title: Screw

text: The materials are usually carbon steel substrate with a coating of zinc galvanization (for corrosion resistance). The zinc coating may be bright (electroplated), yellow (electroplated), or dull gray hot-dip galvanized. Lag screws are used to lag together lumber framing, to lag machinery feet to wood floors, and for other heavy carpentry applications. The attributive modifier "lag" came from an early principal use of such fasteners: the fastening of lags such as barrel staves and other similar parts.


title: Screw

text: These fasteners are "screws" according to the "Machinery's Handbook" criteria, and the obsolescent term "lag bolt" has been replaced by "lag screw" in the "Handbook". However, based on tradition many tradesmen continue to refer to them as "bolts", because, like head bolts, they are large, with hex or square heads that require a wrench, socket, or specialized bit to turn.


title: Screw

text: The federal government of the United States made an effort to formalize the difference between a bolt and a screw, because different tariffs apply to each. The document seems to have no significant effect on common usage and does not eliminate the ambiguous nature of the distinction between screws and bolts for some threaded fasteners. The document also reflects (although it probably did not originate) significant confusion of terminology usage that differs between the legal/statutory/regulatory community and the fastener industry. The legal/statutory/regulatory wording uses the terms "coarse" and "fine" to refer to the tightness of the tolerance range, referring basically to "high-quality" or "low-quality", but this is a poor choice of terms, because those terms in the fastener industry have a different meaning (referring to the steepness of the helix's lead).


title: Screw

text: The distinctions above are enforced in the controlled vocabulary of standards organizations. Nevertheless, there are sometimes differences between the controlled vocabulary and the natural language use of the words by machinists, auto mechanics and others. These differences reflect linguistic evolution shaped by the changing of technology over centuries. The words "bolt" and "screw" have both existed since before today's modern mix of fastener types existed, and the natural usage of those words has evolved retronymously in response to the technological change. (That is, the use of words as names for objects changes as the objects change.) Non-threaded fasteners predominated until the advent of practical, inexpensive screw-cutting in the early 19th century. The basic meaning of the word "screw" has long involved the idea of a helical screw thread, but the Archimedes screw and the screw gimlet (like a corkscrew) preceded the fastener.


title: Screw

text: The word "bolt" is also a very old word, and it was used for centuries to refer to metal rods that passed through the substrate to be fastened on the other side, often via nonthreaded means (clinching, forge welding, pinning, wedging, etc.). The connection of this sense to the sense of a door bolt or the crossbow bolt is apparent. In the 19th century, bolts fastened via screw threads were often called "screw bolts" in contradistinction to "clench bolts".


title: Screw

text: In common usage, the distinction (not rigorous) is often that screws are smaller than bolts, and that screws are generally tapered while bolts are not. For example, cylinder head bolts are called "bolts" (at least in North American usage) despite the fact that by some definitions they ought to be called "screws". Their size and their similarity to a bolt that would take a nut seem linguistically to overrule any other factors in this natural word choice proclivity.


title: Screw

text: Old USS and SAE standards defined cap screws as fasteners with shanks that were threaded to the head and bolts as fasteners with shanks that were partially unthreaded. The relationship of this rule to the idea that a bolt by definition takes a nut is clear (because the unthreaded section of the shank, which is called the "grip", was expected to pass through the substrate without threading into it). This is now an obsolete distinction, although large bolts still often have unthreaded sections of shank.


title: Screw

text: Although there is no reason to consider this definition obsolete, because it is far from clear that "a bolt by definition takes a nut". Using a coach "bolt" as an example (and it has been a 'bolt' for a very long time). It was not originally intended to receive a nut, but did have a shank. Its purpose was not to pass through the entire substrate but only one piece of it, while the threaded portion bit into the other in order to draw, and clamp the materials together. The 'carriage' bolt was derived from this and was employed more to speed up manufacturing than achieve a different function. The carriage bolt passes through both pieces of materials and employs a nut to provide the clamping force. Both are still, however, bolts.


title: Screw

text: Bolts have been defined as headed fasteners having external threads that meet an exacting, uniform bolt thread specification (such as ISO metric screw thread M, MJ, Unified Thread Standard UN, UNR, and UNJ) such that they can accept a non-tapered nut. Screws are then defined as headed, externally threaded fasteners that do not meet the above definition of bolts. These definitions of screw and bolt eliminate the ambiguity of the "Machinery's handbook" distinction. And it is for that reason, perhaps, that some people favor them. However, they are neither compliant with common usage of the two words nor are they compliant with formal specifications.


title: Screw

text: A possible distinction is that a screw is designed to cut its own thread; it has no need for access from or exposure to the opposite side of the component being fastened to. This definition of screw is further reinforced by the consideration of the developments of fasteners such as Tek Screws, with either round or hex heads, for roof cladding, self-drilling and self-tapping screws for various metal fastening applications, roof batten screws to reinforce the connection between the roof batten and the rafter, decking screws etc. On the other hand, a bolt is the male part of a fastener system designed to be accepted by a pre-equipped socket (or nut) of exactly the same thread design.


title: Screw

text: Threaded fasteners either have a tapered shank or a non-tapered shank. Fasteners with tapered shanks are designed to either be driven into a substrate directly or into a pilot hole in a substrate, and most are classed as screws. Mating threads are formed in the substrate as these fasteners are driven in. Fasteners with a non-tapered shank are generally designed to mate with a nut or to be driven into a tapped hole, and most would be classed as bolts, although some are thread-forming (eg. taptite) and some authorities would treat some as screws when they are used with a female threaded fastener other than a nut.


title: Screw

text: A fastener with a built in washer is called a SEM or SEMS, short for pre-asSEMbled. It could be fitted on either a tapered or non-tapered shank.


title: Screw

text: A superbolt, or multi-jackbolt tensioner is an alternative type of fastener that retrofits or replaces existing nuts, bolts, or studs. Tension in the bolt is developed by torquing individual jackbolts, which are threaded through the body of the nut and push against a hardened washer. Because of this, the amount of torque required to achieve a given preload is reduced. Installation and removal of any size tensioner is achieved with hand tools, which can be advantageous when dealing with large diameter bolting applications.


title: Screw

text: The field of screws and other hardware for internal fixation within the body is huge and diverse. Like prosthetics, it integrates the industrial and medicosurgical fields, causing manufacturing technologies (such as machining, CAD/CAM, and 3D printing) to intersect with the art and science of medicine. Like aerospace and nuclear power, this field involves some of the highest technology for fasteners, as well as some of the highest prices, for the simple reason that performance, longevity, and quality have to be excellent in such applications. Bone screws tend to be made of stainless steel or titanium, and they often have high-end features such as conical threads, multistart threads, cannulation (hollow core), and proprietary screw drive types (some not seen outside of these applications).


title: Screw

text: These abbreviations have jargon currency among fastener specialists (who, working with many screw types all day long, have need to abbreviate repetitive mentions). The smaller basic ones can be built up into the longer ones; for example, knowing that "FH" means "flat head", it may be possible to parse the rest of a longer abbreviation containing "FH".


title: Screw

text: These abbreviations are not universally standardized across corporations; each corporation can coin their own. The more obscure ones may not be listed here.


title: Screw

text: The extra spacing between linked terms below helps the reader to see the correct parsing at a glance.


title: Screw

text: Where great resistance to weather or corrosion is required, like in very small screws or medical implants, materials such as stainless steel, brass, titanium, bronze, silicon bronze or monel may be used.


title: Screw

text: Galvanic corrosion of dissimilar metals can be prevented (using aluminum screws for double-glazing tracks for example) by a careful choice of material.


title: Screw

text: Some types of plastic, such as nylon or polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), can be threaded and used for fastenings requiring moderate strength and great resistance to corrosion or for the purpose of electrical insulation.


title: Screw

text: Often a surface coating is used to protect the fastener from corrosion (e.g. bright zinc plating for steel screws), to impart a decorative finish (e.g. japanning) or otherwise alter the surface properties of the base material.


title: Screw

text: Selection criteria of the screw materials include: size, required strength, resistance to corrosion, joint material, cost and temperature.


title: Screw

text: The numbers stamped on the head of the bolt are referred to the grade of the bolt used in certain application with the strength of a bolt. High-strength steel bolts usually have a hexagonal head with an ISO strength rating (called "property class") stamped on the head. And the absence of marking/number indicates a lower grade bolt with low strength. The property classes most often used are 5.8, 8.8, and 10.9. The number before the point is the ultimate tensile strength in MPa divided by 100. The number after the point is the multiplier ratio of yield strength to ultimate tensile strength. For example, a property class 5.8 bolt has a nominal (minimum) ultimate tensile strength of 500 MPa, and a tensile yield strength of 0.8 times ultimate tensile strength or 0.8 (500) = 400 MPa.


title: Screw

text: Ultimate tensile strength is the tensile stress at which the bolt fails. Tensile yield strength is the stress at which the bolt will yield in tension across the entire section of the bolt and receive a permanent set (an elongation from which it will not recover when the force is removed) of 0.2% offset strain. Proof strength is the usable strength of the fastener. Tension testing of a bolt up to the proof load should not cause permanent set of the bolt and should be conducted on actual fasteners rather than calculated. If a bolt is tensioned beyond the proof load, it may behave in plastic manner due to yielding in the threads and the tension preload may be lost due to the permanent plastic deformations. When elongating a fastener prior to reaching the yield point, the fastener is said to be operating in the elastic region; whereas elongation beyond the yield point is referred to as operating in the plastic region of the bolt material. If a bolt is loaded in tension beyond its proof strength, the yielding at the net root section of the bolt will continue until the entire section is begins to yield and it has exceeded its yield strength. If tension increases, the bolt fractures at its ultimate strength.


