Taxes -- FederalSoup.com

Under the new tax law, does it make sense to pay off one’s mortgage?

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA) has changed the rules as to whether homeowners should pay off their existing home mortgage debt. This week’s column discusses these rule changes resulting from TCJA’s passage Among them are the doubling of the standard deduction and the limitation of the home equity loan and line of credit interest deduction. View More
TSP and roth IRA planning strategies following the 2017 Tax Act - Part II

The passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 has resulted in lower individual tax rates starting in 2018 and continuing through 2025. In the second of two columns discussing how the lower rates affect employees’ saving for retirement, this week’s column discusses why many employees should consider converting their traditional IRAs to Roth IRAs starting this year. View More
Tax proposal takes aim at catch-up TSP contributions

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) is planning to introduce a series of amendments to the tax reform legislation that would restrict federal employees from making extra contributions to their Thrift Savings Plan accounts from pretax earnings. View More

Does accepting a child care subsidy carry any tax or other implications?Apr 06, 2014

Child care subsidies are generally taxable as income to the recipient. However, if an agency implements the child care subsidy program as a dependent care assistance program as described in section 129 of the Internal Revenue Code, amounts of up to either $2,500 or $5,000 may be excluded from gross income. View More
Is a federal retirement annuity taxable for federal income tax purposes?Jul 25, 2017

There is a tax-free portion that represents a return of your contributions to the retirement plan. These contributions were previously taxed for federal and state income tax purposes and will not be taxed when received as part of your monthly annuity. View More
What is a “source tax?”Jul 25, 2017

Source taxes, now prohibited, were taxes imposed by certain states on retirement income of non-residents who had accumulated entitlement to benefits while a resident of that state. Retirement income is only state taxable, if at all, by the state in which the taxpayer resides. View More
Are Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance death benefits taxable?Jul 25, 2017
Is a federal retirement annuity taxable for state income tax purposes?Jul 25, 2017
Is an “alternative form of annuity” lump sum payment taxable?Jul 25, 2017