Latest news with #Westley
AU Financial Review
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- AU Financial Review
‘The Princess Bride' has lessons for Trump in dealing with Xi
In the cult film The Princess Bride, the hero Westley tricks a villain, Vizzini, into killing himself in a battle of wits. Vizzini has to choose between two cups of wine, one of which Westley says is poisoned. In fact, Westley's cup is also poisoned, but he survives: he had spent years building up immunity to the toxin. Through long and careful preparation, Westley won the battle of wits long before it had begun. Financial Times
CBS News
16-05-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Creek Fire burns more than 80 acres in Stanislaus County
WESTLEY — Crews are battling a vegetation fire that has burned dozens of acres in Stanislaus County on Thursday. Cal Fire SCU said the fire was burning near Ingram Creek Road and Interstate 5 in Westley. As of 5 p.m., 81 acres have burned and containment was at 40%. Cal Fire said crews were making good progress in implementing containment lines. The blaze, dubbed the Creek Fire, was previously reported to have burned 100 acres but Cal Fire downgraded that number due to better mapping. The fire was not causing any disruptions to I-5 traffic. No evacuations were in place and no injuries have been reported. The cause of the fire is not yet known.
Miami Herald
14-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Social Security income tax cuts may include a huge new deduction for retirees
The House Ways and Means tax bill is out, and older Americans hoping for a tax break on their Social Security benefits received a different kind of relief than expected. The tax proposal aims to provide tax relief for seniors age 65 and older by increasing their standard deduction by an additional $4,000. The increased standard deduction for seniors would be in effect through 2028 and subject to income limits, according to Robert Westly, regional wealth advisor at Northern Trust. Related: How the IRS taxes Social Security income in retirement The new tax break is welcome news for the over 66 million Americans who collect Social Security income, including about six million baby boomers who signed up to receive benefits in 2024. Social Security income is only designed to replace about 40% of a person's pre-retirement income, and many Americans count on it exclusively to support themselves in retirement. That's a problem because the average Social Security payment to retired workers is less than $2,000 monthly, yet average retirees' monthly expenses total $4,345, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The shortfall between Social Security income and expenses means every dollar counts, making tax relief crucial. To qualify, he said a senior's adjusted gross income (AGI) must be no more than $75,000 for single filers or $150,000 for those married filing jointly. Under current law, for the 2025 tax year, the standard deduction amounts are: Single: $15,000;Married filing jointly: $30,000;Head of household: $22,500; andMarried filing separately: $15,000. These amounts are adjusted annually for inflation, according to the IRS. There's also an additional standard deduction for those 65 or older or blind: Single or head of household: $2,000 (or $4,000 if both 65 or older and blind); andMarried filing jointly or qualifying surviving spouse: $1,600 per spouse (or $3,200 per spouse if both 65 or older and blind). According to Westley, the proposed deduction is an additional deduction on top of the regular standard deduction – not on top of the current additional deduction. "So, it would increase the current additional deduction to $4,000 for a single filer age 65 and older, or $8,000 for a married couple filing jointly where both are age 65 or older," he said. The standard deduction is a specific dollar amount that reduces the amount of income on which you're taxed. "My thought is that the additional standard deduction should be a meaningful savings to the average older American," said Westley. "Most seniors take the standard deduction and live on a fixed income, so the proposed deduction should provide meaningful tax relief." Meantime, Jeffrey Levine, the chief planning officer at Focus Partners, stated on X the following about this proposal. "This next proposed tax break for seniors is a doozy from a complexity POV," he wrote. "The upshot is that "Seniors" would be entitled to up to an additional deduction of $4k, but (ready for this laundry list of caveats?)