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We are now in day 25 of the partial government shutdown. This means great uncertainty and many questions surrounding the 2019 tax filing season. Here's what we know:

On January 7, IRS announced that the 2019 filing season will begin January 28, even if the shutdown continues. The announcement also stated that IRS will be paying refunds, even if a government shutdown continues . Citing 31 U.S.C. 1324, the announcement stated that Congress has given IRS authority to pay refunds, despite lapses in annual appropriations. The notice stated that the agency would be issuing an updated Lapsed Appropriations Contingency Plan in the coming days that will include more details, including the IRS plan to recall a "significant portion" of its workforce. As of this morning, we still have no updated Contingency Plan. There are still many issues:

Final 199A Regulations were sent to OMB for review on December 14, 2018, but they remain in "pending regulatory review" status. There is a 45-day review window for these regulations, so we expect them soon.

This time, real estate agents and brokers and insurance agents and brokers are not SSTB (just like the proposed regs). Whew!

This will be a helpful approach for many farmers this year, given the great uncertainties surrounding the law.


TWO UPCOMING SEMINARS TO HELP:

We are partnering with the Iowa Bar to present a two-hour webinar on January 17 , from 12:00 to 2:00 pm for all tax professionals. Registration information is available at the link . Topics covered will include:
  • Status of filing season / Shutdown impact
  • Review of Key Form/Publication Updates
  • Highlights of TCJA issues most impacting clients
  • Review of Key Individual Issues 
  • The Latest on Section 199A, including review of final regulations if released
  • New Worksheets for calculations
  • Outstanding questions
  • Issues impacting cooperative patrons, including the transition rule
  • Depreciation, Bonus Depreciation, Section 179 Update
  • Status of technical corrections
  • NOL and other loss Issues
  • Business interest deduction limitation
  • Fiscal Year Issues
  • Due diligence
  • ACA Update
  • Status of Extenders

Registration is now available for the free Annual Iowa Department of Revenue Update for the 2019 Filing Season here .

Stay tuned for breaking updates! Keep us posted on issues you are finding in the field!

Kristine