data for individuals, businesses and other taxpayers for the month of June 2015.

Tax reform percolates in Washington as the new Congress and the White House continue discussions over the scope and reach of tax legislation this year. Administration officials, lawmakers and Congressional staffers have signaled that off-the-record discussions have dealt with some hefty tax reform proposals but, so far, have released few details of these discussions. At the same time, Senate tax writers have opened up the tax reform process to public input.

The IRS requires that taxpayers substantiate their donations to charity. Whatever the donation is, whether money or a household item or clothing, the substantiation rules must be followed. The rules are complex and frequently tripped up taxpayers who had good intentions but failed to satisfy the IRS's requirements.

Between now and late June, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on an important provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: the Code Sec. 36B premium assistance tax credit. The Supreme Court has heard oral arguments in King v. Burwell, 2014-2 ustc 50,367, where the plaintiffs argue that the IRS erred in extending the credit to enrollees in federally facilitated Health Insurance Marketplaces (also known as Exchanges).