The House Ways and Means Committee released draft tax reform
legislation on Thursday. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, H.R. 1, incorporates many
of the provisions listed in the Republicans’ September tax reform framework
while providing new details. Budget legislation passed in October would allow
for the tax reform bill to cut federal government revenue by up to $1.5
trillion over the next 10 years and still be enacted under the Senate’s budget
reconciliation rules, which would require only 51 votes in the Senate for
passage. The Joint Committee on Taxation issued an estimate of the revenue
effects of the bill on Thursday showing a net total revenue loss of $1.487
trillion over 10 years.
The IRS has provided real estate owners with a juicy tax
deduction. The de minimis safe harbor election is an annual tax return election
that permits a taxpayer to deduct, as ordinary and necessary business expenses,
purchases of items that would normally have to be capitalized. Yet this
advantageous election is often overlooked by taxpayers. This article will
discuss the de minimis safe harbor election and its requirements.
With Uber, Lyft, and many other companies that provide many
different services and products, the norm these days seems to be independent
contractors. The companies avoid the huge taxes, expenses, and liabilities of
having employees. The workers get the freedom to work on their own, managing
their own schedules. One of the great unanswered questions, of course, is how
much control is too much for independent contractors, without making them
employees. Many lawsuits brought by workers and by third parties are about this
very question. 
Republican lawmakers released a framework for tax reform on
Wednesday, announcing that their goals are to cut tax rates, simplify the
Internal Revenue Code, and provide a more competitive environment for business.
The framework generally reiterates proposals made by President Donald Trump in
April.
