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Unfortunately, the unemployment rate is approaching 10% across the country. Some areas like Michigan got hit much harder. Here is a great potential tax tip if you’re currently job searching.

IRS Summertime Tax Tip 2009-01
Many taxpayers spend time during the summer months polishing their résumé and attending career fairs. If you are searching for a job this summer, you may be able to deduct some of your expenses on your tax return.
Here are the top six things the IRS wants you to know about deducting costs related to your job search.
1. In order to deduct job search costs, the expenses must be spent on a job search in your current occupation. You may not deduct expenses incurred while looking for a job in a new occupation.
2. You can deduct employment and outplacement agency fees you pay while looking for a job in your present occupation. If your employer pays you back in a later year for employment agency fees, you must include the amount you receive in your gross income up to the amount of your tax benefit in the earlier year.
3. You can deduct amounts you spend for preparing and mailing copies of a résumé to prospective employers as long as you are looking for a new job in your present occupation.
4. If you travel to an area to look for a new job in your present occupation, you may be able to deduct travel expenses to and from the area. You can only deduct the travel expenses if the trip is primarily to look for a new job. The amount of time you spend on personal activity compared to the amount of time you spend looking for work is important in determining whether the trip is primarily personal or is primarily to look for a new job.
5. You cannot deduct job search expenses if there was a substantial break between the end of your last job and the time you begin looking for a new one.
6. You cannot deduct job search expenses if you are looking for a job for the first time.

If gasoline taxes are going down, and people are out of work, why is the price of gas going up? 

On May 19, Obama announced national fuel efficiency standards requiring the average fuel economy of cars to be 35.5 mpg by 2016.   

We all know the benefits of fuel efficiency are less green house gas emissions and less dependency on foreign oil. The bad news, however, is for the roads we all drive. 

Funding for transportation infrastructure has been a hot topic all year. According to the Journal of Commerce , the government only collects 33 percent of the $200 billion needed to maintain the existing infrastructure. 

That 33 percent is mostly funded by the 18.4 cent per gallon tax the government levies on gas sold at gas stations. States also add their own taxes, ranging from 20-40 cents per gallon. 

Clearly, these new standards cause even more problems for those collecting revenue for infrastructure. The answer? Well, it’s not good news. 

Some states have been testing out programs that would replace the gas tax with a mileage tax— determined by a GPS. Government representatives were quick to deny the possibility; however, the National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission has been pushing the concept for months. They estimate a 2.3 cent tax per mile in order to meet funding for basic maintenance and improvements. 

So before you get all excited about that brand new Prius and it’s incredible fuel economy, you might want to check out the National Transportation Policy Project report and think twice about who’ll be paying for those potholes.

Robert Rimberg 

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2009 could be a great year to buy a home, especially if you’re a first time home buyer. Prices of homes are falling, mortgage rates are at an all time low and the government just through in this little extra:

For 2009 Home Purchases

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 expanded the first-time homebuyer credit by increasing the credit amount to $8,000 for purchases made in 2009 before Dec. 1. For home purchased in 2009, the credit does not have to be paid back unless the home ceases to be the taxpayer’s main residence within a three-year period following the purchase.

First-time homebuyers who purchase a home in 2009 can claim the credit on either a 2008 tax return, due April 15, 2009, or a 2009 tax return, due April 15, 2010. The credit may not be claimed before the closing date. But, if the closing occurs after April 15, 2009, a taxpayer can still claim it on a 2008 tax return by requesting an extension of time to file or by filing an amended return. News release 2009-27 has more information on these options.

For more info go to http://www.irs.gov

Robert Rimberg, CPA