title: Screw

text: Mild steel bolts have property class 4.6, which is 400 MPa ultimate strength and 0.6*400=240 MPa yield strength. High-strength steel bolts have property class 8.8, which is 800 MPa ultimate strength and 0.8*800=640 MPa yield strength or above.


title: Screw

text: The same type of screw or bolt can be made in many different grades of material. For critical high-tensile-strength applications, low-grade bolts may fail, resulting in damage or injury. On SAE-standard bolts, a distinctive pattern of marking is impressed on the heads to allow inspection and validation of the strength of the bolt. However, low-cost counterfeit fasteners may be found with actual strength far less than indicated by the markings. Such inferior fasteners are a danger to life and property when used in aircraft, automobiles, heavy trucks, and similar critical applications.


title: Screw

text: The international standards for metric externally threaded fasteners are ISO 898-1 for property classes produced from carbon steels and ISO 3506-1 for property classes produced from corrosion resistant steels.


title: Screw

text: There are many standards governing the material and mechanical properties of imperial sized externally threaded fasteners. Some of the most common consensus standards for grades produced from carbon steels are ASTM A193, ASTM A307, ASTM A354, ASTM F3125, and SAE J429. Some of the most common consensus standards for grades produced from corrosion resistant steels are ASTM F593 & ASTM A193.


title: Screw

text: Some varieties of screw are manufactured with a break-away head, which snaps off when adequate torque is applied. This prevents tampering and also provides an easily inspectable joint to guarantee proper assembly. An example of this is the shear bolts used on vehicle steering columns, to secure the ignition switch.


title: Screw

text: Modern screws employ a wide variety of drive designs, each requiring a different kind of tool to drive in or extract them. The most common screw drives are the slotted and Phillips in the US; hex, Robertson, and Torx are also common in some applications, and Pozidriv has almost completely replaced Phillips in Europe. Some types of drive are intended for automatic assembly in mass-production of such items as automobiles. More exotic screw drive types may be used in situations where tampering is undesirable, such as in electronic appliances that should not be serviced by the home repair person.


title: Screw

text: The hand tool used to drive in most screws is called a "screwdriver". A power tool that does the same job is a "power screwdriver"; power drills may also be used with screw-driving attachments. Where the holding power of the screwed joint is critical, torque-measuring and "torque-limiting screwdrivers" are used to ensure sufficient but not excessive force is developed by the screw. The hand tool for driving hex head threaded fasteners is a "spanner" (UK usage) or "wrench" (US usage), while a "nut setter" is used with a power screw driver.


title: Screw

text: There are many systems for specifying the dimensions of screws, but in much of the world the ISO metric screw thread preferred series has displaced the many older systems. Other relatively common systems include the British Standard Whitworth, BA system (British Association), and the Unified Thread Standard.


title: Screw

text: The basic principles of the ISO metric screw thread are defined in international standard ISO 68-1 and preferred combinations of diameter and pitch are listed in ISO 261. The smaller subset of diameter and pitch combinations commonly used in screws, nuts and bolts is given in ISO 262. The most commonly used pitch value for each diameter is the "coarse pitch". For some diameters, one or two additional "fine pitch" variants are also specified, for special applications such as threads in thin-walled pipes. ISO metric screw threads are designated by the letter M followed by the major diameter of the thread in millimetres (e.g. "M8"). If the thread does not use the normal "coarse pitch" (e.g. 1.25 mm in the case of M8), then the pitch in millimeters is also appended with a multiplication sign (e.g. "M8×1" if the screw thread has an outer diameter of 8 mm and advances by 1 mm per 360° rotation).


title: Screw

text: The nominal diameter of a metric screw is the outer diameter of the thread. The tapped hole (or nut) into which the screw fits, has an internal diameter which is the size of the screw minus the pitch of the thread. Thus, an M6 screw, which has a pitch of 1 mm, is made by threading a 6 mm shank, and the nut or threaded hole is made by tapping threads into a hole of 5 mm diameter (6 mm - 1 mm).


title: Screw

text: Metric hexagon bolts, screws and nuts are specified, for example, in International Standards ISO 4014, ISO 4017, and ISO 4032. The following table lists the relationship given in these standards between the thread size and the maximum width across the hexagonal flats (wrench size):


title: Screw

text: Bear in mind that these are just examples and the width across flats is different for structural bolts, flanged bolts, and also varies by standards organization.


title: Screw

text: The first person to create a standard (in about 1841) was the English engineer Sir Joseph Whitworth. Whitworth screw sizes are still used, both for repairing old machinery and where a coarser thread than the metric fastener thread is required. Whitworth became "British Standard Whitworth", abbreviated to BSW (BS 84:1956) and the "British Standard Fine" (BSF) thread was introduced in 1908 because the Whitworth thread was too coarse for some applications. The thread angle was 55°, and the depth and pitch varied with the diameter of the thread (i.e., the bigger the bolt, the coarser the thread). Spanners for Whitworth bolts are marked with the size of the bolt, not the distance across the flats of the screw head.


title: Screw

text: The most common use of a Whitworth pitch nowadays is in all UK scaffolding. Additionally, the standard photographic tripod thread, which for small cameras is 1/4" Whitworth (20 tpi) and for medium/large format cameras is 3/8" Whitworth (16 tpi). It is also used for microphone stands and their appropriate clips, again in both sizes, along with "thread adapters" to allow the smaller size to attach to items requiring the larger thread. Note that while 1/4" UNC bolts fit 1/4" BSW camera tripod bushes, yield strength is reduced by the different thread angles of 60° and 55° respectively.


title: Screw

text: British Association (BA) screw threads, named after the British Association for Advancement of Science, were devised in 1884 and standardised in 1903. Screws were described as "2BA", "4BA" etc., the odd numbers being rarely used, except in equipment made prior to the 1970s for telephone exchanges in the UK. This equipment made extensive use of odd-numbered BA screws, in order—it may be suspected—to reduce theft. BA threads are specified by British Standard BS 93:1951 "Specification for British Association (B.A.) screw threads with tolerances for sizes 0 B.A. to 16 B.A."


title: Screw

text: While not related to ISO metric screws, the sizes were actually defined in metric terms, a 0BA thread having a 6 mm diameter and 1 mm pitch. Other threads in the BA series are related to 0BA in a geometric series with the common factors 0.9 and 1.2. For example, a 4BA thread has pitch formula_1 mm (0.65 mm) and diameter formula_2 mm (3.62 mm). Although 0BA has the same diameter and pitch as ISO M6, the threads have different forms and are not compatible.


title: Screw

text: BA threads are still common in some niche applications. Certain types of fine machinery, such as moving-coil meters and clocks, tend to have BA threads wherever they are manufactured. BA sizes were also used extensively in aircraft, especially those manufactured in the United Kingdom. BA sizing is still used in railway signalling, mainly for the termination of electrical equipment and cabling.


title: Screw

text: BA threads are extensively used in Model Engineering where the smaller hex head sizes make scale fastenings easier to represent. As a result, many UK Model Engineering suppliers still carry stocks of BA fasteners up to typically 8BA and 10BA. 5BA is also commonly used as it can be threaded onto 1/8 rod.


title: Screw

text: The Unified Thread Standard (UTS) is most commonly used in the United States, but is also extensively used in Canada and occasionally in other countries. The size of a UTS screw is described using the following format: X-Y, where X is the nominal size (the hole or slot size in standard manufacturing practice through which the shank of the screw can easily be pushed) and Y is the threads per inch (TPI). For sizes inch and larger the size is given as a fraction; for sizes less than this an integer is used, ranging from 0 to 16. The integer sizes can be converted to the actual diameter by using the formula 0.060 + (0.013 × number). For example, a #4 screw is 0.060 + (0.013 × 4) = 0.060 + 0.052 = 0.112 inches in diameter. There are also screw sizes smaller than "0" (zero or ought). The sizes are 00, 000, 0000 which are usually referred to as two ought, three ought, and four ought. Most eyeglasses have the bows screwed to the frame with 00-72 (pronounced double ought – seventy two) size screws. To calculate the major diameter of "ought" size screws count the number of 0's and multiply this number by 0.013 and subtract from 0.060. For example, the major diameter of a 000-72 screw thread is .060 – (3 x .013) = 0.060 - 0.039 = .021 inches. For most size screws there are multiple TPI available, with the most common being designated a Unified Coarse Thread (UNC or UN) and Unified Fine Thread (UNF or UF). Note: In countries other than the United States and Canada, the ISO Metric Screw Thread System is primarily used today. Unlike most other countries the United States and Canada still use the Unified (Inch) Thread System. However, both are moving over to the ISO Metric System. It is estimated that approximately 60% of screw threads in use in the United States are still inch based.


title: Screw

text: There are three steps in manufacturing a screw: "heading", "thread rolling", and "coating". Screws are normally made from wire, which is supplied in large coils, or round bar stock for larger screws. The wire or rod is then cut to the proper length for the type of screw being made; this workpiece is known as a "blank". It is then cold headed, which is a cold working process. Heading produces the "head" of the screw. The shape of the die in the machine dictates what features are pressed into the screw head; for example a flat head screw uses a flat die. For more complicated shapes two heading processes are required to get all of the features into the screw head. This production method is used because heading has a very high production rate, and produces virtually no waste material. Slotted head screws require an extra step to cut the slot in the head; this is done on a "slotting machine". These machines are essentially stripped down milling machines designed to process as many blanks as possible.


