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o Interest and dividend statements from banks (Forms 1099).
o A copy of last year’s federal and state returns if available.
o Other relevant information about income and expenses including total paid for child care and child care provider’s identifying number (EIN/SSN).
o To e-file a tax return when the filing status is married filing jointly, both spouses must be present to sign the required forms.
In Sunday's Money and Real Estate section I wrote about the tax credit you might be able to receive if you make energy-saving improvements to your home.
The credit could be worth up to $1,500 in tax savings on everything from windows, to insulation and air conditioning. My column explained generally how the credit is applied, but many of you have specific questions about your own projects. Rules vary depending on what you do with your home and whether the project is approved for energy savings. Also, labor is covered in some cases, but not others.
Here's a link to more government information that can help you. Also, check tax rules at www.irs.gov.
With retirement near, it’s no laughing matter that many a baby boomer’s 401(k) has turned into a 201(k).
The stock market has dropped about 40 percent this year, taking retirement dreams along with it. And because of the credit crisis and Wall Street’s dastardly deeds with mortgage-related bonds, some bond funds have failed to provide a safety cushion.
As a result Americans have lost about $2 trillion in workplace retirement funds this year. That’s left the people within about 10 years of retirement wondering if they can, or should, retire as planned.
Those in the tightest pinch are those within months of retiring, or the poor souls who happened to retire just before the mess began a year ago. But people don’t simply have to lick their wounds and cower. Here’s what to do.
This is the time of year when taxpayers pull out the rule book that guides them in making last-minute moves before year-end to reduce their income tax bill.
The summary: Do whatever you can to delay receiving income for the year, and hunt for whatever deductions you can find so that when you prepare your tax return in a few months, the outcome is as painless as possible.In essence, you move income -- like bonuses or pay you might receive from a business activity -- into the new year if you can. And perhaps you pay coming expenses -- like January's mortgage payment or property taxes -- in 2007 so you can use the deduction this year, rather than next. The strategies are particularly useful to people who think their income is going to be substantially higher in 2007 compared with 2008.
Whether you are a consultant, piano teacher, contractor or sell makeup part time, you might be able to whittle away some of your taxes if you scour your return for deductions.
Businesses operated out of the home have some avenues for cutting taxes that aren't available to individuals. And if you aren't set up to tap the benefits fully as you prepare this year's tax return, you can position yourself now so you will keep more of your money next year at tax time.Any expenses for your business in 2006 are deductible--pens and staples, educational expenses, legal fees, bad debts, and business entertainment and travel costs.
Perhaps you're a reluctant landlord.
As you sit down to do your taxes this year, make sure you take the credits and deductions that will help you keep more of your money and pay the government as little as possible.This year's tax forms could lead you astray: A handful of deductions that you might have used in the past will appear to be gone. But they are still there. They just don't show up because they expired during the year and the IRS printed forms before Congress reinstated them.
So be on your toes.
If the holiday spirit has you feeling benevolent, you can put your good intentions to work during the next couple of weeks and save yourself money when you sit down with your tax return next year.
Giving to charity is a simple way to earn a tax deduction, but it's easy to let the opportunity go this time of year.For some people, making charitable contributions is as effortless as cleaning out closets and donating hand-me-downs to a charity. For others, it is a little more complex--possibly turning over a used car to a non-profit group. And for people who have had an unusually lucrative year or a windfall, a mammoth-size deduction might be tempting, but deciding--on the spur of the moment--where to channel money can be daunting.
With college costs acting like a Grinch on stressed-out household finances, families can't afford to miss out on tax savings they can secure with a little end-of-the-year planning.
Whether you are paying off loans for your own education or paying tuition for a child in college or technical school, you can enlist Uncle Sam to help you out. And you should, because with many public universities costing close to $20,000 a year for tuition, fees, room and board, and many private ones over $40,000, most families need all the help they can get.
A message greets shoppers of supplies no longer available as Hurricane Florence approaches the east coast in Nichols, S.C., Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018.
MIAMI (AP) — How do you measure a disaster like Florence? In sum, the storm is turning out to be every bit as devastating as forecasters expected, with trillions of gallons of rain still in the forecast, hundreds of people needing rescue, hundreds of thousands of power outages and a handful of deaths. The economic toll remains to be tallied.
The United States and Israel officially quit the UN's educational, scientific and cultural agency at the stroke of midnight, the culmination of a process triggered more than a year ago amid concerns that the organisation fosters anti-Israel bias.
The withdrawal is mainly procedural yet serves a new blow to UNESCO, co-founded by the US after World War II to foster peace.
