Rep. Jim McDermott just introduced a new Estate Tax Bill that would return the estate tax exemption to $1.0 million and restore the pre-20001 progressive rate structure with a top rate of 55%. This bill makes sense as a fair revenue raiser except for its failure to acknowledge that same-sex couples will be over taxed unless they are allowed access to the marital deduction that opposite sex married couples are given. Read More ...

Are the expenses incurred for gender reassignement surgery deductible medical expenses under §213 of the Internal Revenue Code or are they nondeductible expenses for cosmetic surgery? Rhiannon O'Donnabhain thought so and so she deducted them in 2001. The IRS denied the deduction and she sued in Tax Court. The Tax Court ruled in her favor in 2010 and now the IRS has acquiesced in that decision. Read More ...