title: Screw

text: The blanks are then polished again prior to threading. The threads are usually produced via thread rolling; however, some are cut. The workpiece is then tumble finished with wood and leather media to do final cleaning and polishing. For most screws, a coating, such as electroplating with zinc (galvanizing) or applying black oxide, is applied to prevent corrosion.


title: Screw

text: While a recent hypothesis attributes the Archimedes' screw to Sennacherib, King of Assyria (), archaeological finds and pictorial evidence only appear in the Hellenistic period (after 323 BC), and the standard view regards the screw machine as a Greek invention, most probably by the 3rd-century BC polymath Archimedes. Though resembling a screw, the screw mechanism associated with the name of Archimedes is not a screw in the usual ("fastening") sense of the word.


title: Screw

text: Earlier, the screw had been described by the Greek mathematician Archytas of Tarentum (428–350 BC). By the 1st century BC, wooden screws (screws made of wood) were commonly used throughout the Mediterranean world in screw presses for pressing olive oil from olives and for pressing juice from grapes in winemaking. Metal screws used as fasteners were rare in Europe before the 15th century, if known at all.


title: Screw

text: Handheld screwdrivers (formerly called "turnscrews" in English, in direct parallel to their original French name, "tournevis") have existed since medieval times (the 1580s at the latest). However they probably did not become truly widespread until after 1800, once threaded fasteners had become commodified.


title: Screw

text: There were many forms of fastening in use before threaded fasteners became widespread. They tended to involve carpentry and smithing rather than machining, and they involved concepts such as dowels and pins, wedging, mortises and tenons, dovetails, nailing (with or without clenching the nail ends), forge welding, and many kinds of binding with cord made of leather or fiber, using many kinds of knots. Prior to the mid-19th century, ship-builders used cotter pins or pin bolts, and "clinch bolts" (now called "rivets"). Glues also existed, although not in the profusion used today.


title: Screw

text: The metal screw did not become a common fastener until machine tools for mass production developed toward the end of the 18th century. This development blossomed in the 1760s and 1770s along two separate paths that soon converged: the mass production of "wood" screws (meaning screws made of metal to be used in working with wood) in a specialized, single-purpose, high-volume-production machine tool; and the low-count, toolroom-style production of "machine" screws (V-thread) with easy selection among various pitches (whatever the machinist happened to need on any given day).


title: Screw

text: The first path was pioneered by brothers Job and William Wyatt of Staffordshire, UK, who patented in 1760 a machine that one might today best call a screw machine of an early and prescient sort. It made use of a leadscrew to guide the cutter to produce the desired pitch, and the slot was cut with a rotary file while the main spindle held still (presaging live tools on lathes 250 years later). Not until 1776 did the Wyatt brothers have a wood-screw factory up and running. Their enterprise failed, but new owners soon made it prosper, and in the 1780s they were producing 16,000 screws a day with only 30 employees—the kind of industrial productivity and output volume that would later become characteristic of modern industry but which was revolutionary at the time.


title: Screw

text: Meanwhile, English instrument-maker Jesse Ramsden (1735–1800) was working on the toolmaking and end of the screw-cutting problem, and in 1777 he invented the first satisfactory screw-cutting lathe. The British engineer Henry Maudslay (1771–1831) gained fame by popularizing such lathes with his screw-cutting lathes of 1797 and 1800, containing the trifecta of leadscrew, slide rest, and change-gear gear train, all in the right proportions for industrial machining. In a sense he unified the paths of the Wyatts and Ramsden and did for machine screws what had already been done for wood screws, i.e., significant easing of production spurring commodification. His firm would remain a leader in machine tools for decades afterward. A misquoting of James Nasmyth popularized the notion that Maudslay had "invented" the slide rest, but this was incorrect; however, his lathes helped to popularize it.


title: Screw

text: These developments of the 1760–1800 era, with the Wyatts and Maudslay as arguably the most important drivers, caused great increase in the use of threaded fasteners. Standardization of threadforms began almost immediately, but it was not quickly completed; it has been an evolving process ever since. Further improvements to the mass production of screws continued to push unit prices lower and lower for decades to come, throughout the 19th century.


title: Screw

text: In 1821 Hardman Philips built the first screw factory in the United States - on Moshannon Creek, near Philipsburg - for the manufacture of blunt metal screws. An expert in screw manufacture, Thomas Lever, was brought over from England to run the factory. The mill used steam and water power, with hardwood charcoal as fuel. The screws were made from wire prepared by "rolling and wire drawing apparatus" from iron manufactured at a nearby forge. The screw mill was not a commercial success. It eventually failed due to competition from the lower-cost, gimlet-pointed screw, and ceased operations in 1836.


title: Screw

text: The American development of the turret lathe (1840s) and of automatic screw machines derived from it (1870s) drastically reduced the unit cost of threaded fasteners by increasingly automating the machine-tool control. This cost reduction spurred ever greater use of screws.


title: Screw

text: Throughout the 19th century, the most commonly used forms of screw head (that is, drive types) were simple internal-wrenching straight slots and external-wrenching squares and hexagons. These were easy to machine and served most applications adequately. Rybczynski describes a flurry of patents for alternative drive types in the 1860s through 1890s, but explains that these were patented but not manufactured due to the difficulties and expense of doing so at the time. In 1908, Canadian P. L. Robertson was the first to make the internal-wrenching square socket drive a practical reality by developing just the right design (slight taper angles and overall proportions) to allow the head to be stamped easily but successfully, with the metal cold forming as desired rather than being sheared or displaced in unwanted ways. Practical manufacture of the internal-wrenching hexagon drive (hex socket) shortly followed in 1911.


title: Screw

text: Threadform standardization further improved in the late 1940s, when the ISO metric screw thread and the Unified Thread Standard were defined.


title: Screw

text: Precision screws, for controlling motion rather than fastening, developed around the turn of the 19th century, and represented one of the central technical advances, along with flat surfaces, that enabled the industrial revolution. They are key components of micrometers and lathes.


title: Arthur Blank

text: Arthur M. Blank (born September 27, 1942) is an American businessman and a co-founder of the home improvement retailer The Home Depot.


title: Arthur Blank

text: He also currently owns two professional sports teams based in Atlanta, Georgia - the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) and Atlanta United of Major League Soccer (MLS), the latter of which having won the 2018 MLS Cup, thus giving him an MLS Cup Championship to his credit.


title: Arthur Blank

text: Arthur Blank was born to a Jewish family in Flushing, New York. He was born to Max Blank, a pharmacist, and Molly Blank. He has an older brother named Michael. Blank graduated from Stuyvesant High School in New York City.


title: Arthur Blank

text: After graduating from Babson Institute in 1963, Blank was hired by Arthur Young and Company, where he was a senior accountant. He later joined the Daylin corporation, where he rose to become president of Elliott's Drug Stores/Stripe Discount Stores, a division of Daylin. When Daylin decided to sell off that division, Blank moved to another division, Handy Dan Home Improvement Centers. Bernard Marcus was CEO of Handy Dan and Blank was vice president of finance when both were fired in 1978 as part of an internal power struggle.


title: Arthur Blank

text: In 1978, Blank co-founded Home Depot with Marcus. New York investment banker Ken Langone assembled the initial group of investors and merchandising expert Patrick Farrah helped founders realize their vision of one-stop shopping for the do-it-yourselfer. The store revolutionized the home improvement business with its warehouse concept and Blank and Marcus became billionaires as a result. Blank spent 19 years as the company's president before succeeding Marcus as CEO. Blank retired from the company in 2001 as co-chairman. He received his MBA from Harvard.


title: Arthur Blank

text: Today, Blank is the Chairman of AMB Group LLC, parent company of the Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United. He is also chairman of The Arthur Blank Family Foundation, and serves on the Board of Trustees of Emory University.


title: Arthur Blank

text: In March 2020, Blank's foundation announced it would donate nearly $5.4 million to aid the coronavirus pandemic response in Georgia and Montana.


title: Arthur Blank

text: In October 2020 it was announced that the new Children's Healthcare of Atlanta hospital would be named after Arthur Blank after his foundation donated $200 million to the project. The Arthur M. Blank Hospital is expected to open in 2025.


title: Arthur Blank

text: In February 2002, Blank purchased the Atlanta Falcons franchise in the National Football League from owner Taylor Smith, the son of team founder Rankin M. Smith Sr. In September 2004, he bought the Arena Football League franchise, the Georgia Force; he moved the team to the city of Atlanta after it had spent several years in suburban Gwinnett County.


title: Arthur Blank

text: Blank has expressed serious interest in purchasing other franchises. In early 2006, he temporarily withdrew from contention as a potential buyer of the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball. Some months later, Blank re-entered serious talks with Time Warner and a report indicated that a sale was imminent. However, in February 2007, the Braves completed the sale of the team to Liberty Media. Blank has also founded an expansion Major League Soccer franchise named Atlanta United FC that began play in 2017. The club shares Mercedes-Benz Stadium with the Falcons.


