We often get caught up in our busy, day-to-day routines and overlook the joy and awe waiting around us. I’ve always cherished time in nature, whether I’m on a stand-up paddleboard on salt water or gazing at the night sky. These moments remind me how small we truly are in the grand scheme of things. On a recent trip, I felt that same profound sense of awe while taking in the landscapes, mountains, and lakes of the Alps in Europe.
On July 4th, 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) was signed into law by President Trump. We have been closely following the negotiations in Congress, as the House and Senate both passed different versions of the bill. Before we dive into the details of the final bill, I have a few general thoughts on this legislation. First, we've given up on simplifying taxes...
It might seem like a distant memory now, but just a few short months ago, there was an air of panic in the markets. On April 2nd, President Trump unveiled his “Liberation Day” tariffs, and over the next two trading days, the S&P 500 suffered its fifth-largest two-day decline since 1950. The index was already in negative territory on the year, and it would go on to fall 21% from its February 19th high to the low on April 7th.
While the national focus is on the federal tax changes proposed in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Maryland has quietly implemented their own tax changes beginning in 2025. Maryland’s new Budget Reconciliation & Financing Act of 2025 (HB 352) rewrites large chunks of the individual income-tax code, most of them aimed squarely at taxpayers who are already in or heading toward the top brackets. These changes have been finalized and are effective beginning with the 2025 tax year. Here’s a summary of the major changes.
Just two days after the first quarter of 2025 ended, President Trump announced sweeping tariffs on countries around the world. These tariffs were significantly higher and more widespread than anyone expected. This led to a sharp sell-off in global equity markets in the ensuing days. We have written a separate post about current market conditions, and you can read that here. While the current market volatility might feel more urgent, we still believe it’s important to review what happened in the first quarter, even though it already seems like a distant memory.
This year was already off to a rocky start in the US equity markets, as I point out in my first quarter market commentary. Then came “Liberation Day” on April 2nd, when President Trump announced significant tariffs on imports from countries all over the world. I’m not going to get into the weeds on what tariffs are or why most economists agree these are going to be harmful to our economy.