January Tax Update Webinar and 2023 Summer National Seminars

Overview

Next month, on January 20, I will be doing a two-hour tax update webinar on key tax changes and updates for the 2023 filing season.  As I write this, the Congress is considering yet another massive spending bill that contains important tax provisions.  Indeed the Senate has passed the bill and sent it to the House.  It seems that long gone are the days where the Congress could pass legislation addressing specific tax issues and not have to include technical tax matters in a massive spending bill with all kinds of miscellaneous (i.e., garbage) provisions.  This makes the January 20 webinar important.  This will be (as of now) right before the start of the tax filing season.   Be watching for a link to register.  

Omnibus Legislation – Retirement Provisions

One of the topics that I will address in the 2-hour webinar on January 20 are the tax provisions in the Omnibus legislation (assuming the Congress passes the bill) will be the retirement-related provisions.  As the bill stands as of now, here are just a few of the retirement-related provisions:

• Increased required minimum distribution (RMD) age. The provision increases the current beginning RMD age from 72 to 73 effective January 1, 2023, and then to age 75 effective January 1, 2033. Act, Sec. 107
• Excise tax. This provision reduces to 25 percent and, under certain circumstances, practically eliminates the excise tax imposed on failure to take the RMD.  This provision is effective for tax years beginning after the date of enactment.  Act, Sec. 302.
• Catch-up contributions. While the dollar amount that can be elected to be deferred annually is capped, those who are age 50 and older can defer an additional (“catch-up) amount.  Starting in 2025, this provision increases the current catch-up limit to the greater of $10,000 ($5,000 for SIMPLE plans) or 50 percent more than the regular catch-up amount in 2024 (2025 for SIMPLE plans).  Act, Sec. 109
• Penalty-free withdrawals. This provision would allow penalty-free withdrawals for “unforeseeable or immediate financial needs relating to necessary personal or family expenses, capped at $1,000 and limited to once every three years (or once annually if the distribution is repaid within three years).  Act, Sec. 115. 

There are numerous other provisions.  In fact, there are over 100 provisions designed to expand coverage, increase retirement savings, and otherwise make the retirement plan rules more streamlined.  I will address the full run-down of what passes at the January 20 webinar. 

Summer 2023 Events

Mark your calendars for the law school’s summer 2023 national ag tax seminars, those will be on June 15-16 in Petosky, Michigan and August 7 and 8 in Coeur ‘d Alene, Idaho.  More information will be coming on those in the next few weeks as the programs get built out.  The Michigan event will be the standard farm income tax, farm estate and business planning seminar.  The August event in Idaho will have the standard farm income tax, farm estate and business planning topical coverage, but there will be a separate concurrent track each day on various agricultural law topics.  Those topics will cover real estate issues, environmental issues, water law, ag torts, leasing arrangements, and other issues facing rural practitioners.  You will be able to pick and choose the sessions that you would like to attend.  Both the Michigan conference and the Idaho conference will be live broadcast online. 

Conclusion

I hope that you will be able to join the online webinar on January 20 as well as one of the summer events.  There are always many legal issues to discuss involving farm and ranch clients.