October 13, 2008:
Columbus Day -
Government Offices Closed.
November 11, 2008:
Veterans Day -
Government Offices Closed.
November 27, 2008:
Thanksgiving Day -
Offices Closed.
November 28, 2008:
Day After Thanksgiving -
Offices Closed.
December 25, 2008:
Christmas Day -
Offices Closed.
December 31, 2008:
Deduction deadline -
The last date to make payments that can be deducted from your 2008 return.
January 1, 2009:
New Year's Day -
Offices Closed.
May 11, 2006:
Congress Reaches an Agreement on Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005
Making Decisions on 401(k) not Rocket Science
May 8, 2006
By ERIC TYSON (from the 5/7/06 Houston Chronicle)
Q: I am starting a new job and am confronted with investing my retirement savings in a 401(k) plan. Managing my own money scares me. What should I do?
A: The emerging growth companies of today, particularly in the high-tech industry, are using a new breed of retirement plans — predominantly 401(k) plans. In these plans, employees, at their discretion, elect to contribute a portion of their salary into the plan and then, to a certain degree, direct how that money is invested.
First of all, relax. These plans might sound complicated, but they can be mastered by anyone. In most 401(k)s, your investment options are limited to a very manageable number of choices, usually a handful of mutual funds. Your biggest decision is how to allocate your investments — that is, how much to invest in stocks and how much in bonds.
The younger you are and the more years you have until retirement, the greater the portion of your portfolio should be invested for growth in stocks. A rule of thumb is to subtract your age from 110 and invest that portion of your retirement plan in stocks.
Foreign stocks should represent at least 20 percent of your stock investments.
