INDEXING WILL LOWER TAXES NEXT YEAR
RIVERWOODS, Ill. - CCH predicted that the indexing of many features of the Tax Code to adjust for inflation will bring taxpayers some relief next year as the company released its 2008 tax rate projections.
The tax and accounting information provider predicts that a married couple filing jointly with a total taxable income of $100,000 will pay $160 less in income taxes in 2008 than on the same income for 2007. A single filer with taxable income of $50,000 would save $80 next year due to the tax adjustments.
Standard deductions are also set to rise. CCH predicts that single taxpayers and married taxpayers filing separately could see a $100 increase in their standard deduction to $5,450. Joint filers would benefit from a $200 increase in their standard deduction to $10,900, and heads of households would experience a $150 bump to $8,000.
The personal exemption amount will go up in 2008 by $100 to $3,500. For 2008, the reduction in personal exemptions and itemized deductions is scheduled to be only one-third of what it was in 2005, according to CCH. The company's projected tax figures for 2008 can be found at www.cch.com/press/news/2007/20070926t.asp.
DOJ SETTLES JACKSON HEWITT CASES
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Justice Department said that it has resolved lawsuits against several corporations that owned Jackson Hewitt franchises, with the companies agreeing to be barred from tax preparation after the DOJ found a pattern of fraud.
The franchises were located in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, and Raleigh-Durham, N.C. The owners are selling their Jackson Hewitt franchise rights to new owners. One corporation that owns a franchise in Raleigh-Durham will continue to operate, but will be subject to restrictions and monitoring.
The government also has barred some individuals as part of the settlement, and two defendants in the Raleigh-Durham case have agreed to a limited injunction against the franchise in that state. The corporations that agreed to the restrictions include Smart Tax of Georgia, Smart Tax of North Carolina, Smart Tax Inc., Ask Tax, and So Far.