..." He noted the deduction would: Only apply for four years (2025 - 2028); Be phased out by 4% of income in excess of $150,000 for joint filers and $75,000 for everyone else; and Be a below-the-line deduction, but would be available to both itemizers and non-itemizers. "BTW, I'm pretty sure 'senior' here means 'someone 65 or older by the end of the year,' since they're basically bolting this provision onto the section covering 'additional standard deduction' amounts," Levine wrote. Westley and other experts, however, are urging Americans to hold off on calculating their tax savings for now. "The bill will be debated and likely change numerous times prior to becoming law, but it helps to see how it may progress directionally," said Westley. And Jean-Luc Bourdon, a wealth adviser with Lucent Wealth Planning, said, "I'm looking for anything that would prompt me to act before the proposals become law. So far, waiting for the final bill seems reasonable." Related: These are the most tax-friendly states if you work in retirement And Jeffrey Levine, the chief planning officer at Focus Partners, stated on X the following: "Reminder that this is still just PROPOSED legislation. Things can (and likely will) change." Broadly, the proposed bill aims to address the impending expirations of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) while introducing additional changes to U.S. tax policy. From Westley's perspective, one of the most significant aspects is the bill's move to codify and make permanent key provisions of the TCJA. These include the current individual income tax rates, the increased Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) threshold, the higher standard deduction, the elimination of miscellaneous itemized deductions, and the removal of the personal exemption. "Overall, the bill would prevent tax increases on 62% of taxpayers that would occur if the TCJA expired as scheduled," the Tax Foundation noted in its analysis. The bill also proposes to raise the State and Local Tax Deduction (SALT) cap to $30,000 for filers earning $400,000 or less. It increases the exemption for estate, gift and GST (Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax taxes to $15 million for 2026, adjusted for inflation, which is more than a simple extension would allow. The SALT deduction is a provision in the U.S. federal income tax system that allows taxpayers who itemize deductions to reduce their taxable income by the amount of certain taxes paid to state and local governments, such as property taxes, state and local income taxes, and sales taxes. For the tax years 2018 through 2025, the TCJA imposed a limit on the total amount of deductible state and local taxes. The current SALT deduction limit is $10,000 per household. For those married filing separately, the limit is $5,000. This cap is scheduled to expire at the end of 2025. Under current law, which expires at the end of 2025, the federal estate tax exemption for 2025 is $13.99 million per individual. That means that an individual can transfer up to $13.99 million in assets during their lifetime and/or at death without incurring federal estate or gift taxes. For married couples, this exemption is effectively doubled to $27.98 million. Related: Medicare recipients face a growing problem Check Levine's insights into all things personal finance. The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
BBC News
03-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Westley challenges Essex to end wait for trophy
Captain Tom Westley has challenged Essex's younger players to help propel the club to a new era of begin the new County Championship season on Friday with a home game against Surrey, who have dominated the competition for the past three Silverwood has returned as Essex's director of cricket, having previously guided them to the title in 2017, which was followed by a Championship and T20 Blast double in 2019 and the Bob Willis Trophy in 2020."We haven't won anything for a few years now and if we want to be remembered like the Gooch era, the Fletcher era, we need to add a couple more Championships before we're even considered," Westley told BBC Essex Sport."That's going to be the shift in the mentality of the players, to want to create their own legacy - which is going to be a challenge because we don't necessarily have the resources of some counties."What we do have is quality and talent in abundance in the changing room. We're tired now of competing or running them close, it would be nice if we can actually lift a trophy again." Essex, who finished fourth in Division One last season, will again rely heavily on the quality of prolific seam bowlers Jamie Porter and Sam Cook and off-spinner Simon Harmer, while Westley - now 36 - and South African Dean Elgar provide the experience in the batting they also have the likes of Noah Thain, Luc Benkenstein, Robin Das and Charlie Allison, who are looking to gain more game time with the first team."There's always a changing of personnel, people getting a bit older, and some of the younger guys are probably at a stage in their careers now where they want to stamp their authority on the club and want their own success," said Westley."It is an exciting time. In the last three or four years we've been competitive but my challenge to the squad and the management's challenge is you actually want to create your own success."There's only a handful of us who were involved in the trophy success of a few years back, so the challenge is can that next crop of Essex cricketers create their own legacy?"On former England and Sri Lanka head coach Silverwood's return to Chelmsford, Westley added: "He is familiar with the club, and is also desperate and hungry for the club to move forward and be successful (again)."Silvers has changed himself, he's had international experience which has been fantastic for him, and hopefully bringing that knowledge and experience back to Essex will only benefit us."