The Paris-based organization has been denounced by its critics as a crucible for anti-Israel bias: blasted for criticising Israel's occupation of East Jerusalem, naming ancient Jewish sites as Palestinian heritage sites and granting full membership to Palestine in 2011.
The US has demanded "fundamental reform" in the agency that is best known for its World Heritage program to protect cultural sites and traditions. UNESCO also works to improve education for girls, promote understanding of the Holocaust's horrors, and to defend media freedom.
The withdrawals will not greatly impact UNESCO financially, since it has been dealing with a funding slash ever since 2011 when both Israel and the US stopped paying dues after Palestine was voted in as a member state. Since then officials estimate that the US which accounted for around 22 per cent of the total budget has accrued $600 million in unpaid dues, which was one of the reasons for President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw. Israel owes an estimated $10 million.
UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay took up her post just after Trump announced the pullout. Azoulay, who has Jewish and Moroccan heritage, has presided over the launch of a Holocaust education website and the UN's first educational guidelines on fighting anti-Semitism initiatives that might be seen as responding to US and Israeli concerns.
Officials say that many of the reasons the US cited for withdrawal do not apply anymore, noting that since then, all 12 texts on the Middle East passed at UNESCO have been consensual among Israel and Arab member states.
The document was still quite critical of Israel, however, and the efforts weren't enough to encourage the US and Israel to reconsider their decision to quit.
The State Department couldn't comment because of the US government shutdown.
Earlier, the department told UNESCO officials the US intends to stay engaged at UNESCO as a non-member "observer state" on "non-politicized" issues, including the protection of World Heritage sites, advocating for press freedoms and promoting scientific collaboration and education.
The US could potentially seek that status during UNESCO Executive Board meetings in April.
The United States has pulled out of UNESCO before. The Reagan administration did so in 1984 because it viewed the agency as mismanaged, corrupt and used to advance Soviet interests. The US rejoined in 2003.
Short documentary film "Body Team 12" bravely follows the team tasked with collecting the dead at the height of the Ebola outbreak.
"These body collectors have arguably the most dangerous and gruesome job in the world," the film's website states.
David Darg, director of the documentary and vice president at Operation Blessing International, shares an inside look. Click play to watch.
The film, produced by Olivia Wilde, won a the award for Best Documentary Short at the Tribeca Film Festival Thursday.
"The winning film is a spiritual and inspiring story of personal courage and commitment. The filmmaking team takes us on a fearless journey that restores our faith in humanity and inspires viewers to be optimistic despite facing the most extreme challenges," the Tribeca Jury commented.
Darg and his team are now working to raise money for children orphaned by the virus. Click here to find out how you can help.
Ne-Yo, Buddy Guy, Counting Crows and The Wallflowers are among the headliners scheduled for the Taste of Chicago main stage this summer, the city confirmed Monday.
For music fans looking to dig deeper, the real action at the Taste will be at a stage set up at the south end of the festival, at Balbo and Columbus Drives. The stage will present music overseen by respected local labels, including Bloodshot (June 27), Earwig (June 30) and Thrill Jockey (July 2), including Eleventh Dream Day, Fred Anderson, Doug McCombs and David Daniel, and Bobby Conn. Respected local indie-music venue The Hideout will present "A Patriotic Salute to our 44 Presidents" July 4, with a variety of artists presenting a song for each president.
The secondary stage will also feature lineups built around particular themes (indie rock and power pop, world music, tribute bands, gospel and jazz). Blues patriarch David "Honeyboy" Edwards (June 30) and jazz saxophonist Von Freeman (July 5) also will perform.
BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) — The fiery Northern Ireland Protestant leader the Rev. Ian Paisley has been taken to a hospital, his wife said Monday.
The Press Association news agency said Eileen Paisley confirmed that her 85-year-old husband had been taken to the Ulster Hospital near Belfast. Ulster Television reported that he was being treated in the intensive care unit, but it was not immediately certain what he was being treated for.
Paisley, a minister in the Free Presbyterian denomination he founded, was a prominent figure in Northern Ireland's violent struggles since 1970 when the Irish Republican Army launched a campaign of violence.
Paisley came to prominence preaching a "no surrender" brand of politics, failed to block the 1998 peace accord and later led his Democratic Unionist Party to head a regional government in partnership with Sinn Fein, the party of IRA supporters.
Paisley got along so well with his deputy, former IRA commander Martin McGuinness, that the pair were nicknamed "the chuckle brothers."
Paisley had recently cut back on his activities, retiring from politics and the pulpit. Friends and foes have called him "the big man" in tribute to his bulky 6-foot-3 (190cms), his large-featured faced and his bellowing voice.
