The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (H.R. 8) passed by the United States Congress on January 1, 2013 centers on a partial resolution to the United States fiscal cliff by addressing the expiration of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, as well as the activation of the budget sequestration provisions of the Budget Control Act of 2011.The American Taxpayer Relief Act allows the Bush-era tax rates to sunset after 2012 for individuals with incomes over $400,000 and families with incomes over $450,000; permanently "patches" the alternative minimum tax (AMT); revives many now-expired tax extenders, including the research tax credit and the American Opportunity Tax Credit; and provides for a maximum estate tax of 40 percent with a $5 million exclusion. The Act also delays the mandatory across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration.

On 31 December 2012, a variety of temporary tax provisions that were part of the "fiscal cliff" expired. Two days later, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) retroactively extended, and in certain cases modified, many of these provisions. The short period between the expiration of these provisions and the enactment on January 2 of ATRA retroactively meant that from the perspective of all but upper-income taxpayers, income taxes remained unchanged between 2012 and 2013. This book provides an overview of the tax provisions included in the "fiscal cliff deal", including: the permanent extension and modification of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts ("Bush-era tax cuts"); the temporary extension of certain tax provisions originally included as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA); the permanent extension of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) patch; the temporary extension of a variety of other temporary expiring provisions for individuals, businesses, and energy often referred to as "tax extenders"; and the expansion of in-plan conversions of traditional employer-sponsored retirement accounts (like 401(k) plans) to employer-sponsored Roth Accounts.

The federal government has failed to adequately regulate free market capitalism in the United States. Understanding how we got to this point is the first step in figuring out how to fix the economy. It is still possible to help the forgotten middle class, create jobs, and provide mortgage relief to hardworking homeowners. In this guidebook to perpetuating American greatness, Stephen J. Feinberg introduces Jump Start America Bonds to encourage cash-rich businesses and individuals to invest in transportation infrastructure construction projects to create jobs. He proposes a US mortgage court to oversee the restructuring of home mortgages on terms that would give relief to homeowners and end the housing crisis. He also explores other key issues, such as the federal deficit, income and estate tax fairness, and ways to better regulate banks and the securities markets. Throughout his study, Feinberg seeks to help America recover by providing a concrete plan to reverse the economic decline and return the country to economic greatness once again.

Congress avoided the so-called fiscal cliff with the passage of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 and, in so doing, implemented a number of important tax provisions that affect estate planners for estates of all sizes. The act made several key estate tax provisions permanent including fixing the exclusion amount and tax rates and, most importantly, it made the concept of portability permanent. Portability enables surviving spouse's to utilize the unused unified credit of their decedent spouse, a strategy that historically required the use of a credit shelter trust. This article also discusses additional ways that portability affects estates large and small and how estate planners may use credit shelter trusts under the current estate tax regime with portability.

The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (Act) addressed uncertainties related to federal tax policy by extending most of the Bush-era individual and corporate income tax provisions for the middle class. In general, the Act is consistent with assumptions made during the preparation of the Legislative Council Staff December 2012 revenue forecast.