THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, JAnuARy 5, 2024 Page 19 Medicare Premium Surcharges M edicare Part A premiums are free for most retirees. This is for hospital coverage. Medicare Part B is not free. This is for outpatient coverage.Medicare Part D is for prescription coverage and involves a premium as in Part B coverage. Many taxpayers are surprised when they receive a letter from Social Security stating that their Medicare Part B and Part D coverage will be increasing dramatically for the upcoming calendaryear. They refer to this as IRMAA (the Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount). This would apply, for example, if you sold an investment property at a substantial capital gain in calendar year 2022. Your income tax return would not be filed until the early part of calendar year 2023. Therefore, your IRMAA adjustment would not be applicable until calendar year 2024. If this was a one- time capital gain, then for 2025 your Medicare premiums would drop down back to normal as your 2024 Form 1040 would not include that substantial capital gain income. There are other instances where an IRMAA adjustment would be applicable. For example, you withdrew $100,000 from your Traditional IRA account which was all taxable, or a significant capital gain realized from the sale of stock. For calendar year 2024, if you are single. You will pay an IRMAA surcharge if your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is over $103,000. For a married filing joint tax return, the figure is $206,000. Even your non-taxable Social Security benefits are included as part of the total income figure. Many people don’t realBeacon Hill Roll Call By Bob Katzen GET A FREE SUBSCRIPTION TO MASSTERLIST – Join more than 22,000 people, from movers and shakers to political junkies and interested citizens, who start their weekday morning with MASSterList— the popular newsletter that chronicles news and informed analysis about what’s going on up on Beacon Hill, in Massachusetts politics, policy, media and influence. The stories are drawn from major news organizations as well as specialized publications. MASSterlist will be e-mailed ize that your Medicare Part D prescription coverage premium will increase as well, even though you are making monthly payments to a private insurance company such as Blue Cross Blue Shield. Often times, if one spouse dies, the surviving spouse might end up being assessed the IRMAA surcharge going forward. For example, if the married couple’s MAGI was $175,000 when they filed a joint income tax return, that figure is below the threshold of $203,000 before the IRMAA surcharge would become applicable. If the surviving spouse’s MAGI end’s up being $140,000 in the year after the deceased spouse’s death, that figure is above the $103,000 level for a single person and the surcharge would then be applicable. As a further note, none of your itemized deductions, such as real estate taxes, state income taxes, or mortgage interest help to reduce the IRMAA surcharge. These deductions are not taken into consideration when calculating MAGI. Joseph D. Cataldo is an estate planning/elder law attorney, Certified Public Accountant, Certified Financial Planner, AICPA Personal Financial Specialist and holds a masters degree in taxation. to you FREE every Monday through Friday morning and will give you a leg up on what’s happening in the blood sport of Bay State politics. For more information and to get your free subscription, go to: https:// lp.constantcontactpages.com/ su/aPTLucK THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. This week, Beacon Hill Roll Call reports on the number of times in the 2023 session each senator sided with Democratic Gov. Maureen Healey and voted to sustain/support the governor’s vetoes of 24 items in the fiscal 2024 state budget. A “Yes” vote favors the funding of the item despite the governor’s veto. A “No” vote is a vote to support/sustain Healey’s veto. The current makeup of the Senate is 36 Democrats and four Republicans. A two-thirds vote is required to override a gubernatorial veto in the 40-member Senate. The governor needs the support of 14 senators to sustain a veto if all 40 senators voted—and fewer votes if some members are absent or there are vacancies. Healey fell far short of that goal as two votes was the most support she received on any veto. The Senate easily overrode all 24 vetoes, including 14 that were overridden unanimously. None of the 36 Democrats ever sided with Healey to support/sustain a single veto. Only two of the four Republicans ever sided with Healey to support/sustain a veto. They are GOP Sens. Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton) and Peter Durant (R-Spencer) who each voted ten times with Healey to support/sustain a veto. NUMBER OF TIMES SENATORS SUPPORTED GOV. HEALEY’S VETOES IN THE 2023 SESSION Gov. Healey vetoed 24 proposals that were approved by the Legislature in 2023 Here is how your senator fared in his or her support of Gov. Healey on the vetoes. The percentage next to the senator’s name represents the percentage of times that he or she supported Healey. The number in parentheses represents the actual number of times the senator supported Healey. Sen. Sal DiDomenico 0 percent (0) ALSO UP ON BEACON HILL GOV. BAKER PORTRAIT - Former Gov. Charlie Baker’s official portrait was unveiled to the public and the press this week in the lobby of the executive suite. The portrait was first unveiled in a private unveiling before Christmas on December 21. The display space in the lobby is reserved for the 12 most recent governors, resulting in the 1950s portrait of the late Gov. Christian Herter being shuffled off to another location. The $29,000 price tag for the portrait, painted by Pennsylvania-based artist Ellen Cooper, was paid for by Baker’s campaign committee. For many years, the cost of gubernatorial portraits was paid by the taxpayers.Former Gov. Mike Dukakis changed that by starting a custom of financing the portraits with private money. SCHOOL BILLS – The Education Committee will hold a hearing on several bills on January 10 in Room A-2 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The hearing can also be viewed online at https://malegislature.gov/ Events/Hearings/Detail/4815 Here are some of the legislation on the January 10 agenda: FREE EXPRESSION IN LIBRARIES (S 2528) – Would prevent book removal from school or public libraries due to personal or political views of individuals or groups. Other provisions would empower school librarians and teachers to determine access to age-appropriate materials in school libraries; require public libraries to adopt the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights; and protect librarians from retaliation. Supporters of the proposal say that while no books in 2022 were technically banned in the Bay State, there were 45 attempts to censor books and other library resources, the fourth highest number of any state. They note that most attempts are to censor materials or library programming about race, sexuality and gender identity. “Massachusetts is home to the nation’s first public library and first public school because we have long appreciated that unabridged access to knowledge is key to opportunity and fulfillment,” says Senate sponsor Sen. Julian Cyr (D-Truro).“At this sad moment when hate and fear are driving too many cruel policies across the nation, and yes closer to home, Massachusetts must continue to champion values of equity and belonging. Indeed, books are among our most compelBEACON | SEE PAGE 20 - LEGAL NOTICE - CITY OF EVERETT BOARD OF LICENSE COMMISSION 484 BROADWAY EVERETT, MASSACHUSETTS 02149 PHONE: 617-944-0211 philip.antonelli@ci.everett.ma.us annette.debilio@ci.everett.ma.us Public Hearing Tuesday, January 16, 2024 @ 6:30 PM This notice is to inform you that a public hearing will be held on Tuesday, January 16, 2024 @ 6:30 P.M. at Everett City Hall, 2nd Floor, in room 27. Opinions will be heard regarding the following application: An application has been presented to the License Commission from Taqueria Y Pupuseria La Cueva, 241 Beacham Street, Everett, MA for a Wine & Malt Restaurant License. A copy of the application is on file and available in the Office of Inspectional Services, room 26 located at City Hall, 484 Broadway, Everett, MA 02149 and can be viewed by request during regular City Hall business All interested parties may attend. Phil Antonelli Chairman January 5, 2024
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