Accounting firms Crowe LLP and BKD LLP released year-end tax-planning guides Wednesday, during a time of great uncertainty over future tax changes in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic and the upcoming election.
Crowe’s Tax Planning: 2020 Year-End Guide discusses a number of issues, including recent legislation passed in Congress in response to COVID-19, such as the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).
John Bovenzi is a co-founder of The Bovenzi Group, a boutique financial consulting firm. He served as deputy to the chairman and chief operating officer of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. for 10 years.
Grayson Milbourne is the Security Intelligence Director at OpenText Cybersecurity, a division of OpenText. Grayson's nearly two decades of security intelligence expertise include malware analysis, data science, and security education. In his current role, Grayson is focused on efficacy development to ensure the company's security management products (which include the Webroot portfolio) are able to defend against the most cutting-edge threats.
Grayson is a longtime advocate for better 3rd party testing of security products and represents OpenText Cybersecurity at the Anti-Malware Testing and Standards organization, AMTSO. Through his efforts, AMTSO released testing standards that greatly improved testing quality when followed. Grayson is an avid participant in the security community and drives awareness of current threats by speaking at major events such as RSAC and Virus Bulletin. He is a frequent guest on local NBC affiliates and several cybersecurity podcasts. Beyond his passion for protecting people from cyberthreats, Grayson loves aviation and holds a private pilot license. His other passions include strategic boards games, skiing and playing golf. He lives in Louisville, Colorado with his wife, Danielle and their two cats, Theodore and Aiden.
Merrilee Matchett is the head of Global Customer Service & Operations and a member of the Strategic Advisory Group for MetLife. In this role, she directs a team of more than 10,000 associates responsible for managing the operations and servicing teams that support and enable the U.S. Group Benefits, Retirement & Income Solutions, MetLife Holdings, and Asia, EMEA and LATAM businesses across more than 40 global markets. She is also the Chairperson of MetLife Europe, and MetLife Europe Insurance.
Matchett joined MetLife in 2021 from Bank of America, where she was responsible for service and operations for global wealth management, private banking, and institutional and personal retirement businesses supporting more than $3 trillion in client balances. She was also the Chairperson of Financial Data Services, LLC, responsible for the end-to-end operational support of domestic and offshore mutual funds.
Matchett has been an advocate for diversity and women in financial services throughout her 30-year career and has been recognized with numerous market awards for outstanding service and operations performance. She is a member of the MetLife enterprise Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council, and represents MetLife on the board of INROADS, helping to provide career pathways for talented diverse youth across the United States.
She holds a B.A. in management with a law major from the University of Canberra, Australia. Additionally, she is FINRA accredited and licensed to trade and run a broker dealer.
“Navigating the current landscape can be tricky and confusing,” said Gary Fox, managing partner of tax services at Crowe, in a statement. “It is important to stay on top of all the fast-moving law changes of the past six months and to remain prepared for the possible changes in the near future.”
Other topics include standard deductions vs. itemizing, state and local tax deductions, home-related breaks and tax-advantaged saving for health care. The guide also covers family-oriented tax breaks such as child, dependent and adoption credits, dependent care breaks, the “kiddie tax,” Section 529 plans, education savings accounts and Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts.
The Crowe guide also covers investor issues, such as capital gains taxes and timing, being tax-smart with losses, mutual funds, income investments and 3.8 percent net investment income tax. Business-related tax topics include business structure, Section 199A deductions for pass-through businesses, projecting income, depreciation, vehicle-related depreciation, meals, entertainment and transportation, employee benefits, tax credits and the self-employed.
Retirement tax topics include 401(k)s and other employer plans, more tax-deferred options, Roth alternatives, early withdrawals, required minimum distributions, IRA donations to charity and the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act).
Estate-planning topics in the guide include estate taxes, gift taxes, the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax, state taxes, exemption portability and tax-smart giving.
The Crowe guide also covers income tax rates for individuals, corporations and estates and trusts.
The BKD Year-End Tax Advisor aims to help businesses and individuals with their year-end planning decisions and the development of an effective tax strategy, given the recent changes in requirements, updated regulations and new tax laws this year.
“2020 has been a year like no other, with the COVID-19 pandemic affecting each of our lives, businesses and communities in ways many of us have never experienced,” said BKD director of tax quality control Jesse Palmer in a statement. “Solid tax planning is probably more important than it’s ever been before as you work to create a healthy financial future for yourself and your business.”
The BKD Year-End Tax Advisor includes reminders for the year ahead. More than a dozen contributors have written 18 articles for the guide, including discussions of how COVID-19 has affected various industries, charitable giving and information-reporting reminders.
