If it weren’t the year 2020, right around now, I would be cautioning IRA owners over 70 1/2 to make sure they withdrew their required minimum distributions (RMDs) from their individual retirement accounts.

But because it is 2020, let me remind you instead that RMDs are waived for this year. That waiver became law in March, thanks to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The CARES Act waived RMDs for 2020 for traditional IRA, SEP, SIMPLE, 401(k) and other defined contribution plans, but not for defined benefit plans.

In 2021, we’ll go back to “normal.”

The annual RMD is mandated by law, not optional, with serious financial penalties for not taking your RMD on time. As the IRS explains online at tinyurl.com/zn7ckor, “If you do not take any distributions, or if the distributions are not large enough, you may have to pay a 50% excise tax on the amount not distributed as required.”

If you are a regular reader of this column, you’ll recall that the law created some difficulties for those who took their 2020 RMDs before March. It took some time for the IRS to provide a mechanism for people to undo their RMDs if they wanted to do so. The relief come on June 23, with IRS Notice 2020-51 (tinyurl.com/y8o2zxjp), allowing people to redeposit their RMDs through a rollover, as long as it was accomplished by Aug. 31, 2020. (If you took a 2020 RMD later in the year and want to redeposit it before year-end, check with your accountant.)

There have been other changes in RMD rules that will take effect in 2021. The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, which was signed into law Dec. 20, 2019, moved the age for starting RMDs from age 70 1/2 to age 72. (Read my column on the subject at tinyurl.com/yxb95bh3). If you were born in the last half of 1949 (after June 30), you will turn 72 in 2021 and qualify under the new RMD rule. If you were born in the first half of 1949, you fall under the old 70 1/2 rule.

I should mention that more changes might be coming. A bill was introduced by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal, D-Mass., and ranking member Kevin Brady, R-Texas, in October called the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2020 (tinyurl.com/yywwgy7v). Among the many proposed measures in the bill is one increasing the age for taking your first RMD to 75 years old.

From my perspective, that’s a good move, and in fact, I’d like to see RMDs suspended to age 90.

For now, expect RMDs to go back to “normal” in 2021, meaning no waivers. Keep in mind that the age 70 1/2 rule still applies to QCDs (qualified charitable distributions). I wrote on that subject in October; let me know if you would like a copy of that column.

On another note, last week’s column triggered a question about the new “above-the-line” $300 tax-deductible charitable contribution for 2020: Is the $300 doubled for married couples filing jointly? According to the IRS draft for the 2020 instructions for forms 1040 and 1040-SR (tinyurl.com/jlzynap), on Page 29 it states, “$300 is the most you can enter on your return even if your filing status is married filing jointly.” As of this writing, a finalized version of the instructions has not been posted. Check with your accountant for more information.

Julie Jason, JD, LLM, a personal money manager (Jackson, Grant Investment Advisers Inc. of Stamford, Connecticut) and award-winning author, welcomes your questions/comments (readers@juliejason.com). Please visit www.juliejason.com.

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It’s December, and if you haven’t yet made your charitable contributions this year, now is the time, especially since 2020 contributions are subject to new, more favorable tax treatment.

According to the IRS, just about every taxpayer (close to nine in 10) does not itemize deductions -- they take the standard deduction instead. If that describes you, did you know that this year you can get a tax deduction for a charitable contribution, something that normally calls for a Schedule A?

A special provision of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, enacted last spring, enables taxpayers to get a deduction even if they don’t itemize.

Specifically, in 2020 you can make a cash donation of up to $300 and deduct that amount on your 2020 tax return when you file your return in 2021.

“Under this new change, individual taxpayers can claim an ‘above-the-line’ deduction of up to $300 for cash donations made to charity during 2020,” according to the IRS. “This means the deduction lowers both adjusted gross income and taxable income -- translating into tax savings for those making donations to qualifying tax-exempt organizations.” You can find more information about the $300 deduction at tinyurl.com/y4zvpj5z.

As Edward T. Killen, the acting commissioner of the Tax Exempt and Government Entities division of the IRS, pointed out in the IRS executive column “A Closer Look”: “This could help taxpayers when they file their taxes in 2021 -- and help many organizations across the country as they try to help people coping with the coronavirus. Many charities are struggling this year, and donations for many are down.”

What’s a “cash” donation? A check, credit card or debit card payment to the charity. What is not cash? Things like securities, household items or other property.

