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Congress gave all wage earners a short-lived 2012 reprieve by temporarily extending the 2% payroll tax cut though February of 2012.

The payroll tax, frequently referred to as FICA or OASDI on your paycheck, has historically been 6.2%. This is the tax that funds the Social Security Administration. For 2011, as an economic stimulus measure, Congress temporarily reduced the rate to 4.2%. They also provided self-employed individuals with a corresponding two percentage point reduction by lowering the Social Security portion of the SE tax from 12.4% to 10.4%.

Congress had previously extended this 2% tax cut and now has decided to continue this reduction in payroll tax through the end of 2012.

The Internal Revenue Service today announced cost of living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items for Tax Year 2012. In general, many of the pension plan limitations will change for 2012 because the increase in the cost-of-living index met the statutory thresholds that trigger their adjustment. However, other limitations will remain unchanged. Highlights include:

• The elective deferral (contribution) limit for employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan is increased from $16,500 to $17,000.

• The catch-up contribution limit for those aged 50 and over remains unchanged at $5,500.

• The deduction for taxpayers making contributions to a traditional IRA is phased out for singles and heads of household who are covered by a workplace retirement plan and have modified adjusted gross incomes (AGI) between $58,000 and $68,000, up from $56,000 and $66,000 in 2011. For married couples filing jointly, in which the spouse who makes the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the income phase-out range is $92,000 to $112,000, up from $90,000 to $110,000. For an IRA contributor who is not covered by a workplace retirement plan and is married to someone who is covered, the deduction is phased out if the couple’s income is between $173,000 and $183,000, up from $169,000 and $179,000.

• The AGI phase-out range for taxpayers making contributions to a Roth IRA is $173,000 to $183,000 for married couples filing jointly, up from $169,000 to $179,000 in 2011. For singles and heads of household, the income phase-out range is $110,000 to $125,000, up from $107,000 to $122,000. For a married individual filing a separate return who is covered by a retirement plan at work, the phase-out range remains $0 to $10,000.

• The AGI limit for the saver’s credit (also known as the retirement savings contributions credit) for low-and moderate-income workers is $57,500 for married couples filing jointly, up from $56,500 in 2011; $43,125 for heads of household, up from $42,375; and $28,750 for married individuals filing separately and for singles, up from $28,250.

Steve Trojan, CPA is owner of SMT & Associates, Inc. (www.smt-associates.com), a Crystal Lake IL based tax and accounting firm, and Complete Payroll Inc, (www.completepayrollinc.com) a payroll processing firm. He specializes in tax and accounting issues affecting small business owners.