The financial news that actually matters
Covers tax laws, government policies, fiscal changes, and financial regulations. It explains how policy decisions affect personal income, businesses, and the economy.
Tens of thousands of American importers, many of them small businesses, are stuck in a widening cash-flow trap. The federal government has accepted roughly $95 billion in tariff refund applications tied to duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), yet only about $20.6 billion has actually been paid out. The remaining balance…
Families settling estates in Kentucky, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania face a cost that heirs in the other 45 states do not: a state-level inheritance tax applied directly to the people who receive assets from a deceased person. Each of these five states maintains its own rate structure, beneficiary classifications, and filing requirements, creating…
New Jersey homeowners age 65 and older are now receiving direct property-tax relief checks of up to $6,500 a year through the state’s StayNJ program. The New Jersey Department of the Treasury began distributing the first round of payments earlier this year, and Governor Sherrill signed the FY 2027 Appropriations Act on June 30, 2026,…
Every year, Americans inherit homes, brokerage accounts, and other appreciated assets whose original purchase prices may date back decades. Under federal tax law, the cost basis of those assets resets to fair market value at the moment the prior owner dies. That single rule wipes out all unrealized capital gains accumulated during the decedent’s lifetime,…
Ford Motor Company carried roughly $1 billion in tariff refund receivables on its balance sheet as of September 2025, treating court-ordered repayments as a recoverable asset. Thousands of smaller importers owed money under the same Supreme Court ruling on International Emergency Economic Powers Act tariffs have not received their refunds. Three Democratic senators have pressed…
U.S. importers that paid tariffs later struck down by the Supreme Court are owed roughly $100 billion by the federal government, and the money is not arriving fast enough. Customs and Border Protection has accepted $85 billion in refund applications so far, but the Trump administration plans to appeal the court order that opened refunds…
Investors and high earners filing as single taxpayers will keep the 15 percent rate on long-term capital gains until their taxable income crosses $545,500 in 2026, according to newly published IRS figures. Above that line, the rate jumps to 20 percent. The threshold, adjusted upward for inflation, means some households that would have faced the…
Texas homeowners aged 65 and older now stand to save hundreds of dollars a year on school property taxes after the state raised an additional homestead exemption from $10,000 to $60,000. The change, carried out through S.B. 23 and the companion constitutional amendment S.J.R. 85 during the 89th Legislature, represents a sixfold increase in the…
Millions of people who sell goods through apps like Venmo, PayPal, eBay, and Etsy just got a significant reprieve. Third-party payment platforms are no longer required to send Form 1099-K unless a seller clears $20,000 in gross payments across more than 200 transactions in a calendar year. The change, enacted through Section 70432 of the…
Senior homeowners across New York State can now qualify for a property-tax exemption that erases up to 65% of their assessed home value, but only if their local government votes to activate the new option. Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation S5175A/A3698A into law as Chapter 581, amending Real Property Tax Law Section 467 to give…