title: Arthur Blank

text: Blank has been married three times and divorced twice, with a third divorce pending. He has three children with his first wife, Diana Blank (born 1942): Kenny Blank, Dena Blank Kimball, and Danielle Blank Thomsen; they divorced in 1993. In 1995, he married Stephanie V. Blank (born 1968), a Blowing Rock, North Carolina, native and Appalachian State University graduate. They met when she worked as a designer at a Home Depot store in Atlanta. They had three children - Joshua Blank, Max Blank, and Kylie Blank - before being divorced. In June 2016, Blank married Angela Macuga (born 1968), who had three children from a previous marriage. They announced their pending divorce on January 1, 2019.


title: Arthur Blank

text: Blank owns Mountain Sky Guest Ranch and West Creek Ranch outside Yellowstone National Park in Paradise Valley, Montana. He also owns several PGA TOUR Superstores. He is a signatory of The Giving Pledge committing himself to give away at least 50% of his wealth to charitable causes.


title: Arthur Blank

text: On February 9, 2016, Blank disclosed that he had treatable prostate cancer. On March 17, 2016, Blank announced that he is cancer-free following treatment.


title: Dan (rank)

text: The ranking system is used by many Japanese, Okinawan, Korean, and other martial art organizations to indicate the level of a person's ability within a given system. Used as a ranking system to quantify skill level in a specific domain, it was originally used at a Go school during the Edo period. It is now also used in most modern Japanese fine and martial arts.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Martial arts writer Takao Nakaya claims that this dan system was first applied to martial arts in Japan by Kanō Jigorō (1860–1938), the founder of judo, in 1883, and later introduced to other East Asian countries. In the modern Japanese martial arts, holders of dan ranks often wear a black belt; those of higher rank may also wear either red-and-white or red belts depending on the style. Dan ranks are also given for strategic board games such as Go, Japanese chess ("shōgi"), and renju, as well as for other arts such as the tea ceremony ("sadō" or "chadō"), flower arrangement ("ikebana"), Japanese calligraphy ("shodō"), and Japanese archery ("Kyudo"). Today, this ranking system is part of the hallmark, landscape, and cultural "adhesive" of modern Japanese society.


title: Dan (rank)

text: The Chinese character for the word dan (段) literally means "step" or "stage" in Japanese, but is also used to refer to one's "rank", "grade", or "station", i.e., one's degree or level of expertise, knowledge and seniority. In Chinese pinyin, however, the same character is pronounced "duàn" in Mandarin with the 4th tone, and was originally used to mean "phase". Dan is often used together with the word in certain ranking systems, with "dan" being used for the higher ranks and "kyū" being used for lower ranks.


title: Dan (rank)

text: The dan ranking system in Go was devised by Hon'inbō Dōsaku (1645–1702), a professional Go player in the Edo period. Prior to the invention, top-to-bottom ranking was evaluated by comparison of handicap and tended to be vague. Dosaku valued the then highest title holder, Meijin at 9 Dan. He was likely inspired by an ancient Chinese Go ranking system (9 Pin Zhi) and an earlier court ranking system (nine-rank system), although lower numbers are more senior in those systems.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Dan ranks were transferred to martial arts by Kanō Jigorō (1860–1938), the founder of judo. Kanō started the modern rank system in 1883 when he awarded "shodan" (the lowest dan rank) to two of his senior students (Shiro Saigo and Tomita Tsunejirō). Prior to this, martial arts schools rewarded progress with less frequent menkyo licenses or secret scrolls.


title: Dan (rank)

text: There was still no external differentiation between "yūdansha" (black belt ranks) and "mudansha" (those who had not yet attained a dan grade). Different athletic departments within the Japanese school system were already using markers of rank, most notably in swimming, where advanced swimmers wore a black ribbon around their waists. Kano adopted the custom of having his "yūdansha" wear black obi (belts) in 1886.


title: Dan (rank)

text: At that time, these "obi" were not the belts that "karateka" and "jūdōka" wear today; the students were still practicing in kimono. They wore the wide "obi" still worn with formal kimono. In 1907, Kanō invented the modern keikogi (white practice uniforms), and belts in white for mudansha and black for yūdansha.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Traditionally, the level of Go players has been defined using "kyū" and "dan" ranks. Kyu ranks are considered "student" ranks, whilst dan ranks are considered "master" ranks. Especially in amateur play, these ranks facilitate the handicapping system, with a difference of one rank roughly corresponding to one free move at the beginning of the game. With the ready availability of calculators and computers, "rating" systems have been introduced. In such systems, a rating is rigorously calculated on the basis of game results.


title: Dan (rank)

text: "Dan" (abbreviated online as "d") ranks are for advanced players. Although many organizations let players choose their own kyū rank to a certain extent, dan ranks are often regulated. This means that players will have to show good results in tournaments or pass exams to be awarded a dan rank. Serious students of the game will often strive to attain a dan rank. Dan ranks are generally available up to about 7th dan; professional player ranks go up to 9th dan.


title: Dan (rank)

text: As in Go, shogi has also traditionally used "dan" and "kyū" ranks to define the playing strength of a shogi player. Amateur players can, through over-the-board (OTB) play, achieve ranks from 15-kyū to 8-dan. In addition to dan and kyū, an Elo-type rating system is also used by the Japan Amateur Shogi Association for the tournaments it organizes.


title: Dan (rank)

text: The ranking system used by the Japan Shogi Association (JSA) for professionals uses similar terminology, but is actually quite different in terms of ability. Professional player ranks start at 4 dan and go up to 9 dan. There also used to be 10 dan ranking, but this is no longer used. Amateur players train to become professionals at one of the JSA's apprentice schools and are ranked from 6-kyū to 3-dan. Since only exceptionally strong amateur players are able to qualify for the shōreikai, it is generally believed that the typical shōreikai 6-kyū is at least the equivalent of an amateur 3 or 4 dan player. Shōreikai 3-dan players who either win or finish runner-up in one of the two 3-dan league tournaments held each year are awarded the rank of 4-dan and granted professional status.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Although there is no difference in the systems used for men and women amateurs, the JSA and the Ladies Professional Shogi-players' Association of Japan, or LPSA, do use a slightly different system for ranking women professionals. Women professionals are ranked from 3-kyū to 6-dan and it is commonly believed that even the strongest women professionals are generally only equivalent in playing strength to shōreikai 1- or 2-dan ranked players. In fact, no woman professional has ever successfully completed the shōreikai system and been awarded the rank of 4-dan. Three women have made it as far as 1 dan in the shōreikai, and two have made it as far as 3 dan.


title: Dan (rank)

text: While the use of the kyū/dan system, and colored belts is common to both gendai budō or arts of other east Asian origin, and to arts that are derived from these, or from other areas, it is not universal.


title: Dan (rank)

text: In modern times, a dan-ranked practitioner of a style is usually recognized as a martial artist who has surpassed the "kyū", or basic, ranks. They may also become a licensed instructor in their art. In many styles, however, achieving a dan rank means that, while one is no longer considered a beginner, one is not yet necessarily an expert. Rather, it indicates a high degree of competence across a reasonable range of techniques.


title: Dan (rank)

text: The total number of dan ranks is style-specific (1st through 5th and 1st through 10th are common in Japanese martial arts). The lower dan grades normally are attained through a grading examination or sometimes through competition. The higher dan grades usually require years of experience and contribution to the relevant modern martial art. This may be through instruction or research and publication. These grades can only be awarded by a higher-graded representative of the principal dojo or sometimes by a steering committee. There is no set achievement level that is universal. Ranking systems are specific to the school or style, so ranks do not necessarily translate across different martial arts styles. In fact, dan ranks do not necessarily indicate one wears a black belt. In martial arts such as iaidō, kendō or jōdō, no external signifier of rank is worn, though a black belt is by far the most recognizable symbol to the general public.


title: Dan (rank)

text: The highest dan ranks are sometimes reserved for the founder or leaders of a style and only high-ranking students can be promoted to them. For example, only five living people hold a tenth dan in judo and only about thirty-five worldwide have been promoted to the rank since its inception; of those 10th dan promotions only fifteen were conferred by the Kodokan, all of them to Japanese judoka. In other styles, the dan ranks are not the highest level that might be attained, with instructor certification and judge/judgment authorization being understood as higher-level or more sophisticated.


title: Dan (rank)

text: In many martial arts, black belts are often worn for all "dan" grades. In others, different colors are used, with the highest grade (10th "dan") sometimes wearing a red belt in some systems. In Jūdo, 6th to 8th "dan" may wear a red and white-patterned belt, and 9th "dan" and above may wear a solid red belt. Blue with a red stripe is sometimes worn for Renshi (錬士) or for a person recognized by the older Ryu Kyu Kingdom title of Shinshi (from Shenshi, 紳士), a general Confucian term for a resident Chinese scholar and emissary. There is some variation even within styles. Generally, belts do not have markings that indicate the actual "dan" grade. Okinawan styles often use gold bars to denote the various masters titles rather than grades after fifth "dan". Thus one gold stripe can designate , two designated , and three designated . In the early 2000s, different Okinawan styles started using the stripes to designate individual "dan" grades above "godan". Others, including many Uechi organizations, have followed suit, while others have not.


title: Dan (rank)

text: In many styles "shodan" implies that the basics of the style have been mastered. At about "sandan", the student may start teaching independently but under the supervision of his teacher. The license for this level is , literally "man of instruction/coaching", which is often translated as "assistant instructor." At about the grade of "godan", the holder may receive a full teaching license: , literally "instructor/model." Traditionally, a holder may open his own school with this license. Many styles also have the separate teaching or "master" grades of "renshi", "kyoshi", and "hanshi".


