Don & Marion Landrith have their primary residence in Commerce Township Michigan where they both work for General Motors doing various types of electrical engineering research work primarily on "electrified auto" projects GM will be introducing in the next few years. Effective the second week of March 2020, Don & Marion commenced doing essentially all of their research "online" with the help of various online GM databases and zoom conference calls. In early April of 2020, Don and Marion moved to a rented beachfront condominium in Miami Florida with lovely access to the beach and are now considering selling their home in Michigan and becoming full-time Florida residents. Moreover, this potential move is made easier by GM telling Don and Marion that they are no longer expected to come into their offices at the GM proving grounds in Milford on a regular basis but rather, may continue working remotely for the foreseeable future. Don and Marion have asked you - their CPA friend - to advise them on whether or not they might enjoy a lower federal and/or state income tax burden if indeed they moved permanently to Florida. After meeting with the couple at their home last weekend, you learned the following additional information:

marital status married filing jointly

combined taxable income for both state and federal tax purposes $574,000

Please compute the pro forma amount of federal & state income tax Don and Marion will pay annually on average as residents of Michigan versus Florida (using published 2020 tax rates) and quantify the tax savings they will enjoy on an annual basis if they make the move.

Please ignore quantifying any differential in tax rates as respects property taxes and sales taxes, etc. (i.e. anything other than federal & state income taxes).

Please communicate your findings to Don and Marion by preparing a friendly professional memo to them, from you their CPA, that addresses the following:

1. A brief synopsis of the facts.

2. An articulation of the issues/question.

3. A synopsis of the relevant authority you used in coming up with your commentary.

4. The results of your analysis.

5. Your recommendation as to what they should consider as respects this aspect of their "move to Florida or stay in Michigan" decision-making process.