The New Child Tax Credit

Recently, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was signed into law by President Trump. One of the tax reform changes includes a new child tax credit. How will this affect you when filing your 2017 tax returns? I am sure many people are going to be really disappointed when they file their tax returns this year.

Here are the changes you have to look forward to when filing your return in 2017.

The child tax credit, was introduced by 1997 legislation and was first available in 1998. It started as a nonrefundable credit of $400 for each qualifying child under the age of 17. In the last 20 years, it has undergone many changes. Under pre-TCJA law, the CTC was worth up to $1,000 per qualifying child and was refundable for taxpayers with earned income of at least $3,000. This was phased out for taxpayers with an adjusted gross income above $75,000 ($110,000 for joint filers). These rules remain in effect for 2017 tax returns (filed in 2018). The TCJA eliminates the dependent exemption itself, but retains the definition of dependent to claim the CTC and other child- or dependent-related tax benefits.

• The CTC is worth up to $2,000 per qualifying child. The age cut-off remains at 17 (the child must be under 17 at the end of the year for taxpayers to claim the credit).
• The refundable portion of the credit is limited to $1,400. This amount will be adjusted for inflation after 2018.
• The earned income threshold for the refundable credit is lowered to $2,500.
• The beginning credit phaseout for the CTC increases to $200,000 ($400,000 for joint filers). The phaseout also applies to the new family tax credit.
• The child must have a valid SSN to claim the nonrefundable and refundable credit.

Rule 15—Earned Income Limits

$48,340 ($53,930 for married filing jointly) if you have three or more qualifying children,

$45,007 ($50,597 for married filing jointly) if you have two qualifying children,

$39,617 ($45,207 for married filing jointly) if you have one qualifying child, or

$15,010 ($20,600 for married filing jointly) if you don't have a qualifying child.

New Images From Inside the Turpin Home

New images from inside the Turpin family homes they once lived in has now been released may lead to more charges against David and Louise Turpin. 

Dead dogs, filth, feces and ropes tied to beds were found in the Texas home before they moved to Perris. 

Turpin Siblings Horror Story of Abuse

Two California parents are facing life in prison for the abuse of their 13 children. Louise Anna Turpin, 49, and David Allen Turpin, 57 entered in not guilty pleas in court on Thursday afternoon in Riverside County District Attorney's Office. Both are being held on a $13 million dollar bail. One million per child. The couples next court date is February 23rd and could be looking up to facing 94 years to life in prison.

The charges include child abuse, torture, lewd acts on a child under the age of a child under the age of 14 and false imprisonment.

“One of the children at age 12 is the weight of an average 7-year-old,” he told reporters, revealing more about the discoveries alleged to have been made Sunday after police raided the home in Perris. “The 29-year-old female victim weighs 82 pounds.”

The parents would buy food and prohibit the children from eating with the exception of the 2 year old. For some reason, they were allowing the 2 year old to have enough to eat.

The age of the children ranged from age 2 to age 29. The children would be up until around 4 or 5 a.m. before going to sleep. The children were tied in ropes and if they escaped the ropes they were chains and locks. The children often beaten and their punishments would last for weeks or even months at a time. Which sometimes included strangulation as their punishment.

The children were only allowed to bathe once a year. If the children washed their hands above their wrists they would be chained up for punishment for playing with water, according to authorities.

Many of the siblings suffer from cognitive impairment and neurological impairment as a result of the abuse.

Authorities say, the 17 year girl who had escaped on Sunday had been planning the escape for 2 years with siblings. Police say, she climbed out a window with another sibling and dialed 911 on a deactivated cell phone once outside the house and then turned back, because she was afraid of being caught.

The children were home schooled on the scriptures, but lacked the basic knowledge of life. In fact, did not even know what a police officer was.

David Turpin is listed in a state Department of Education directory as the principal of Sandcastle Day School, a private K-12 school that he ran from the house. It opened in 2011, and enrolled six students during the 2016-2017 school year, one in each the fifth, sixth, eighth, ninth, 10th and 12th grades, according to the directory.

David Turpin posted pictures of the family on Facebook at Disneyland and wedding photos to make them appear normal.

 A 4-year-old found beaten and abused, she thought her name was ‘Idiot,’ according to police.

District Attorney Michael Hestrin said at a news conference Thursday, this is an ongoing investigation. The children were allowed to write in journals and recorded their abuse. Police found stacks and stacks of journals where the children had recorded their abuse that will be a great resource into the investigation of their abuse.



  

Car Hacking The New Threat

Car hacking is not something we ever thought we would have to worry about.  Car hacking is the new threat as technology advances. Automakers are now finding themselves having to prepare to protect your automotive from cyber attacks. The threat is real and could get more serious as the future advances into driver-less cars begin talking with one another. Imagine hackers infiltrating a car through a  infotainment system before taking control of the car's driving features opening a new door to auto theft.

Car hacking allows them to shut down your security features and take over the basic driving functions. Basically, car hacking would allow car hackers to hack into a moving vehicle on the highway. As automobiles become more automated, the threat becomes more real. 

Another Government Shut Down Possible In the Next 7 Days

2017 may be a new year, but it is the same old politics. Congress is looking at another shut down by January 19th, if they do not come to an agreement on a budget plan and the Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program, Military spending and building a wall on the Mexican border. 

A shutdown will happen when the government fails to sign 12 appropriate bills into law by the deadline.

Members of Congress can gives themselves an extension to prevent a shutdown. However, they are not going to agree on anything they are already disagreeing on. Why give themselves an extension? They are basically getting a paid vacation when Congress shuts down. 

Non essential government employees such as national parks, monuments, and etc. will be sent home without pay until an agreement is reached while politicians still get paid.

Trump has said, a government shut down could be useful for him. However, the democrats could be taking the blame for a broken government if congress does not come to a decision and are faced with a shut down.