title: Dan (rank)

text: Generally, the lower "dan" grades represent greater knowledge and understanding of the art along with physical skill. The higher the "dan" grade, the more leadership ability, teaching experience, and service to the style play a role in promotion.


title: Dan (rank)

text: In modern kendo, the "dan" system was recently changed so that 8th "dan" is the highest attainable rank. Unlike Judo, all "dan" promotion within the All Japan Kendo Federation, International Kendo Federation and its member countries is by examination. Whereas "dan" grades are awarded for technical ability, there is a parallel "shogo" system awarding the higher teaching grades of "renshi", "kyoshi", and "hanshi". "Renshi" and "kyoshi" are awarded by written examination while "hanshi" by election.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Although the "dan" system is distinctly Japanese, it has been adopted by many other martial arts styles. The "dan" system and the well-known symbol of a black belt have been absorbed into common usage to represent a person with above-average or highly trained skills in a particular discipline.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Since 1998, the "Chinese Wushu Association" together with the "National Sport Commission" and the "Chinese Wushu Research Institute" has established a graduation system based on nine Duan levels. In 2011 the Duan Wei system was changed and a set of style books was issued for duan wei 1-6 exams each level can be examined on preset forms and applications including partner forms the badge has also been changed to include the duan wei number i.e. 1–6. Entry level for experienced practitioners has now been limited to 3rd Duan and below so as to tighten up the rankings.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Middle-level duans are for wushu students/coaches who are able to teach and have between 5 and 10 years of wushu coaching experience depending on level applied for. Starting from 5th Duan, there has to be proof of a scientific work in wushu research, i.e. publications, DVD, training of Duanwei examined students. Six Duanwei can use the title of Master as this is the highest technical grade.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Advanced level is only awarded to very experienced masters with excellent reputation in Wushu. The person awarded such a Duan is officially allowed to call himself "Grand Master".


title: Dan (rank)

text: The term Dan was used on the badges up to 2005 when the term Duan was then used on the badges, however the term Dan was never used on the certificates of grade, the certificates always use the term Duanwei.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Korean martial arts lacked a grading system up until the Japanese occupation (1910–1945) during which a variety of Japanese martial arts were introduced into the Korean school system, most notably judo, karate-do and kendo. After the occupation ended, newly emerging martial arts like taekwondo, tang soo do, soo bahk do and hapkido adopted the dan (단, 段) and (급, 級) ranks. The dan rank system is also used by "baduk" players. Nowadays, the Korea Taekkyon Association also issues dan ranks to "taekkyeon" practitioners.


title: Dan (rank)

text: Someone who has received a dan rank is called a (유단자, 有段者). Someone who has received a "high" dan rank (6th Dan upwards) is called a (고단자, 高段者).


title: Dan (rank)

text: In some Korean schools, most notably in Kukkiwon-style Taekwondo, there is also a "poom" system in place (품, 品; "pum" using standard Romanization). Practitioners who have not yet reached the age of 15 cannot test for a dan rank. For them, there is a system of four "poom" grades. After they reach the age of 15, their "poom"-grade can be changed to the corresponding "dan"-grade.


title: Dan (rank)

text: For most Korean martial arts, the dan ranks do not go past ninth dan, although on some occasions in some organizations, a tenth dan (십단, 十段) has been issued.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The United States of America has separate federal, state, and local governments with taxes imposed at each of these levels. Taxes are levied on income, payroll, property, sales, capital gains, dividends, imports, estates and gifts, as well as various fees. In 2020, taxes collected by federal, state, and local governments amounted to 25.5% of GDP, below the OECD average of 33.5% of GDP. The United States had the seventh-lowest tax revenue-to-GDP ratio among OECD countries in 2020, with a higher ratio than Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Ireland, Costa Rica, and Turkey.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxes fall much more heavily on labor income than on capital income. Divergent taxes and subsidies for different forms of income and spending can also constitute a form of indirect taxation of some activities over others. For example, individual spending on higher education can be said to be "taxed" at a high rate, compared to other forms of personal expenditure which are formally recognized as investments.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxes are imposed on net income of individuals and corporations by the federal, most state, and some local governments. Citizens and residents are taxed on worldwide income and allowed a credit for foreign taxes. Income subject to tax is determined under tax accounting rules, not financial accounting principles, and includes almost all income from whatever source. Most business expenses reduce taxable income, though limits apply to a few expenses. Individuals are permitted to reduce taxable income by personal allowances and certain non-business expenses, including home mortgage interest, state and local taxes, charitable contributions, and medical and certain other expenses incurred above certain percentages of income. State rules for determining taxable income often differ from federal rules. Federal marginal tax rates vary from 10% to 37% of taxable income. State and local tax rates vary widely by jurisdiction, from 0% to 13.30% of income, and many are graduated. State taxes are generally treated as a deductible expense for federal tax computation, although the 2017 tax law imposed a $10,000 limit on the state and local tax ("SALT") deduction, which raised the effective tax rate on medium and high earners in high tax states. Prior to the SALT deduction limit, the average deduction exceeded $10,000 in most of the Midwest, and exceeded $11,000 in most of the Northeastern United States, as well as California and Oregon. The states impacted the most by the limit were the tri-state area (NY, NJ, and CT) and California; the average SALT deduction in those states was greater than $17,000 in 2014.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The United States is one of two countries in the world that taxes its non-resident citizens on worldwide income, in the same manner and rates as residents; the other is Eritrea. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of imposition of such a tax in the case of "Cook v. Tait". Nonetheless, the foreign earned income exclusion eliminates U.S. taxes on the first $108,700 of annual foreign income earned by U.S. citizens living and working abroad.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Payroll taxes are imposed by the federal and all state governments. These include Social Security and Medicare taxes imposed on both employers and employees, at a combined rate of 15.3% (13.3% for 2011 and 2012). Social Security tax applies only to the first $132,900 of wages in 2019. There is an additional Medicare tax of 0.9% on wages above $200,000. Employers must withhold income taxes on wages. An unemployment tax and certain other levies apply to employers. Payroll taxes have dramatically increased as a share of federal revenue since the 1950s, while corporate income taxes have fallen as a share of revenue. (Corporate profits have not fallen as a share of GDP).


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Property taxes are imposed by most local governments and many special purpose authorities based on the fair market value of property. School and other authorities are often separately governed, and impose separate taxes. Property tax is generally imposed only on realty, though some jurisdictions tax some forms of business property. Property tax rules and rates vary widely with annual median rates ranging from 0.2% to 1.9% of a property's value depending on the state.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Sales taxes are imposed by most states and some localities on the price at retail sale of many goods and some services. Sales tax rates vary widely among jurisdictions, from 0% to 16%, and may vary within a jurisdiction based on the particular goods or services taxed. Sales tax is collected by the seller at the time of sale, or remitted as use tax by buyers of taxable items who did not pay sales tax.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The United States imposes tariffs or customs duties on the import of many types of goods from many jurisdictions. These tariffs or duties must be paid before the goods can be legally imported. Rates of duty vary from 0% to more than 20%, based on the particular goods and country of origin.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Estate and gift taxes are imposed by the federal and some state governments on the transfer of property inheritance, by will, or by lifetime donation. Similar to federal income taxes, federal estate and gift taxes are imposed on worldwide property of citizens and residents and allow a credit for foreign taxes.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The U.S. has an assortment of federal, state, local, and special-purpose governmental jurisdictions. Each imposes taxes to fully or partly fund its operations. These taxes may be imposed on the same income, property or activity, often without offset of one tax against another. The types of tax imposed at each level of government vary, in part due to constitutional restrictions. Income taxes are imposed at the federal and most state levels. Taxes on property are typically imposed only at the local level, although there may be multiple local jurisdictions that tax the same property. Other excise taxes are imposed by the federal and some state governments. Sales taxes are imposed by most states and many local governments. Customs duties or tariffs are only imposed by the federal government. A wide variety of user fees or license fees are also imposed.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxes may be imposed on individuals (natural persons), business entities, estates, trusts, or other forms of organization. Taxes may be based on property, income, transactions, transfers, importations of goods, business activities, or a variety of factors, and are generally imposed on the type of taxpayer for whom such tax base is relevant. Thus, property taxes tend to be imposed on property owners. In addition, certain taxes, particularly income taxes, may be imposed on the members of organizations for the organization's activities. Therefore, partners are taxed on the income of their partnership.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: With a few exceptions, one level of government does not impose tax on another level of government or its instrumentalities.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxes based on income are imposed at the federal, most state, and some local levels within the United States. The tax systems within each jurisdiction may define taxable income separately. Many states refer to some extent to federal concepts for determining taxable income.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The first income tax in the United States was implemented with the Revenue Act of 1861 by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. In 1895 the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. federal income tax on interest income, dividend income and rental income was unconstitutional in Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co., because it was a direct tax. The "Pollock" decision was overruled by the ratification of the Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1913, and by subsequent U.S. Supreme Court decisions including "Graves v. New York ex rel. O'Keefe," "South Carolina v. Baker," and "Brushaber v. Union Pacific Railroad Co."


