Lieb, Cody & Co. Certified Public Accountants, Inc.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced on Friday that tax returns normally due on April 15 will not be due until July 15 this year. The news came in a tweet, and the IRS has not yet issued official guidance on the move. The Treasury secretary’s tweet read, At [President Donald Trump’s] direction, we are moving Tax Day from April 15 to July 15. All taxpayers and businesses will have this additional time to file and make payments without interest or penalties.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering low-interest federal disaster loans for working capital to California small businesses suffering substantial economic injury as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza announced today. SBA acted under its own authority, as provided by the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act that was recently signed by the President, to declare a disaster ...Continue reading

In response to the increase in positive cases in California and recommendations of health care professionals, EFFECTIVE MARCH 16, 2020, we will not be scheduling any face to face meetings in or out of our offices until further notice. We are still allowing drop-offs as of now; however, we have modified the drop-off process to limit face to face exposure. If possible, we ask that you mail, fax or use our secure file exchange portal to send us your information rather than in-...person drop-off. If necessary, we are able to continue to work 100% remotely if forced to close our office in the coming days/weeks. It is almost certain that broad taxpayer relief will be announced in the next few days by the U.S. Treasury/IRS to ease the burden on tax professionals and taxpayers, including automatic due date and payment extensions for businesses and individuals. Unfortunately, the government has been extremely slow in providing any definitive information to us or the general public on the exact terms of this relief leading to increased anxiety in our industry and for our clients. We appreciate everyone's patience during this unprecedented health crisis as we try to protect our staff and clients as well as doing our part to slow down the spread of this virus in our community. If you need assistance in getting us your information using fax or our secure file portal, please call our office during normal business hours. Please check back regularly for updates.

While estate planning for single parents is similar to estate planning for families with two parents, when only one parent is involved, certain aspects demand y...our special attention. For example, it’s important for you to include in your estate plan a living will, advance directive or health care power of attorney to specify your health care preferences in the event you become incapacitated and to designate someone to make medical decisions on your behalf. Contact us for more information. See more

If you own pieces of valuable art and are charitably minded, consider donating them to receive tax deductions. Generally, it’s advantageous to donate appreciated property to avoid capital gains taxes. Because the top capital gains rate for art is 28%, donating art is particularly effective. To maximize your deduction, donate art to a public charity. These donations generally entitle you to deduct the artwork’s full fair market value. If you donate art to a private foundation, your deduction will be limited to your cost. Contact us for additional details.

Today, estate taxes are no longer a concern for the vast majority of families. But even for nontaxable estates, life insurance continues to offer estate planning benefits. For example, you can use life insurance to replace wealth that’s lost to long term care (LTC) expenses. Although LTC insurance is available, it can be expensive. For many people, a better option is to use personal savings and investments to fund their LTC needs and to purchase life insurance to replace the money that’s spent on such care. Contact us for more information.