The impact of the SECURE Act of 2019 has created a game change for high-net-worth clients. The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement (SECURE) Act requires beneficiaries of inherited IRAs to withdraw all assets of the IRA account within 10 years in most cases. This can create a significant income event resulting in giving back most of the income tax benefits accumulated over the years. Additionally, post-death control and resulting lack of asset protection is greatly minimized.

A bond investor generally recognizes two characters of income during the bond’s term: interest income from the coupon payments, and a capital gain/loss when the bond matures (or is disposed of). During the bond’s term, they may have to address any Amortizable Bond Premium (ABP) for income tax purposes. ABP is equal to the excess of the purchase price over the face/par value, and is typically incurred when the interest rate on the bond is paying more than the prevailing interest rates on bonds.

International activities conducted by tax-exempt organizations have been a high-focus area for decades. Today, this subject continues to be a high enforcement priority for the IRS, who actively seeks to ensure that foreign assets and expenditures are used for charitable purposes. Tax laws prohibit the diversion of charitable assets to any noncharitable purpose; this includes financial support of terrorist organizations and activities. Needless to say, cooperation and partnerships with other federal agencies are crucial to combat the existing abuses in this area.

In a June 17, 2021 decision, the Affordable Care Act (ACA, “Obamacare”) survived its third and presumably final challenge as the Supreme Court rejected the challenge in a 7-2 decision. This margin of victory was wider than the 5-4 and 6-3 decisions from the prior two Supreme Court cases applicable to the ACA (in 2012 and 2015, respectively).