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The U.S. income tax system imposes a tax based on income on individuals, corporations, estates, and trusts. The tax is taxable income, as defined, times a specified tax rate. This tax may be reduced by credits, some of which may be refunded if they exceed the tax calculated. Taxable income may differ from income for other purposes (such as for financial reporting). The definition of taxable income for federal purposes is used by many, but far from all states. Income and deductions are recognized under tax rules, and there are variations within the rules among the states. Book and tax income may differ. Income is divided into "capital gains", which are taxed at a lower rate and only when the taxpayer chooses to "realize" them, and "ordinary income", which is taxed at higher rates and on an annual basis. Because of this distinction, capital is taxed much more lightly than labor.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Under the U.S. system, individuals, corporations, estates, and trusts are subject to income tax. Partnerships are not taxed; rather, their partners are subject to income tax on their shares of income and deductions, and take their shares of credits. Some types of business entities may elect to be treated as corporations or as partnerships.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxpayers are required to file tax returns and self assess tax. Tax may be withheld from payments of income ("e.g.", withholding of tax from wages). To the extent taxes are not covered by withholdings, taxpayers must make estimated tax payments, generally quarterly. Tax returns are subject to review and adjustment by taxing authorities, though far fewer than all returns are reviewed.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxable income is gross income less exemptions, deductions, and personal exemptions. Gross income includes "all income from whatever source". Certain income, however, is subject to tax exemption at the federal or state levels. This income is reduced by tax deductions including most business and some nonbusiness expenses. Individuals are also allowed a deduction for personal exemptions, a fixed dollar allowance. The allowance of some nonbusiness deductions is phased out at higher income levels.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The U.S. federal and most state income tax systems tax the worldwide income of citizens and residents. A federal foreign tax credit is granted for foreign income taxes. Individuals residing abroad may also claim the foreign earned income exclusion. Individuals may be a citizen or resident of the United States but not a resident of a state. Many states grant a similar credit for taxes paid to other states. These credits are generally limited to the amount of tax on income from foreign (or other state) sources.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Federal and state income tax is calculated, and returns filed, for each taxpayer. Two married individuals may calculate tax and file returns jointly or separately. In addition, unmarried individuals supporting children or certain other relatives may file a return as a head of household. Parent-subsidiary groups of companies may elect to file a consolidated return.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: There are currently five filing statuses for filing federal individual income taxes: single, married filing jointly, married filing separately, head of household, and qualifying widow(er). The filing status used is important for determining which deductions and credits the taxpayer qualifies for. States may have different rules for determining a taxpayer's filing status, especially for people in a domestic partnership.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Income tax rates differ at the federal and state levels for corporations and individuals. Federal and many state income tax rates are higher (graduated) at higher levels of income. In addition, federal and many state individual income tax rate schedules differ based on the individual's filing status. For example, the income level at which each rate starts generally is higher ("i.e.", tax is lower) for married couples filing a joint return or single individuals filing as head of household.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Individuals are subject to federal graduated tax rates from 10% to 37%. Corporations are subject to a 21% federal rate of tax. Prior to 2018, the effective date of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, corporations were subject to federal graduated rates of tax from 15% to 35%; a rate of 34% applied to income from $335,000 to $15,000,000. State income tax rates, in states which have a tax on personal incomes, vary from 1% to 16%, including local income tax where applicable. Nine states do not have a tax on ordinary personal incomes. These include Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. State and local taxes are generally deductible in computing federal taxable income for taxpayers who itemize their deductions; however, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 limited the maximum amount of the deduction to $10,000 for individuals and married couples from 2018 through 2025.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxable income is gross income less adjustments and allowable tax deductions. Gross income for federal and most states is receipts and gains from all sources less cost of goods sold. Gross income includes "all income from whatever source", and is not limited to cash received. Income from illegal activities is taxable and must be reported to the IRS.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The amount of income recognized is generally the value received or which the taxpayer has a right to receive. Certain types of income are specifically excluded from gross income. The time at which gross income becomes taxable is determined under federal tax rules. This may differ in some cases from accounting rules.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Certain types of income are excluded from gross income (and therefore subject to tax exemption). The exclusions differ at federal and state levels. For federal income tax, interest income on state and local bonds is exempt, while few states exempt any interest income except from municipalities within that state. In addition, certain types of receipts, such as gifts and inheritances, and certain types of benefits, such as employer-provided health insurance, are excluded from income.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Foreign non-resident persons are taxed only on income from U.S. sources or from a U.S. business. Tax on foreign non-resident persons on non-business income is at 30% of the gross income, but reduced under many tax treaties.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: These brackets are the taxable income plus the standard deduction for a joint return. That deduction is the first bracket. For example, a couple earning $88,600 by September owes $10,453; $1,865 for 10% of the income from $12,700 to $31,500, plus $8,588 for 15% of the income from $31,500 to $88,600. Now, for every $100 they earn, $25 is taxed until they reach the next bracket.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: After making $400 more; going down to the 89,000 row the tax is $100 more. The next column is the tax divided by 89,000. The new law is the next column. This tax equals 10% of their income from $24,000 to $43,050 plus 12% from $43,050 to $89,000. The singles' sets of markers can be set up quickly. The brackets with its tax are cut in half.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Itemizers can figure the tax without moving the scale by taking the difference off the top. The couple above, having receipts for $22,700 in deductions, means that the last $10,000 of their income is tax free. After seven years the papers can be destroyed; if unchallenged.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The U.S. system allows reduction of taxable income for both business and some nonbusiness expenditures, called deductions. Businesses selling goods reduce gross income directly by the cost of goods sold. In addition, businesses may deduct most types of expenses incurred in the business. Some of these deductions are subject to limitations. For example, only 50% of the amount incurred for any meals or entertainment may be deducted. The amount and timing of deductions for business expenses is determined under the taxpayer's tax accounting method, which may differ from methods used in accounting records.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Some types of business expenses are deductible over a period of years rather than when incurred. These include the cost of long lived assets such as buildings and equipment. The cost of such assets is recovered through deductions for depreciation or amortization.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: In addition to business expenses, individuals may reduce income by an allowance for personal exemptions and either a fixed standard deduction or itemized deductions. One personal exemption is allowed per taxpayer, and additional such deductions are allowed for each child or certain other individuals supported by the taxpayer. The standard deduction amount varies by taxpayer filing status. Itemized deductions by individuals include home mortgage interest, state and local taxes, certain other taxes, contributions to recognized charities, medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of adjusted gross income, and certain other amounts.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Personal exemptions, the standard deduction, and itemized deductions are limited (phased out) above certain income levels.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Corporations must pay tax on their taxable income independently of their shareholders. Shareholders are also subject to tax on dividends received from corporations. By contrast, partnerships are not subject to income tax, but their partners calculate their taxes by including their shares of partnership items. Corporations owned entirely by U.S. citizens or residents (S corporations) may elect to be treated similarly to partnerships. A limited liability company and certain other business entities may elect to be treated as corporations or as partnerships. States generally follow such characterization. Many states also allow corporations to elect S corporation status. Charitable organizations are subject to tax on business income.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Certain transactions of business entities are not subject to tax. These include many types of formation or reorganization.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: A wide variety of tax credits may reduce income tax at the federal and state levels. Some credits are available only to individuals, such as the child tax credit for each dependent child, American Opportunity Tax Credit for education expenses, or the Earned Income Tax Credit for low income wage earners. Some credits, such as the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, are available to businesses, including various special industry incentives. A few credits, such as the foreign tax credit, are available to all types of taxpayers.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The United States federal and state income tax systems are self-assessment systems. Taxpayers must declare and pay tax without assessment by the taxing authority. Quarterly payments of tax estimated to be due are required to the extent taxes are not paid through withholdings. The second and fourth "quarters" are not a quarter of a year in length. The second "quarter" is two months (April and May) and the fourth is four months (September to December). Estimated taxes used to be paid based on a calendar quarter, but in the 60's the October due date was moved back to September to pull the third quarter cash receipts into the previous federal budget year which begins on Oct 1 every year, allowing the federal government to begin the year with a current influx of cash. Employers must withhold income tax, as well as Social Security and Medicare taxes, from wages. Amounts to be withheld are computed by employers based on representations of tax status by employees on Form W-4, with limited government review.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Forty-three states and many localities in the U.S. impose an income tax on individuals. Forty-seven states and many localities impose a tax on the income of corporations. Tax rates vary by state and locality, and may be fixed or graduated. Most rates are the same for all types of income. State and local income taxes are imposed in addition to federal income tax. State income tax is allowed as a deduction in computing federal income, but is capped at $10,000 per household since the passage of the 2017 tax law. Prior to the change, the average deduction exceeded $10,000 in most of the Midwest, most of the Northeast, as well as California and Oregon.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: State and local taxable income is determined under state law, and often is based on federal taxable income. Most states conform to many federal concepts and definitions, including defining income and business deductions and timing thereof. State rules vary widely regarding to individual itemized deductions. Most states do not allow a deduction for state income taxes for individuals or corporations, and impose tax on certain types of income exempt at the federal level.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Some states have alternative measures of taxable income, or alternative taxes, especially for corporations.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: States imposing an income tax generally tax all income of corporations organized in the state and individuals residing in the state. Taxpayers from another state are subject to tax only on income earned in the state or apportioned to the state. Businesses are subject to income tax in a state only if they have sufficient nexus in (connection to) the state.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Foreign individuals and corporations not resident in the United States are subject to federal income tax only on income from a U.S. business and certain types of income from U.S. sources. States tax individuals resident outside the state and corporations organized outside the state only on wages or business income within the state. Payers of some types of income to non-residents must withhold federal or state income tax on the payment. Federal withholding of 30% on such income may be reduced under a tax treaty. Such treaties do not apply to state taxes.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: An alternative minimum tax (AMT) is imposed at the federal level on a somewhat modified version of taxable income. The tax applies to individuals and corporations. The tax base is adjusted gross income reduced by a fixed deduction that varies by taxpayer filing status. Itemized deductions of individuals are limited to home mortgage interest, charitable contributions, and a portion of medical expenses. AMT is imposed at a rate of 26% or 28% for individuals and 20% for corporations, less the amount of regular tax. A credit against future regular income tax is allowed for such excess, with certain restrictions.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Many states impose minimum income taxes on corporations or a tax computed on an alternative tax base. These include taxes based on the capital of corporations and alternative measures of income for individuals. Details vary widely by state.