[Update] – See this article for 2012 and 2013 Tax Rates/Brackets The IRS has released its 2011 Tax Rates and Income thresholds following approval of the Bush-Era Tax Cuts. The latest 2011 IRS federal tax table is shown below with the following key tax changes: Personal exemptions and standard deductions …
Without further approved extensions the Child Tax Credit (CTC) has returned to normal levels and can only be claimed when filing your tax return, versus advance fully refundable payments provided during the pandemic years. See section below for a potential 2024 expansion to CTC payments. The child tax credit (CTC) …
As part of bush-era tax cuts extension legislation (Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010), a number of new tax breaks were made available. One was a temporary one year cut in employee payroll taxes, which funds Social Security and Medicare, of 2% during 2011. The …
As the year draws to a close it’s always a good idea to review your tax situation and in light of that we have put together a collection of fifteen tax deductions worth considering to lower your overall tax bill. But act soon, because if you wait until next year …
The IRS has released the latest 401k, 403b, IRA and other retirement/thrift plan contribution and income limits. With COLA remaining unchanged again this year, 2011 plan limits have also remained largely unchanged for the third year in a row. Income thresholds have marginally increased over last year.
Here is a summary of the main changes with links to more detailed articles:
[Updated : 2012 Pay Tables] Following President Obama’s Federal employee pay freeze, 2011 and 2012GS tables will remain the same as 2010. This includes the special base rates for GS law enforcement officers (GL) at GS grades 3 through 10. Unfortunately this means that the proposed raises discussed in previous updates below will not come to pass in 2011 or 2012, despite COLA increases for other federal benefits. The 2011 and 2012 GS Pay scale is shown below, with rates effective from January 1st:
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[Dec 2010 – Update on 2011 Federal Pay Raise] In an effort to address growing budget deficit concerns and political pressure, President Obama announced a proposal to freeze federal pay increases. This was against the expected 1.4% raise discussed in the previous update below . This freeze would affect over two million federal government employees, and with inflation set to rise over the next few years the pay freeze essentially amounts to a pay cut for the next two years in real terms.
The freeze applies to all federal workers, including civilian Defense Department employees, but does not apply to military personnel, government contractors, postal workers, members of Congress, Congressional staffers, or federal court judges and workers. The 2011 pay freeze would take effect on Jan. 1, pending Congressional approval by the end of this year. 2012 pay freezes will be proposed as part of fiscal 2012 budget proposals to be unveiled early next year.
“Getting this deficit under control is going to require some broad sacrifices and that sacrifice must be shared by the employees of the federal government,” Obama said in a speech announcing the pay freeze. He added, “I did not reach this decision easily, this is not a line item on a federal ledger, these are people’s lives……Federal employees are hard-working and dedicated and essential to delivering services to the American people. Today [I am] clearly asking them to make a sacrifice.”
USA Today reported this month that the number of federal workers earning $150,000 or more has doubled since Obama took office, fueling public and political outrage over what federal workers are paid
“A federal pay freeze saves peanuts at best,” John Gage, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said “The American people didn’t vote to stick it to a Veterans Administration nursing assistant making $28,000 a year or a border patrol agent earning $34,000 per year.”
The pay freeze will not impact bonuses for federal workers or when a federal worker is promoted to a new level of pay, meaning federal workers promoted in the next two years will receive a new level of pay, but not receive any additional annual raises. The decision is expected to save the government about $2 billion for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 and $28 billion over the next five years, the White House said. Federal civil service pay rose 2 percent in 2010 after rising 3.9 percent in 2009 and by 3.5 percent in 2008.
The long-term savings and budget reduction come from lowering the government’s base compensation over the next two years. The administration already has ordered a three-year freeze in non-defense and national security programs in Obama’s budget released Feb. 1, and ordered some agencies to reduce their 2012 budget requests by 5 percent.
The government is projected to spend $457 billion on personnel costs in the 2011 fiscal year, according to the Congressional Research Service. That’s up from $447 billion spent in 2010. Obama made the announcement Monday because Tuesday is the deadline to set federal locality pay, or variations the government makes in pay and benefits based on geographic location.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), whose district is home to thousands of federal workers, said he was pleased Obama instituted only a two-year freeze instead of the three years proposed by the Deficit Commission. But Obama also should have cut pay for some military personnel, Hoyer said in a statement. Obama has already frozen the salaries of top White House officials and top political appointees. But freezing the salaries of all civilian workers is a much bolder step that will result in a big economic hit to the Washington region, which is home to more than 600,000 federal workers and their families.
Republican lawmakers, who support the pay freeze, have already introduced several proposals to cut federal pay and benefits and curtail the size of the federal workforce, including cuts to the government payroll through attrition or firing federal workers who fail to pay taxes.
I will continue to provide updates and the latest federal pay tables as new information is made available. I encourage you to subscribe (free) via Email or RSS to get the latest information.
[Previous Update] How much do federal employees get paid and what will be their congressionally mandated pay raise this year? The answer to this question directly affects millions of federally employed Americans and their families, who are paid based on the General or Executive Schedule. The more common General schedule (GS) has 15 grades and 10 steps in each grade, and covers more than 400 occupations. Earlier this year, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed the Fiscal 2011 Financial Services and General Government spending bill which included a 1.4% 2011 pay raise. This is lower than the 2% raise in 2010, primarily due to the struggling economy and low inflation environment.
Updates – See here for the latest COLA increases by year____________ The Social Security Administration has officially released the Social Security and SSI information against the background announcement that there will be no cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) increase next year. The zero COLA adjustment means the monthly Social Security and Supplemental …
[Update Jan 2013] Congress and the Obama administration have reached an agreement that will extend a number of small business tax breaks through 2013 following the fiscal cliff deal which was legislated through the Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. You can see details of the extended tax breaks in this article. [Update Sep-Oct 2010] Obama’s Small Jobs …
Updated : See the latest year IRS tax brackets here. President Obama and Congress have approved a two year extension to all the Bush-era tax cuts. This means that the 2011 Federal IRS tax rates will be the same as 2010 rates, shown in the table below. However tax bracket …
[Updated with 2024 IRS adjustments] Below are the latest Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) tables and income qualification thresholds adjusted for recent tax years and new legislation. These limits are adjusted annually in line with inflation and other government mandates. The EITC has returned to normal levels following the temporary …
2022-2023 Outlook – The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)’s latest GDP report shows the the US economy is definitely slowing and heading into a recession. With stock markets down over 30%, high inflation, Russia-Ukraine driving geopolitical issues and consumer sentiment at all time lows, things don’t look good. However …
The IRS standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating a car (includes vans, pickups or panel trucks) for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes are shown in the table below. These are effective from Jan. 1. The business mileage rate is based on an annual study of the fixed …
Under the recently enacted $2 trillion Coronavirus stimulus bill (CAREs act), federal funding will be provided to extend existing state administered unemployment insurance (UI) coverage for up to 13 weeks (Pandemic Unemployment Assistance) and will be bolstered by up to $600 per week (FPUC) over current state maximums over the next four …
See this updated article for the latest program information on Food Stamp (SNAP) benefits and eligibility levels [Updated August 2011] The Federal Food Stamp Program is now known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). With the stimulus aspects of this program set to expire at the end of this year following the debt …