Just as Penang was swiftly transformed into one of Asia’s hottest destinations a few years ago, the buzz in Malaysia right now is all about another under-the-radar spot, the little-known city of Kuching, riverside capital of Sarawak on the island of Borneo. There are several theories as to how the city got its name (Kuching is “cat” in Malay), but its roots are as a trading post, built up by the family of Sir James Brooke, the first of the “white rajahs” who ruled Sarawak for a century. When I first visited 20 years ago, Kuching was a backwater, where tourists would hardly break their journey on their way to trek in Borneo’s rainforests and national parks.
Going there today still reminds me of a time when Asian cities were not clogged with traffic, pollution and skyscrapers. Kuching’s architectural heritage and historic Chinatown are well-preserved, even though it lacks Unesco protection, and there is scarcely a high-rise to spoil the skyline.
The street food has always been spectacular here, but now there are also bistros and fun bars, and a great choice of accommodation from boutique hotels to backpacker hostels. Despite its growth it retains a laid-back, small-town ambiance, with friendly locals who love to meet travellers who have made it all the way to Borneo.
Kuching is defined by its historic waterfront, and the perfect introduction is to take a sunset stroll along the one-mile pedestrian promenade that follows the snaking Sarawak river. Across the water lie sleepy Malay kampongs, the once-imposing colonial Fort Margherita and the White Rajah’s palace, both dwarfed today by an immense modern parliament building resembling a surreal golden spaceship. There are river cruises, but the simple sampan ferry, which rows people back and forth for M$1 a ride (under 20p), is more fun.
At the end of the prom, opposite the ancient prison that is now a fashionable restaurant, is the jewel in Kuching’s colonial crown, the 19th-century Old Court House with colonnaded terraces, which has become a culture hub since it was taken over by the people behind Penang’s bohemian China House arts and leisure centre. Today the various court buildings host exhibitions, theatre, poetry reading and live music, as well as a fashion boutique, cafe and restaurant. Parallel to the waterfront runs Main Bazaar Street, lined with shops selling tribal handicrafts. The back streets behind form Kuching’s Chinatown, a maze of incense-filled temples, coffee shops, street food stalls and noisy workshops full of tinsmiths, cobblers, carpenters and tailors.
Kuching is not big on sights, but one venue not to miss is Sarawak Museum, which has barely changed since it first opened in 1891, with an incredible collection of local flora and fauna, and a genuine insight into the indigenous tribes of the Borneo rainforest.
Local designer Jacqueline Fong has opened Tanoti Crafts, a workshop/boutique for young weavers that produces ethnic silk songket cloth, including affordable accessories like shawls and bags.
No one could fail to notice the large number of tattooed people in Kuching: body art is an integral part of the indigenous culture, especially the Iban, once also known for headhunting. Today, more than 20 tattoo studios draw in travellers. The man to visit is the world-renowned Ernesto Kalum, whose Borneo Headhunter studio (47 Wayang Street) offers both contemporary tattoos using modern machines and tribal designs created with the traditional tap technique.
For a less invasive insight into local life, book a course at Bumbu Cooking Class (about £28pp), where Joseph Jissin, from the Bidayuh tribe, takes small groups to the market to shop for ingredients from the jungle such as ferns and pineapples, colourful Malinjau nuts and fragrant pandan leaves, which everyone then cooks under his supervision before eating everything for lunch.
Kuching is a foodie paradise, particularly the street food, where most dishes cost less than a pound. Begin at Chinatown’s Seng Kee (main dishes about 90p, 37 Carpenter Street), where there’s a choice of fishball soup, pork satay, Sarawak laksa, Chinese rice porridge with salted egg and preserved vegetables, or the adventurous kueh chap, a feast of slow-braised pork ribs and intestines.
In nearby Padungan Road, there’s always a queue for Noodle Descendents (188 Padungan Road) which serves an awesome bowl of kolo mee, the favourite local dish of minced pork and noodles, served by a tiny lady who has been cooking here since 1957.
At night, the crowds head to Top Spot (main dishes from £1.80, Bukit Mata Street), an immense open-air food court on the roof of a car park. More than 500 diners sit at communal tables, ordering from neon-lit seafood stalls displaying live crabs, prawns, razor clams, wriggling squid, grouper, pomfret and parrot fish.
There are plenty of fine dining addresses too, from Asian fusion cuisine at Bla Bla Bla (27 Tabuan Street, mains £7) to excellent pasta and pizza at Junk (mains from £4, 80 Wayang Street), decorated with eclectic antiques collected by flamboyant chef George Ling. He also owns a row of Chinese shophouses, the latest being the lovingly preserved Barber Cafe just up the road, serving comfort food: tangy prawn soup, chilli burgers and healthy salads accompanied by a bloody mary or dirty martini.