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: In the United States, taxable income is computed under rules that differ materially from U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. Since only publicly traded companies are required to prepare financial statements, many non-public companies opt to keep their financial records under tax rules. Corporations that present financial statements using other than tax rules must include a detailed reconciliation of their financial statement income to their taxable income as part of their tax returns. Key areas of difference include depreciation and amortization, timing of recognition of income or deductions, assumptions for cost of goods sold, and certain items (such as meals and entertainment) the tax deduction for which is limited.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Income taxes in the United States are self-assessed by taxpayers by filing required tax returns. Taxpayers, as well as certain non-tax-paying entities, like partnerships, must file annual tax returns at the federal and applicable state levels. These returns disclose a complete computation of taxable income under tax principles. Taxpayers compute all income, deductions, and credits themselves, and determine the amount of tax due after applying required prepayments and taxes withheld. Federal and state tax authorities provide preprinted forms that must be used to file tax returns. IRS Form 1040 series is required for individuals, Form 1120 series for corporations, Form 1065 for partnerships, and Form 990 series for tax exempt organizations.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The state forms vary widely, and rarely correspond to federal forms. Tax returns vary from the two-page (Form 1040EZ) used by nearly 70% of individual filers to thousands of pages of forms and attachments for large entities. Groups of corporations may elect to file consolidated returns at the federal level and with a few states. Electronic filing of federal and many state returns is widely encouraged and in some cases required, and many vendors offer computer software for use by taxpayers and paid return preparers to prepare and electronically file returns.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Individuals and corporations pay U.S. federal income tax on the net total of all their capital gains. The tax rate depends on both the investor's tax bracket and the amount of time the investment was held. Short-term capital gains are taxed at the investor's ordinary income tax rate and are defined as investments held for a year or less before being sold. Long-term capital gains, on dispositions of assets held for more than one year, are taxed at a lower rate.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: In the United States, payroll taxes are assessed by the federal government, many states, the District of Columbia, and numerous cities. These taxes are imposed on employers and employees and on various compensation bases. They are collected and paid to the taxing jurisdiction by the employers. Most jurisdictions imposing payroll taxes require reporting quarterly and annually in most cases, and electronic reporting is generally required for all but small employers. Because payroll taxes are imposed only on wages and not on income from investments, taxes on labor income are much heavier than taxes on income from capital.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Federal, state, and local withholding taxes are required in those jurisdictions imposing an income tax. Employers having contact with the jurisdiction must withhold the tax from wages paid to their employees in those jurisdictions. Computation of the amount of tax to withhold is performed by the employer based on representations by the employee regarding his/her tax status on IRS Form W-4. Amounts of income tax so withheld must be paid to the taxing jurisdiction, and are available as refundable tax credits to the employees. Income taxes withheld from payroll are not final taxes, merely prepayments. Employees must still file income tax returns and self assess tax, claiming amounts withheld as payments.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Federal social insurance taxes are imposed equally on employers and employees, consisting of a tax of 6.2% of wages up to an annual wage maximum ($132,900 in 2019) for Social Security plus a tax of 1.45% of total wages for Medicare. For 2011, the employee's contribution was reduced to 4.2%, while the employer's portion remained at 6.2%. There is an additional Medicare tax of 0.9% on wages over $200,000, to be paid only by the employee (reported separately on the employee's tax return on Form 8959). To the extent an employee's portion of the 6.2% tax exceeds the maximum by reason of multiple employers (each of whom will collect up to the annual wage maximum), the employee is entitled to a refundable tax credit upon filing an income tax return for the year.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Employers are subject to unemployment taxes by the federal and all state governments. The tax is a percentage of taxable wages with a cap. The tax rate and cap vary by jurisdiction and by employer's industry and experience rating. For 2009, the typical maximum tax per employee was under $1,000. Some states also impose unemployment, disability insurance, or similar taxes on employees.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Employers must report payroll taxes to the appropriate taxing jurisdiction in the manner each jurisdiction provides. Quarterly reporting of aggregate income tax withholding and Social Security taxes is required in most jurisdictions. Employers must file reports of aggregate unemployment tax quarterly and annually with each applicable state, and annually at the federal level.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Each employer is required to provide each employee an annual report on IRS Form W-2 of wages paid and federal, state and local taxes withheld, with a copy sent to the IRS and the taxation authority of the state. These are due by January 31 and February 28 (March 31 if filed electronically), respectively, following the calendar year in which wages are paid. The Form W-2 constitutes proof of payment of tax for the employee.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Employers are required to pay payroll taxes to the taxing jurisdiction under varying rules, in many cases within 1 banking day. Payment of federal and many state payroll taxes is required to be made by electronic funds transfer if certain dollar thresholds are met, or by deposit with a bank for the benefit of the taxing jurisdiction.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Failure to timely and properly pay federal payroll taxes results in an automatic penalty of 2% to 10%. Similar state and local penalties apply. Failure to properly file monthly or quarterly returns may result in additional penalties. Failure to file Forms W-2 results in an automatic penalty of up to $50 per form not timely filed. State and local penalties vary by jurisdiction.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: A particularly severe penalty applies where federal income tax withholding and Social Security taxes are not paid to the IRS. The penalty of up to 100% of the amount not paid can be assessed against the employer entity as well as any person (such as a corporate officer) having control or custody of the funds from which payment should have been made.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: There is no federal sales or use tax in the United States. All but five states impose sales and use taxes on retail sale, lease and rental of many goods, as well as some services. Many cities, counties, transit authorities and special purpose districts impose an additional local sales or use tax. Sales and use tax is calculated as the purchase price times the appropriate tax rate. Tax rates vary widely by jurisdiction from less than 1% to over 10%. Sales tax is collected by the seller at the time of sale. Use tax is self assessed by a buyer who has not paid sales tax on a taxable purchase.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Unlike value added tax, sales tax is imposed only once, at the retail level, on any particular goods. Nearly all jurisdictions provide numerous categories of goods and services that are exempt from sales tax, or taxed at a reduced rate. Purchase of goods for further manufacture or for resale is uniformly exempt from sales tax. Most jurisdictions exempt food sold in grocery stores, prescription medications, and many agricultural supplies. Generally cash discounts, including coupons, are not included in the price used in computing tax.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Sales taxes, including those imposed by local governments, are generally administered at the state level. States imposing sales tax require retail sellers to register with the state, collect tax from customers, file returns, and remit the tax to the state. Procedural rules vary widely. Sellers generally must collect tax from in-state purchasers unless the purchaser provides an exemption certificate. Most states allow or require electronic remittance of tax to the state. States are prohibited from requiring out of state sellers to collect tax unless the seller has some minimal connection with the state.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Excise taxes may be imposed on the sales price of goods or on a per unit or other basis, in theory to discourage consumption of the taxed goods or services. Excise tax may be required to be paid by the manufacturer at wholesale sale, or may be collected from the customer at retail sale. Excise taxes are imposed at the federal and state levels on a variety of goods, including alcohol, tobacco, tires, gasoline, diesel fuel, coal, firearms, telephone service, air transportation, unregistered bonds, and many other goods and services. Some jurisdictions require that tax stamps be affixed to goods to demonstrate payment of the tax.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Most jurisdictions below the state level in the United States impose a tax on interests in real property (land, buildings, and permanent improvements). Some jurisdictions also tax some types of business personal property. Rules vary widely by jurisdiction. Many overlapping jurisdictions (counties, cities, school districts) may have authority to tax the same property. Few states impose a tax on the value of property.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Property tax is based on fair market value of the subject property. The amount of tax is determined annually based on the market value of each property on a particular date, and most jurisdictions require redeterminations of value periodically. The tax is computed as the determined market value times an assessment ratio times the tax rate. Assessment ratios and tax rates vary widely among jurisdictions, and may vary by type of property within a jurisdiction. Where a property has recently been sold between unrelated sellers, such sale establishes fair market value. In other ("i.e.", most) cases, the value must be estimated. Common estimation techniques include comparable sales, depreciated cost, and an income approach. Property owners may also declare a value, which is subject to change by the tax assessor.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Property taxes are most commonly applied to real estate and business property. Real property generally includes all interests considered under that state's law to be ownership interests in land, buildings, and improvements. Ownership interests include ownership of title as well as certain other rights to property. Automobile and boat registration fees are a subset of this tax. Other nonbusiness goods are generally not subject to property tax, though Virginia maintains a unique personal property tax on all motor vehicles, including non-business vehicles.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The assessment process varies by state, and sometimes within a state. Each taxing jurisdiction determines values of property within the jurisdiction and then determines the amount of tax to assess based on the value of the property. Tax assessors for taxing jurisdictions are generally responsible for determining property values. The determination of values and calculation of tax is generally performed by an official referred to as a tax assessor. Property owners have rights in each jurisdiction to declare or contest the value so determined. Property values generally must be coordinated among jurisdictions, and such coordination is often performed by equalization.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Once value is determined, the assessor typically notifies the last known property owner of the value determination. After values are settled, property tax bills or notices are sent to property owners. Payment times and terms vary widely. If a property owner fails to pay the tax, the taxing jurisdiction has various remedies for collection, in many cases including seizure and sale of the property. Property taxes constitute a lien on the property to which transfers are also subject. Mortgage companies often collect taxes from property owners and remit them on behalf of the owner.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The United States imposes tariffs or customs duties on imports of goods. The duty is levied at the time of import and is paid by the importer of record. Customs duties vary by country of origin and product. Goods from many countries are exempt from duty under various trade agreements. Certain types of goods are exempt from duty regardless of source. Customs rules differ from other import restrictions. Failure to properly comply with customs rules can result in seizure of goods and criminal penalties against involved parties. United States Customs and Border Protection ("CBP") enforces customs rules.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Goods may be imported to the United States subject to import restrictions. Importers of goods may be subject to tax ("customs duty" or "tariff") on the imported value of the goods. "Imported goods are not legally entered until after the shipment has arrived within the port of entry, delivery of the merchandise has been authorized by CBP, and estimated duties have been paid." Importation and declaration and payment of customs duties is done by the importer of record, which may be the owner of the goods, the purchaser, or a licensed customs broker. Goods may be stored in a bonded warehouse or a Foreign-Trade Zone in the United States for up to five years without payment of duties. Goods must be declared for entry into the U.S. within 15 days of arrival or prior to leaving a bonded warehouse or foreign trade zone. Many importers participate in a voluntary self-assessment program with CBP. Special rules apply to goods imported by mail. All goods imported into the United States are subject to inspection by CBP. Some goods may be temporarily imported to the United States under a system similar to the ATA Carnet system. Examples include laptop computers used by persons traveling in the U.S. and samples used by salesmen.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Rates of tax on transaction values vary by country of origin. Goods must be individually labeled to indicate country of origin, with exceptions for specific types of goods. Goods are considered to originate in the country with the highest rate of duties for the particular goods unless the goods meet certain minimum content requirements. Extensive modifications to normal duties and classifications apply to goods originating in Canada or Mexico under the [North American Free Trade Agreement].


