Carl Davis of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy discusses the biggest trends in state tax policy this year and those likely next year, including the implications of the Build Back Better Act.

Today's Social Security column addresses questions about how stopping working before filing might affect benefit rates, when it can be possible to begin spousal benefits on a spouse's record and becoming independently entitled to divorced spousal benefits before an ex files.

Estates pay 40% federal estate tax, and almost every sizable estate is audited by the IRS. Prince’s estate reported a taxable value of $82 million to the IRS. However, the IRS claimed that the estate’s taxable value was really a whopping $163 million. Now, the IRS and Prince's estate have settled.

BY DEFAULT, the IRS, brokerage firms, and most trade accounting programs use the First-In-First-Out (FIFO) accounting method. But there is another option called the Specific Identification (SI) accounting method.

Joseph J. Thorndike examines the role of political slesmanship in the federal tax system, focusing on the dynamics that affected how Ronald Reagan’s tax cuts played out.