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Simple English definitions for legal terms

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA)

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A quick definition of Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA):

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA) is a big change to the tax rules that was signed into law by President Trump in 2017. It made many changes to how individuals and businesses are taxed. For individuals, it changed the tax rates, increased the standard deduction, and limited some deductions. For businesses, it reduced the corporate tax rate, gave a deduction for pass-through income, and made changes to how international income is taxed. Some of the changes are permanent, but many will expire by the end of 2025.

A more thorough explanation:

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA) is a set of changes to the tax code that were signed into law by President Trump in 2017. The changes affected many areas of the tax code, including corporate tax rates, standard deductions, and estate taxes. Some of the changes were permanent, while others will expire by the end of 2025.

For individual tax deductions, the TCJA reduced some tax rates and changed many deductions. The seven tax brackets were reduced, and the income levels for the brackets were slightly increased. The standard deduction was greatly increased, which reduced the number of people who benefit from itemizing deductions. The deduction for interest on home mortgages and equity was altered, and the state and local tax (SALT) deductions became capped at $10,000. Miscellaneous tax deductions for things like workplace expenses for employees were completely eliminated. All of these changes will revert back to their pre-TCJA provisions after 2025.

  • Before the TCJA, the highest tax bracket for individuals was 39.6%. After the TCJA, the highest tax bracket was reduced to 37%.
  • Before the TCJA, the standard deduction for individuals was $6,500. After the TCJA, the standard deduction was increased to $12,000.
  • Before the TCJA, there was no cap on the SALT deduction. After the TCJA, the SALT deduction was capped at $10,000.

These examples illustrate how the TCJA changed individual tax deductions by reducing tax rates, increasing the standard deduction, and capping the SALT deduction.

For businesses and investors, the TCJA greatly reduced the corporate tax rate, changed flow-through taxation, increased depreciations, and made fundamental changes to taxing international income. The corporate tax rate was permanently reduced to a 21% flat tax rate from 35%. Individuals were given a deduction of 20% from pass-through income from business entities like partnerships and LLCs. The TCJA enacted a 100% bonus deduction for business assets purchased through the end of 2022 and increased many expensing provisions that phase out after 2022. Lastly, the TCJA implemented major changes to how corporations were taxed for international income, including exempting foreign earned dividends from U.S. income tax for those owning over 10% of the foreign corporation and other provisions to tackle base erosion.

  • Before the TCJA, the corporate tax rate was 35%. After the TCJA, the corporate tax rate was permanently reduced to 21%.
  • Before the TCJA, there was no deduction for pass-through income. After the TCJA, individuals were given a deduction of 20% from pass-through income from business entities like partnerships and LLCs.
  • Before the TCJA, there was no 100% bonus deduction for business assets purchased. After the TCJA, a 100% bonus deduction was enacted for business assets purchased through the end of 2022.

These examples illustrate how the TCJA changed business and investor taxes by reducing the corporate tax rate, providing a deduction for pass-through income, and enacting a 100% bonus deduction for business assets purchased.

tax credit | tax deduction

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texaslawhopefully
22:30
@KnowledgeableRitzyWasp: That all sounds great. It sounds like it has fairly diverse cuisine for a smaller city
yeah there are so many good cuisines in ithaca
renard99
22:31
@lilypadfrog: that’s a pity I’da be liking them all
texaslawhopefully
22:31
Only food I’m going to miss for sure if I leave Texas is texmex
22:31
waspy hasnt had thai food in ithaca yet. ithaca thai is so good
^^^^ truuuuuu
22:32
there are two major thai places and they have very similar names bc a divorced husband and wife own them lol
22:32
personally i think taste of thai is better than taste of thai express but thats just me
i had pho tho and it was really good and huge portions
texaslawhopefully
22:32
Glad they have good Thai food, I love Thai food! Can’t wait to visit :)
22:33
when tex goes to ithaca i want to come
Dkk
22:34
Crying Tiger, best Thai dish.
damn im so hungry all i had today was a curry tonkatsu and buldak
and it was a lil baby noodle cup
vvv hungry
22:36
curry tonkatsu so yummeh
22:36
whats even open rn? pizza?
CTB is it i think
22:37
is collegetown pizza not open
22:37
i used to get a slice from there or wings over at like 1am after my shift at the restaurant
Dkk
22:48
Ross Ulbricht free. God Bless Trump. Huge win.
JeremyFragrance
22:54
agreed
texaslawhopefully
22:55
This is an interesting read: https://thedispatch.com/article/birthright-citizenship-trump-implications/
Dkk
23:01
I mean, idk how it's possible to end birth right citizenship without amending the constitution because to me the 14th amendment is pretty clear about it.
ross ulbricht tried to hire a hitman to kill 5 people
i am not that sympathetic to him
Dkk
23:04
@KnowledgeableRitzyWasp: That might have been an FBI agent. It was most likely him and he was most likely doing it to retrieve stolen funds that corrupt FBI agents stole, but yeah moral gray area but me personally, cool with hitmen. It's not like it is uncommon to hire hitmen. I don't think the action itself is necessarily wrong but the intent behind it can be.
Dkk
23:05
Like, Boeing whistblowers being killed by hitmen = wrong but a guy hiring hitmen to retrieve stolen funds = good to me.
texaslawhopefully
23:05
@Dkk: Yeah, for sure. My guess is it'll go to SCOTUS and it'll be 8-1 or 7-2, saying that EO was unconstitutional.
Dkk
23:06
Indeed. I need a count for how many exectuive orders he has signed and how many already have pending lawsuits.
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