What is considered a qualified charity? Check IRS Publication 526, “Charitable Contributions,” at tinyurl.com/y6bhnuna. You also can use the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search (TEOS) tool at tinyurl.com/y84b96ja. Scroll down the page until you find the blue “button.”

In “A Closer Look,” Killen encouraged taxpayers to use the TEOS tool, saying: “All too often, we see fly-by-night organizations pop up trying to take advantage of natural disasters and people’s good will in the name of charity, when in reality they don’t have tax-exempt status. This can damage the reputation of noble charitable organizations and undermine confidence in charitable giving at the very time where generosity and help are most needed.”

What if you do plan to itemize? In 2020, again thanks to the CARES Act, you can deduct qualified charitable cash contributions on Schedule A as an itemized deduction up to 100 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI). Normally, the deduction is limited to a percentage (usually 60 percent) of the taxpayer’s AGI. If you are planning on using Schedule A, be sure to talk with your accountant first.

Finally, don’t forget qualified charitable distributions (QCDs), which I discussed in October. If you are 70 1/2 years old or older, you can withdraw up to $100,000 from your IRA (individual retirement account) to go to charity. Unlike IRA required minimum distributions (RMDs), which are suspended for 2020, QCDs are nontaxable IRA withdrawals. If you would like a copy of the October QCD column, please email me at readers@juliejason.com.

Julie Jason, JD, LLM, a personal money manager (Jackson, Grant Investment Advisers Inc. of Stamford, Connecticut) and award-winning author, welcomes your questions/comments (readers@juliejason.com). Please visit www.juliejason.com.

DISTRIBUTED BY ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

When it comes to bills, do you prefer getting a printed statement in the mail over an electronic statement online? In a Consumer Action survey of a few years ago (tinyurl.com/yxq69wc3), 78% of those surveyed who received paper bills by mail said they actually reviewed their statements; only 43% of those who received online statements reviewed theirs.

What about brokerage statements? Do you get your brokerage statement in the mail or electronically?

One advantage of receiving your monthly brokerage statement electronically is the immediacy of information. It does take some time for a mailed statement to arrive.

Electronic delivery is less costly to the financial firm. Some financial firms encourage electronic delivery by charging for paper statements.

No matter how your statements arrive, they should be read regularly and diligently.

An Investor Alert issued by regulators (“It Pays to Pay Attention to Your Brokerage Account Statements”) advises: “You should make it a habit to review online or paper account statements and trade confirmations on a regular basis. You should review your statement as soon as you receive it.” The alert (tinyurl.com/y48jnvhz) was issued jointly by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) and the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA).

You’ll want to confirm that the statement “correctly reflects your investment decisions and any actions you made or authorized during the time the statement covers.”

Specifically, look for:

1) Cash balance changes such as “An unforeseen increase in the amount of cash in your account, which might have resulted from a data entry error by the brokerage firm, but could also indicate that someone sold securities without your consent; or an unexpected decrease in the amount of cash in your account, which could indicate an unauthorized purchase, transfer or withdrawal.”

2) Missing securities (securities that you owned and did not sell).

3) Trades that look unfamiliar (did you authorize the trade?).

4) New fees (or higher fees that you did not expect).

If there is an issue and you don’t speak up, the firm may presume that all is in order. As the alert states, “The broker-dealer, registered investment adviser firm, a regulator or organization such as SIPC may presume that you authorized the trading or other activity in the account.”

That’s the most compelling reason to do a review -- to catch problems as early as possible and to report them to the investment professional and the brokerage firm for resolution.

After you report the issue, the firm should address it and resolve it to your satisfaction. But what if the firm is unresponsive, or disengages by telling you that everything is fine without satisfying you? Those are red flags, says the alert.

Others are: offering, but not accomplishing, a correction; different people at the firm offering different resolutions to the single issue; and attempts by the broker “to settle with you directly or ‘off the books’ without involving the branch manager or the brokerage firm -- by writing you a check, depositing money or securities into your account or providing other compensation,” to quote the alert.

If you run into a red flag situation, contact the branch manager of the brokerage firm in writing with specifics. That will give the firm a chance to address the issue, and give you, the firm’s customer, a chance to create a record, just in case you need help getting an appropriate resolution.

Julie Jason, JD, LLM, a personal money manager (Jackson, Grant Investment Advisers Inc. of Stamford, Connecticut) and award-winning author, welcomes your questions/comments (readers@juliejason.com). Please visit www.juliejason.com.

DISTRIBUTED BY ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION