Main Street Dollars

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The House passed H.R. 9500, the Tax Relief for Fraud Victims Act, by a vote of 408-17 on Sept. 16, 2026. The bill would open the tax code’s theft-loss deduction to people who lost money to scams, and it now moves to the Senate. It is not law. Nothing in the bill takes effect unless…

IRS deadline relief for people affected by the Israel and Gaza attacks ends Sept. 30

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Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, is the last day of IRS postponement relief for people affected by the terrorist attacks in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. Filing and payment deadlines that fell between Sept. 30, 2025 and Sept. 30, 2026 were pushed to today for covered taxpayers. The IRS has posted no extension in its…

Long-term care insurers will send customers a new IRS form for 2026 premiums

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A new tax form is taking shape for a narrow group of long-term care insurance customers, the ones whose retirement plan is involved in paying premiums. Draft IRS instructions for Form 1099-LPS, the Long-Term Care Premiums Paid Statement, say insurers that issue certified long-term care coverage will report premiums and charges starting with tax year…

Trump’s tax law adds a 1% federal tax on cash, money orders and cashier’s checks sent abroad, and the sender owes it

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Since Jan. 1, 2026, a 1% federal excise tax has applied to money sent abroad when the sender pays with cash, a money order, a cashier’s check or a similar physical instrument. President Trump’s 2025 tax law created it, and the sender owes it. A transfer funded from a bank account or with a U.S.-issued…

The White House’s promised $500 health exchange refund is per person, so a household with several full-price enrollees could get more than one

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in Refunds

The White House has announced a $500 refund for people who buy full-price health coverage through HealthCare.gov, and the amount is set per person, not per household. That detail matters for families: a household with several full-price enrollees could be in line for more than one $500 payment. The plan is an announcement so far,…

The IRS will keep taking paper checks for tax payments through 2026 and run two lockboxes until December 2027

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The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) reports that IRS management said the agency will not refuse a paper check as payment in calendar year 2026, and that the IRS will keep using two lockbox locations for checks and money orders until December 2027. The findings appear in report 2026-108-054, dated September 16, 2026.…

Nebraska, Mississippi and Montana cut income tax rates Jan. 1, with Nebraska’s top rate falling to 3.99% from 4.55%

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Three state income tax cuts are written into law for the tax year that begins Jan. 1, 2027. Nebraska’s top rate falls to 3.99% from 4.55%, Mississippi’s rate on income above $10,000 drops from 4% to 3.75%, and Montana’s top rate moves to 5.4% from 5.65%. Each figure comes from the state’s own statute or…

Draft IRS instructions show refunds can no longer be used to buy savings bonds

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in Refunds

A tax refund that once could be turned into savings bonds appears to have lost that route. Draft instructions for Form 8888, the IRS form for splitting a refund among accounts, say the program allowing a refund to be deposited into a TreasuryDirect account to buy savings bonds has been discontinued. Because the document is…

Thirty states have now opted into Trump’s $1,700 scholarship tax credit that starts in January, up from 27 in June

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