Earlier last week, two courts in two different districts issued opposing decisions regarding tax credits for those who bought health insurance through federal exchanges.

The Internal Revenue Service allowed an estimated $13.3 billion to $15.6 billion to be paid in improper claims for the Earned Income Tax Credit last fiscal year, or about 22 to 26 percent of all EITC payments, according to a new government report found the IRS continuing to be noncompliant with a 2010 law that sought to limit improper payments.

The Internal Revenue Service has adopted a "Taxpayer Bill of Rights" that it said would become a cornerstone document to provide the nation's taxpayers with a better understanding of their rights.

The scariest financial risk people face in life is running out of money at an old age. I’m 83 and I’m speaking from personal experience. After a long career as a newspaper editor, I retired in 1991 at the age of 60, with my wife, who is 14 years younger and retired in 2004. I’ve learned about financial matters the hard way, and I ghost-write articles like this one to earn some extra income.

There is more to the federal income tax system than just a single calculation. Upper-income taxpayers---especially those with investment income---must cope with six layers of taxation: (1) ordinary income tax; (2) capital gains and losses; (3) the alternative minimum tax; (4) the net investment income tax; (5) the additional Medicare tax; and (6) a reduction of itemized deductions and personal exemptions.

A couple of years ago in TTW #109 we introduced ROBS as a strategy to fund a new business. The following is a recent article in Businessweek about this risky strategy.