CCH has issued a new report looking back at the year in tax, summarizing the major developments up to and including the fiscal cliff legislation that was passed by Congress on New Year’s Day.

CCH’s new "Tax Briefing: 2012 Tax Year-In-Review" offers analysis and explanations of the policies, decisions and tax outcomes of the past year, including the recently enacted American Taxpayer Relief Act, as well as the Supreme Court’s ruling to uphold the Affordable Care Act and newly effective provisions from prior laws, such as the new Medicare taxes.

The report notes that one key end-of-year development that will affect taxpayers right away is in their paychecks. Because Congress did not extend the Social Security payroll tax holiday past 2012, the rate for Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI) taxes has risen from 4.2 percent to 6.2 percent of wages up to $113,700 for 2013.

“It was a very tough year for tax planning with all the uncertainty over extensions of Bush-era tax cuts, questions over the future impact of the AMT and a host of other tax issues that sparked heated debate on Capitol Hill,” said CCH principal federal tax analyst Mark Luscombe in a statement. “With the start of a new tax season, it’s vital that all taxpayers and preparers understand the depth and breadth of changes that took place in 2012 and early 2013.”

CCH’s "Tax Briefing: 2012 Tax Year-In-Review" is available by clicking here. The full range of CCH Tax Briefings is available at CCHGroup.com/Legislation.