Nearly half (45 percent) of the U.S. workforce does not believe it will have enough money set aside for a comfortable retirement. This according to the latest national Hudson retirement survey, which also finds that three-fourths (74 percent) of U.S. workers plan to work at least part-time during their retirement years.

The Supreme Court has cleared the way for a class-action suit that accuses H&R Block, the nation's largest tax-preparation company, of charging as many as 17 million customers inflated interest on refund loans, the Houston Chronicle reported, citing news wires.The suit contends that H&R Block charged as much as 100 percent in interest on the refund loans and customers were not told that the company profited from the loans, which were advances on estimated tax refunds, the Chronicle reported.The high court this week let stand a lower court's decision that the case should go forward as a c

The Internal Revenue Service announced late last week a liberalization of the rule for interest owed on additional taxes voluntarily reported by taxpayers. Section 6404(g) suspends interest accrual for individuals on taxes due if the IRS does not notify a taxpayer of the potential liability within 18 months after the filing of the return. This interest suspension then continues until 21 days after the IRS notifies the taxpayer of additional taxes due.Previously, this rule was applied only where the additional taxes were found by the IRS.

On Tuesday, the Treasury Department and the IRS issued final regulations governing 401(k) plans. The 401(k) plan is the most common type of employer-sponsored retirement plan, providing retirement income security for millions of American workers and their families.

President Bush signed legislation this month making more than $21 billion available to small businesses through the SBA’s two main loan programs. The legislation also reauthorizes the agency’s programs and provides a $580 million budget for fiscal year 2005.The SBA’s flagship 7(a) loan guarantee program was boosted to a $16 billion level, $3.5 billion above what the program provided last fiscal year, when a record $12.55 billion in financing was made to small business.

T. Rowe Price now offers an Individual 401(k) Plan that potentially allows self-employed individuals and small-business owners with no employees other than a spouse to save more for retirement than they could with other types of retirement plans. Unlike a SEP-IRA or profit sharing plan - two common retirement plan options for small businesses - an Individual 401(k) allows the business owner to add salary deferral contributions on top of the permitted employer contribution, which is generally 25% of net business income.

While year-end often is a time for investors to reflect on their winning and losing holdings, the tax analysts and editors at CCH® Capital Changes have identified what they believe will be the top ten tax-complex and significant corporate actions likely to impact investors this year. "Corporate actions, like stock splits, mergers, and spin-offs, happen every day and all impact the cost basis used to determine investors' actual capital gain or loss come tax time," Stevie D. Conlon, an attorney, CPA, and senior tax analyst for CCH Capital Changes, said.

Starting December 1, 2004 consumers will begin to have more tools at their disposal to fight identity theft, protect against credit card fraud, and check-up on the health of their total credit picture under a new federal law. The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2004 (FACT Act) was signed into law in December 2003 giving residents of the western part of the United States the right to a free copy of their credit report each year.

A new study conducted by Ernst & Young LLP and ExecuNet revealed that personalized financial counseling is critical to help employees effectively manage retirement planning. The survey of human resource and employee benefits professionals found that financial education alone is not enough to influence a change in employee behavior. Employers that added more personalized assistance and counseling programs to their financial education programs, such as telephone and in-person counseling, reported a significant increase in the involvement of participants in their retirement planning.