IRS pares mileage rates
Nashville Business Journal
After a bump in automobile mileage deduction rates for the second half of the year, the Internal Revenue Service is lowering rates for 2009 to coincide with falling gasoline prices.
The 2009 rates, used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, medical or moving purposes, are slightly lower than rates for the second half of 2008, which were raised in response to a spike in pump prices, the IRS says. The standard rate for business use beginning in January will be 55 cents a mile, down from 58.5 cents since July.
When the mid-year deduction rate took effect, a gallon of gas cost an average of $4.05, up nearly $1 from the beginning of the year, according to data from the Energy Information Administration.
Prices in recent months have plunged, falling to a national average of $1.82 a gallon Monday.
Other standard mileage rates set to take effect Jan. 1 are:
• 24 cents a mile for medical or moving purposes, down from 27 cents since July.
• 14 cents for miles driven in service of charitable organizations, unchanged from 2008.
In addition to gasoline prices, the mileage rate takes into account other fixed and variable costs, such as depreciation.
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