Happy Holidays and our best wishes for a prosperous New Year from the partners and staff of Bormel, Grice & Huyett, P.A.    If you haven't already done so, please visit our web site at www.bormel-grice.com. Through our web site you can access information about our firm and its specialty groups, the latest issue of our newsletter, and links to other sites such as tax forms and publications, Maryland Comptroller of the Treasury, Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Baltimore/Washington Corridor Chamber, State Department of Assessments and Taxation, Bloomberg Financial Services, and client web-sites. Your comments and feedback are welcomed and appreciated.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 2000
Fresh off the most hotly contested presidential election in U.S. history, we have been bombarded with media attention focused on election certification, counting every vote and a myriad of legal challenges. Lost in all this political rhetoric are all of the sweeping tax law change proposals made by each candidate. Given that the new president will be working with a relatively divided Congress, it may be extremely difficult to reach a consensus for either candidate's tax plan. The expectation is that there may be solutions and compromises that hit on both candidates' ideas.    Gore's proposals included numerous tax reforms targeted to the middle class, including many credits and deductions allowed for various activities.    Bush proposed an across-the-board income tax rate reduction, with tax rates dropped at all levels, especially at the top.    Meanwhile both Al Gore and George W. Bush both agree that the marriage penalty should be fixed. Under current tax rules, married couples that work and earn roughly equal salaries pay more in income taxes than they might if they weren't married.    Another idea that is expected to change next year is expanded tax breaks for contributing to various retirement plans.    In mid November a group met at The Brookings Institution who think they have come up with solutions that deal with problems identified by Texas Governor George W. Bush during his campaign, and uphold Vice President Al Gore's focus on middle class families. They suggest that a Bush administration may be able to reduce the estate tax, but could not implement much more of his tax cut agenda. Likewise, they suggest that a Gore administration would get a compromised version of the patient's bill of rights through Congress, but will be unable to pass most of his health care plan. Under either administration, taxes could be more complicated at the end of the year because lobbyists might besiege the tax code, taking advantage of the possible gridlock, and therefore, the important issues may not be addressed in the current political climate.    Stay tuned for the next exciting episode in our number one rated entertainment venue, national politics. We will monitor the possible tax law changes that may occur in 2001.