title: Taxation in the United States

text: All goods that are not exempt are subject to duty computed according to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule published by CBP and the U.S. International Trade Commission. This lengthy schedule provides rates of duty for each class of goods. Most goods are classified based on the nature of the goods, though some classifications are based on use.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Customs duty rates may be expressed as a percentage of value or dollars and cents per unit. Rates based on value vary from zero to 20% in the 2011 schedule. Rates may be based on relevant units for the particular type of goods (per ton, per kilogram, per square meter, etc.). Some duties are based in part on value and in part on quantity.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Where goods subject to different rates of duty are commingled, the entire shipment may be taxed at the highest applicable duty rate.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Imported goods are generally accompanied by a bill of lading or air waybill describing the goods. For purposes of customs duty assessment, they must also be accompanied by an invoice documenting the transaction value. The goods on the bill of lading and invoice are classified and duty is computed by the importer or CBP. The amount of this duty is payable immediately, and must be paid before the goods can be imported. Most assessments of goods are now done by the importer and documentation filed with CBP electronically.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: After duties have been paid, CBP approves the goods for import. They can then be removed from the port of entry, bonded warehouse, or Free-Trade Zone.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: After duty has been paid on particular goods, the importer can seek a refund of duties if the goods are exported without substantial modification. The process of claiming a refund is known as duty drawback.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Certain civil penalties apply for failures to follow CBP rules and pay duty. Goods of persons subject to such penalties may be seized and sold by CBP. In addition, criminal penalties may apply for certain offenses. Criminal penalties may be as high as twice the value of the goods plus twenty years in jail.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Foreign-Trade Zones are secure areas physically in the United States but legally outside the customs territory of the United States. Such zones are generally near ports of entry. They may be within the warehouse of an importer. Such zones are limited in scope and operation based on approval of the Foreign-Trade Zones Board. Goods in a Foreign-Trade Zone are not considered imported to the United States until they leave the Zone. Foreign goods may be used to manufacture other goods within the zone for export without payment of customs duties.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Estate and gift taxes in the United States are imposed by the federal and some state governments. The estate tax is an excise tax levied on the right to pass property at death. It is imposed on the estate, not the beneficiary. Some states impose an inheritance tax on recipients of bequests. Gift taxes are levied on the giver (donor) of property where the property is transferred for less than adequate consideration. An additional generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax is imposed by the federal and some state governments on transfers to grandchildren (or their descendants).


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The federal gift tax is applicable to the donor, not the recipient, and is computed based on cumulative taxable gifts, and is reduced by prior gift taxes paid. The federal estate tax is computed on the sum of taxable estate and taxable gifts, and is reduced by prior gift taxes paid. These taxes are computed as the taxable amount times a graduated tax rate (up to 35% in 2011). The estate and gift taxes are also reduced by a major "unified credit" equivalent to an exclusion ($5 million in 2011). Rates and exclusions have varied, and the benefits of lower rates and the credit have been phased out during some years.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxable gifts are certain gifts of U.S. property by nonresident aliens, most gifts of any property by citizens or residents, in excess of an annual exclusion ($13,000 for gifts made in 2011) per donor per donee. Taxable estates are certain U.S. property of non-resident alien decedents, and most property of citizens or residents. For aliens, residence for estate tax purposes is primarily based on domicile, but U.S. citizens are taxed regardless of their country of residence. U.S. real estate and most tangible property in the U.S. are subject to estate and gift tax whether the decedent or donor is resident or nonresident, citizen or alien.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The taxable amount of a gift is the fair market value of the property in excess of consideration received at the date of gift. The taxable amount of an estate is the gross fair market value of all rights considered property at the date of death (or an alternative valuation date) ("gross estate"), less liabilities of the decedent, costs of administration (including funeral expenses) and certain other deductions, see Stepped-up basis. State estate taxes are deductible, with limitations, in computing the federal taxable estate. Bequests to charities reduce the taxable estate.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Gift tax applies to all irrevocable transfers of interests in tangible or intangible property. Estate tax applies to all property owned in whole or in part by a citizen or resident at the time of his or her death, to the extent of the interest in the property. Generally, all types of property are subject to estate tax. Whether a decedent has sufficient interest in property for the property to be subject to gift or estate tax is determined under applicable state property laws. Certain interests in property that lapse at death (such as life insurance) are included in the taxable estate.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxable values of estates and gifts are the fair market value. For some assets, such as widely traded stocks and bonds, the value may be determined by market listings. The value of other property may be determined by appraisals, which are subject to potential contest by the taxing authority. Special use valuation applies to farms and closely held businesses, subject to limited dollar amount and other conditions. Monetary assets, such as cash, mortgages, and notes, are valued at the face amount, unless another value is clearly established.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Life insurance proceeds are included in the gross estate. The value of a right of a beneficiary of an estate to receive an annuity is included in the gross estate. Certain transfers during lifetime may be included in the gross estate. Certain powers of a decedent to control the disposition of property by another are included in the gross estate.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: The taxable estate of a married decedent is reduced by a deduction for all property passing to the decedent's spouse. Certain terminable interests are included. Other conditions may apply.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Donors of gifts in excess of the annual exclusion must file gift tax returns on IRS Form 709 and pay the tax. Executors of estates with a gross value in excess of the unified credit must file an estate tax return on IRS Form 706 and pay the tax from the estate. Returns are required if the gifts or gross estate exceed the exclusions. Each state has its own forms and filing requirements. Tax authorities may examine and adjust gift and estate tax returns.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Many jurisdictions within the United States impose taxes or fees on the privilege of carrying on a particular business or maintaining a particular professional certification. These licensing or occupational taxes may be a fixed dollar amount per year for the licensee, an amount based on the number of practitioners in the firm, a percentage of revenue, or any of several other bases. Persons providing professional or personal services are often subject to such fees. Common examples include accountants, attorneys, barbers, casinos, dentists, doctors, auto mechanics, plumbers, and stockbrokers. In addition to the tax, other requirements may be imposed for licensure.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: All 50 states impose a vehicle license fee. Generally, the fees are based on the type and size of the vehicle and are imposed annually or biannually. All states and the District of Columbia also impose a fee for a driver's license, which generally must be renewed with payment of fee every few years.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Fees are often imposed by governments for use of certain facilities or services. Such fees are generally imposed at the time of use. Multi-use permits may be available. For example, fees are imposed for use of national or state parks, for requesting and obtaining certain rulings from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS), for the use of certain highways (called "tolls" or toll roads), for parking on public streets, and for the use of public transit.


title: Taxation in the United States

text: Taxes in the United States are administered by hundreds of tax authorities. At the federal level there are three tax administrations. Most domestic federal taxes are administered by the Internal Revenue Service, which is part of the Department of the Treasury. Alcohol, tobacco, and firearms taxes are administered by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Taxes on imports (customs duties) are administered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). TTB is also part of the Department of the Treasury and CBP belongs to the Department of Homeland Security.