End of Year Tax Tips

It's not too late to save on you 2009 taxes. Here's an artice from the New York Times regarding some end of the year tax moves.

Supreme Court Take Up a Texting Case

Very interesting to see how the Supreme Court shakes out one this one.



At issue in this case is whether there is a right to privacy in personal text messages sent/received on workplace devices (cell phones, PDAs, ect.). This case will provide an expanded explaination on Fourth Amendment right to privacy questions in the new digital age.

New Milage Rates for 2010 & Tax Guide to Save on 2009 Taxes

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2010, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

• 50 cents per mile for business miles driven,

• 16.5 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes, and

• 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations.



Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax, features details on taking advantage of new tax-saving opportunities, such as the making work pay credit for most workers, American opportunity credit for parents and college students, energy credits for homeowners going green, first-time homebuyer credit, sales or excise tax deduction for new car buyers, and the expanded child tax credit and earned income tax credit for low- and moderate-income workers. This useful 308-page guide also provides more than 6,000 interactive links to help taxpayers quickly get answers to their questions.

First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Changes

Finally, they've opened up the homebuyer tax credit to folks other than just first-time homebuyers---in my opinion, this should have been done from the beginning.


The revised law allows individuals who have owned a primary residence for at least five of the previous eight years to qualify for a $6,500 tax credit (although there are income limits).


Click here for more details. Happy home buying!

Chief Justice Roberts Way With Words

At the beginning of the year the Court issued a ruling (cited: Spears v. U.S. 129 S.Ct. 840, January 21, 2009) on whether the district courts can vary from the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines. As many know, the sentencing guidelines (if followed) punish possession of crack cocaine much harsher than powder cocaine. Fortnuately, the Court said if was okay for district courts to vary from the guidelines (although, few judges actually do so).

While I disagree with Chief Justice's dissent, I love his way with words. Here's an expert of his dissent. You have appreciate his articulation.

"This is not the stuff of summary reversal. The majority may well be correct that its holding today follows from Kimbrough, but it is not clear to me that this result was part and parcel of the holding in that case, especially in light of the language quoted above.

At the same time, I do not believe this case meets our normal criteria for plenary consideration. As noted, there is no split in the lower courts on the question whether a district court may replace the crack-powder ratio in the Guidelines with a categorical ratio of the court's own choosing. And, as explained above, I do not think the Court of Appeals has “so far departed from the accepted and usual course of judicial proceedings ... as to call for an exercise of this Court's supervisory power.” S.Ct. Rule 10(a). In other words, this is exactly the sort of issue that could benefit from further attention in the courts of appeals. We should not rush to answer a novel question about the application of a one-year-old decision in the absence of a pronounced conflict among the circuits.

Apprendi, Booker, Rita, Gall, and Kimbrough have given the lower courts a good deal to digest over a relatively short period. We should give them some time to address the nuances of these precedents before adding new ones. As has been said, a plant cannot grow if you constantly yank it out of the ground to see if the roots are healthy."

How Did My Driver's License Get Suspended?

There are several ways this can happen.

O.C.G.A. 40-5-54 mandates a suspension of your driver's license upon conviction of any of the following:

Homicide by vehicle
Any felony involving use of motor vehicle
Hit and Run
Racing
Fleeing or Attempting to Elude an Officer
Fraudulent use of or application for license
Driving with revoked/canceled/suspended registration

And if you are under 21 upon convication of:

Any of the above offenses
Leaving the Scene of an Accident
Reckless Driving
Any traffic offense for which four (4) or more points are assessable
Purchasing alcohol
DUI

Paul W. Hamilton (over 5 years experience in traffic law, former municipal court judge)
Hamilton & Perryman, LLC
Attorneys at Law

Super Speeder Designation Comes to Georgia

In an effort to fund a trauma care system in Georgia, the Georgia General Assembly passed house bill 160 during the 2009 session.

Commonly referred to as the "Super Speeder Legislation," it goes into effect on January 1, 2010 and is codified as O.C.G.A. 40-6-189.

Below is a summary of the legislation:

1. Classifies driver as a "super speeder" when convicted of driving 85+mph on any road or highway, 75+mph on any two-lane road or highway.

2. In addition to fines or penalties imposed by a local jurisdiction or the department, the department (DDS) is authorized to collect a $200 fee from a "super speeder."

3. The department must notify the "super speeder," via first class mail, of the $200 fee within 30 days of the department's receipt of a qualifying ticket and notice of conviction.

4. If the "super speeder" fails to pay the $200 fee within 90 days of receipt of the notice, the "super speeder's" license or driving privilege is subject to suspension and an additional reinstatement fee of $50 shall be assessed.

5. To clarify whether the offense occurred on a two lane road or highway, the legislature amended O.C.G.A. 40-6-187 which require the uniform traffic citation to reflect whether the violation occurred on a two lane road or highway.

Note: Information obtained and liberally copied from materials prepared by Latoya Graham and presented as a Legislative Update of the 2009 Driver's License Law CLE.