But what is really exciting in Kuching right now is the rediscovery of the cuisine of Sarawak’s indigenous tribes in creative restaurants such as Lepau (395 Ban Hock Road) and the.Dyak (29 Simpang Tiga Road). Dishes include manok lulun (chicken stewed in bamboo with tapioca leaves and herbs); umai (thinly sliced river fish marinated ceviche-style); and vegetables such as cangkuk manis (star gooseberry leaves) and midin (wild ferns).
For the best river views, take afternoon tea or sunset cocktails at the James Brooke Bistro (7 Tunku Abdul Rahman Street), which recalls the days of the white rajahs. Locals, though, tend to prefer freshly roasted coffee from beans grown on Sarawak plantations, at Black Bean Coffee (87 Ewe Hai Street). From early evening happy hour until well after midnight, the Drunk Monkey (68 Carpenter Street), in Chinatown, is Kuching’s latest hot spot, though easily confused with the equally popular Monkeebar (12 Song Thian Cheok Street), owned by a conservation NGO that gives a third of its profits to an orang-utan conservation project. For live reggae and heavy metal, head for The Canteen (7 Tun Haji Openg Street) at weekends. And 21 Bistro (64 Padungan Road) is a gritty bar where Filipino musicians entertain a raucous crowd: it’s the place to try a glass of tuak, lethal home-brewed rice wine.
Martin Allen still believes in his Chesterfield squad, ahead of another tough assignment tonight in the National League as they attempt to snap a five-game losing streak.
The Spireites visit last season’s beaten play-off finalists Boreham Wood, a side unbeaten in three.
Town might have lost their last five, all by a single goal, but Allen insists the team is better than some he’s managed in the past.
“It’s not far away, it’s not as if we’re absolutely rubbish,” he said.
“It’s an awful, awful feeling, you know you’re going to get dog’s abuse and it’s the worst feeling in the world.
“With this lot I don’t feel like that.
“These are a good bunch of lads, good players.
Curtis Weston has recovered from a knock picked up on Saturday against Leyton Orient and Allen will need everyone to be on their game against Luke Garrard’s Boreham Wood at Meadow Park.
“They’ve got a very good manager, he recruits very, very well,” said Allen.
“He’s got a couple of my old players who are great, great lads.
“Every time I’m in this seat looking over this table I say every game is going to be difficult.
They got to the play-off final last season, they’re a very tough team.
All these good things put together cancel out one bad thing (crabcore), resulting in 2009 being a pretty all right year.
It is not all cute boys and singing babies, ok? That's only like 90%.
The Clerks “my girlfriend sucked 37 dicks” dialog, synced with the pre-fight chatter scene from Revenge of the Sith.
We've had some pretty good things this year! But what could the Internet have done without?
Here's a cringeworthy 15 minute Gathering of the Juggalos infomercial. It amazing how much trash they can pack into one event.
Seventy-five NHS staff lost a court battle - leaving them owing thousands of pounds in the unpaid tickets and fines.
A judge ruled a private parking contractor can collect all unpaid tickets plus fines for staff who parked illegally at Wales' biggest hospital.Workers at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, say they have been left "broken" by the order, with some quitting their jobs.
The judgement means each health worker must pay an average of £900 - but for many it will go into the thousands.
It's horrendous. Some of them are broken. They're scared stiff, petrified, they feel sick. This affects everyone from cleaners to doctors.
We have had people going in and handing their notice in.
The judge made them all worth £128 a ticket and all enforceable. The money machine has started.
At the moment we just need to sit back and asses what we are going to do because it costs money to appeal.
It was like David and Goliath - and David lost.
The ruling by District Judge Clare Coates comes after a three day trial at Cardiff Civil Justice Centre.
The case involved three workers Stephen Dadswell, Emily Booth and Sophie Round - who parking contractor Indigo say have each racked up more than 100 parking tickets.
But the three NHS workers are part of a larger group of workers with unpaid tickets - and the hearing was seen as a test case for other staff who have also failed to pay.
Judge Coates' ruling means each unpaid ticket can be collected for £128 - amounting to a total of £39,000.
She also ordered the group will have to pay £29,000 costs. Speaking after the judgement, healthcare support worker Sophie Round, said: "I am gutted."
"It's not really the outcome that we wanted and what we earn doesn't really cover the fines."
Robert O'Brien, 35, quit his hospital job earlier this year when he was hit with almost £800 in fines from contractor Indigo, he now works as a salesman.
I quit my job with the NHS because of the stress of being hit with parking fines.
I loved the job but just couldn't take it any more.

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