Connect with us

Accounting

Billionaire Ken Griffin says he’s wary of Trump’s tax-cut and tariff agenda

Published

on

Billionaire Ken Griffin cast doubt on two of President-elect Donald Trump’s most loudly heralded economic policy plans: tax cuts and tariff hikes.

Republicans should be mindful of the effect of tax cuts on the growing national debt and the impact of tariffs on the long-term competitiveness of American businesses, Griffin said in an interview with Bloomberg Television’s Sonali Basak at the Economic Club of New York.

“The big problem is we’ve got to get productivity growing,” Griffin said.

griffin-ken-citadel.jpg
Ken Griffin

Saul Martinez/Bloomberg

The Citadel founder on Thursday suggested the opposite course might be needed: “There’s a real question about where do we need to raise taxes to start to put our house in order.”

He also said Republicans, who will control the White House and both chambers of Congress in January, will need to look at cutting spending as well. He acknowledged that doing so will be difficult, saying that “these are really unpopular decisions for politicians to make.”

Trump has pledged to extend his 2017 tax cuts and eliminate other levies on tips for service workers and Social Security benefits. He’s also pledged to impose a 10% or 20% tariff on all imported goods — with even higher duties on Chinese products — and argues that they will increase revenues while bringing manufacturing operations back to the US.

“I am gravely concerned that that rise of tariffs puts us on a slippery slope towards crony capitalism,” Griffin said. Tariffs give a short-term benefit for domestic companies that produce goods, but in the long term, they harm productivity, he added.

“Those same companies that enjoy that momentary sugar rush of having their competitors removed from the battlefield soon become complacent,” Griffin said.

Griffin said tariffs will ultimately hurt the U.S. economy, which needs to rapidly increase productivity if it wants to meet all its obligations, including paying benefits promised to retiring Americans through programs like Social Security and Medicare.

Continue Reading

Accounting

In the blogs: Just in time

Published

on

BOI is back; phantom stocks; continuous compliance; and other highlights from our favorite tax bloggers.

Just in time

  • Tax Vox (https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox): Who benefits and who loses from extending major provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act?
  • Taxing Subjects (https://www.drakesoftware.com/blog): The Republican party can shape legislative priorities for the next two years, setting the stage for long-term policy changes. A downloadable resource offers a breakdown of key policy areas and action steps for tax pros and small businesses. 
  • AICPA & CIMA Insights (https://www.aicpa-cima.com/blog): How the IRS and tax pros can both start prepping for any government shutdown.
  • Eide Bailly (https://www.eidebailly.com/taxblog): “Just in time for the holidays,” a federal appeals court has restored the Corporate Transparency Act requirement for businesses to disclose their beneficial owners.
  • Taxable Talk (http://www.taxabletalk.com/): And just like that, yet again, with an injunction’s stay, course is reversed.
  • Current Federal Tax Developments (https://www.currentfederaltaxdevelopments.com/): At least they extended the deadlines a whisker.
  • The Tax Times (https://www.thetaxtimes.com): The IRS continues to claw back from non-filers, to the tune of 10 figures and counting.
  • The National Association of Tax Professionals (https://blog.natptax.com/): Favorite headline of the week: “The best gifts for the tax pro in your life this holiday season.”
  • National Taxpayer Advocate (https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/taxnews-information/blogs-nta/): “‘Twas the night before tax season, and all through the land; Tax professionals were working, each with pen in hand; The forms were all sorted with numbers just right; who says tax accounting can’t thrill and excite?”

2025

Continuity

Size matters

Continue Reading

Accounting

H&R Block releases Santa Claus’s tax return

Published

on

p195u5dhs3pmh1ufo1oo27ml818.jpg

That doesn’t look like a 1040 … .

H&R Block has given the world just what it wants to see this holiday season: Santa Claus’s tax return.

Santa has a lot of itemizations to consider. Eight tiny reindeer depend on him for food and shelter, for instance, but are they dependents? How much can you give to one person before reporting it? Does Santa keep good mileage records for his 41.5 million miles? Santa isn’t an employee, so compensation (even in cookie form) over the threshold may create a 1099-NEC.

Old St. Nick, who files MFJ with Mrs. Claus, did all right on 1040 Line 34, but some of his numbers do bear examination: 6.3 million cookies and 2 million gallons of milk means a third of a gallon of milk per cookie. Will the deduction of coal, magic dust and sleighbells stand up to audit? At least Santa has plenty of time on his hands between January and April to find a good preparer.

Santa's tax return

“Even the jolly man in red takes time to report taxes,” reads the announcement from the tax prep giant. “He’s probably the world’s most famous small-business owner, running a gift-giving workshop and distribution network across the globe … Santa is giving us the first ever peek at his tax return and showing us how he used H&R Block Online and AI Tax Assist to get his maximum refund.”

Continue Reading

Accounting

5 changes coming to IRAs and 401(k)s in 2025

Published

on

The SECURE 2.0 Act contained several changes to traditional and Roth individual retirement accounts and 401(k) plans that are being phased in over the coming years, with several notable changes coming in 2025. The Illinois CPA Society highlighted five changes coming to IRAs and 401(k)s in 2025:

Continue Reading

Trending