And folks wonder why the economy remains stalled ?  We have an anti-business   
   president, wild-eyed wasteful spending and people staring down at 2011 taxes...   
      
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   http://www.atr.org/six-months-untilbr-largest-tax-hikes-a5171#   
      
      
   Six Months to Go Until   
   The Largest Tax Hikes in History   
   From Ryan Ellis on Thursday, July 1, 2010 4:15 PM   
      
   In just six months, the largest tax hikes in the history of America will take   
   effect.  They will hit families and small businesses in three great waves on   
   January 1, 2011:   
      
   First Wave: Expiration of 2001 and 2003 Tax Relief   
      
   In 2001 and 2003, the GOP Congress enacted several tax cuts for investors,   
   small business owners, and families.  These will all expire on January 1, 2011:   
      
   Personal income tax rates will rise.  The top income tax rate will rise from 35   
   to 39.6 percent (this is also the rate at which two-thirds of small business   
   profits are taxed).  The lowest rate will rise from 10 to 15 percent.  All the   
   rates in between will also rise.  Itemized deductions and personal exemptions   
   will again phase out, which has the same mathematical effect as higher marginal   
   tax rates.  The full list of marginal rate hikes is below:   
      
   - The 10% bracket rises to an expanded 15%   
   - The 25% bracket rises to 28%   
   - The 28% bracket rises to 31%   
   - The 33% bracket rises to 36%   
   - The 35% bracket rises to 39.6%   
      
   Higher taxes on marriage and family.  The marriage penalty (narrower tax   
   brackets for married couples) will return from the first dollar of income.  The   
   child tax credit will be cut in half from $1000 to $500 per child.  The   
   standard deduction will no longer be doubled for married couples relative to   
   the single level.  The dependent care and adoption tax credits will be cut.   
      
   The return of the Death Tax.  This year, there is no death tax.  For those   
   dying on or after January 1 2011, there is a 55 percent top death tax rate on   
   estates over $1 million.  A person leaving behind two homes and a retirement   
   account could easily pass along a death tax bill to their loved ones.   
      
   Higher tax rates on savers and investors.  The capital gains tax will rise from   
   15 percent this year to 20 percent in 2011.  The dividends tax will rise from   
   15 percent this year to 39.6 percent in 2011.  These rates will rise another   
   3.8 percent in 2013.   
      
   Second Wave: Obamacare   
      
   There are over twenty new or higher taxes in Obamacare.  Several will first go   
   into effect on January 1, 2011.  They include:   
      
   The Medicine Cabinet Tax  Thanks to Obamacare, Americans will no longer be able   
   to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health   
   reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription,   
   over-the-counter medicines (except insulin).   
      
   The Special Needs Kids Tax  This provision of Obamacare imposes a cap on   
   flexible spending accounts (FSAs) of $2500 (Currently, there is no federal   
   government limit).  There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will   
   be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children.  There   
   are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States, and   
   many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education.  Tuition rates at one   
   leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington, D.C.   
   (National Child Research Center) can easily exceed $14,000 per year.  Under tax   
   rules, FSA dollars can be used to pay for this type of special needs education.   
      
      
   The HSA Withdrawal Tax Hike.  This provision of Obamacare increases the   
   additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20   
   percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged   
   accounts, which remain at 10 percent.   
      
   Third Wave: The Alternative Minimum Tax and Employer Tax Hikes   
      
   When Americans prepare to file their tax returns in January of 2011, theyll be   
   in for a nasty surprisethe AMT wont be held harmless, and many tax relief   
   provisions will have expired.  The major items include:   
      
   The AMT will ensnare over 28 million families, up from 4 million last year.   
   According to the left-leaning Tax Policy Center, Congress failure to index the   
   AMT will lead to an explosion of AMT taxpaying familiesrising from 4 million   
   last year to 28.5 million.  These families will have to calculate their tax   
   burdens twice, and pay taxes at the higher level.  The AMT was created in 1969   
   to ensnare a handful of taxpayers.   
      
   Small business expensing will be slashed and 50% expensing will disappear.   
   Small businesses can normally expense (rather than slowly-deduct, or   
   depreciate) equipment purchases up to $250,000.  This will be cut all the way   
   down to $25,000.  Larger businesses can expense half of their purchases of   
   equipment.  In January of 2011, all of it will have to be depreciated.   
      
   Taxes will be raised on all types of businesses.  There are literally scores of   
   tax hikes on business that will take place.  The biggest is the loss of the   
   research and experimentation tax credit, but there are many, many others.   
   Combining high marginal tax rates with the loss of this tax relief will cost   
   jobs.   
      
   Tax Benefits for Education and Teaching Reduced.  The deduction for tuition and   
   fees will not be available.  Tax credits for education will be limited.   
   Teachers will no longer be able to deduct classroom expenses.  Coverdell   
   Education Savings Accounts will be cut.  Employer-provided educational   
   assistance is curtailed.  The student loan interest deduction will be   
   disallowed for hundreds of thousands of families.   
      
   Charitable Contributions from IRAs no longer allowed.  Under current law, a   
   retired person with an IRA can contribute up to $100,000 per year directly to a   
   charity from their IRA.  This contribution also counts toward an annual   
   required minimum distribution.  This ability will no longer be there.   
      
   PDF Version   
      
      
      
   Read more:   
   http://www.atr.org/six-months-untilbr-largest-tax-hikes-a5171##ixzz0sVn3DCMe   
      
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