The rule ledger
How We Calculate
Every number on Hourcrunch comes from a rule or a rate listed here, with its official source, the tax year it applies to, the date we last checked it, and when we’ll check it again.
Who checks the numbers. The pay and tax pages are tested against official worked examples and hand-checked answers before every release (see Tested against worked examples). A review by a named, qualified tax professional is planned; their name will appear here once it’s done. Hourcrunch is an independent site.
The ledger
| ID | WHAT IT DOES | OFFICIAL SOURCE | TAX YEAR | CHECKED | NEXT CHECK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | Federal overtime: hours over 40 in a workweek at 1.5x the regular rate | 29 CFR 778.107 (Fair Labor Standards Act) | Current rule | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2027, or when the rule changes |
| R1 (CA) | California overtime: over 8 a day or 40 a week at 1.5x, over 12 a day at 2x, seventh-day rule | California Labor Commissioner, overtime | Current rule | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2027, or when the rule changes |
| R2 | Rounding: each pay or tax line is worked out exactly, then rounded once to the nearest cent, half a cent up | Hourcrunch | Hourcrunch rule | n/a | n/a |
| R3 | Breaks: unpaid meal breaks are taken off time worked; short rest breaks are usually paid time | 29 CFR Part 785 (hours worked) | Current rule | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2027 |
| R4 | Overnight: an out time earlier than the in time ends the next day | Hourcrunch | Hourcrunch rule | n/a | n/a |
| P1 | Federal income tax withholding: Pub 15-T 2026 Worksheet 1A (standard table, 12% bracket) | IRS Publication 15-T | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 (new tax year) |
| P2 | Social Security: 6.2% | IRS Publication 15 (Circular E) | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 (new tax year) |
| P3 | Medicare: 1.45% | IRS Publication 15 (Circular E) | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 (new tax year) |
| P4 | Ohio income tax withholding: 2.99% bracket (ODT optional computer formula, pay dates 2026-08-01 to 2026-12-31) | Ohio Department of Taxation, withholding formula | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 (new tax year) |
| P5 | Work city tax (Columbus): 2.5% | Ohio Department of Taxation, The Finder municipal rate table | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 (new tax year) |
| P6 | Home city tax after credit (Bexley): 2.5% | Ohio Department of Taxation, The Finder municipal rate table | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 (new tax year) |
| P7 | School district tax (Bexley CSD, SD 2501): 0.75% | Ohio Department of Taxation, school district rates | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2, 2027 (new tax year) |
| TX | Texas: no state or local income tax on wages | Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2027 |
| FL | Florida: no state or local income tax on wages | Florida Department of Revenue | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2027 |
| OH | Ohio city and village income tax rates and credits (679 places, version 2026.10.19-2) and school district rates (216 districts, version 2026.10.19-2) | Ohio Department of Taxation, The Finder municipal rate table | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Monthly, and Jan 2027 |
| RMD | Required minimum distribution: prior year-end balance divided by the IRS divisor for your age | IRS Publication 590-B, Table III | 2026 | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2027 |
| APY | Annual percentage yield formula | Regulation DD, 12 CFR 1030 Appendix A | Current rule | Oct 19, 2026 | Jan 2027 |
How rounding works
Times are counted in whole minutes, exactly. Money is counted in cents. Each pay or tax line is worked out exactly and rounded once, at the end, to the nearest cent; half a cent rounds up. Totals add the rounded lines, so the lines on a receipt always add up to its total.
Check us by hand: Dana’s week
Dana Reyes (a fictional worker) earns $18.50 an hour, federal overtime rules. Here is every line of her receipt as a pencil-and-paper sum. Try it yourself.
- L01 Monday 07:00–15:30 = 8:00
07:00 to 15:30 = 8:30; minus unpaid break 0:30 = 8:00 - L02 Tuesday 07:00–15:30 = 8:00
same times and break as Monday (L01) - L03 Wednesday 07:00–17:00 = 9:30
07:00 to 17:00 = 10:00; minus unpaid break 0:30 = 9:30 - L04 Thursday 07:00–15:30 = 8:00
same times and break as Monday (L01) - L05 Friday 22:00–06:30 (+1 day) = 8:00
22:00 to midnight = 2:00; midnight to 06:30 = 6:30; span 8:30; minus unpaid break 0:30 = 8:00; of which 1:30 overtime - L06 Saturday 08:00–13:00 = 5:00
08:00 to 13:00 = 5:00; no break = 5:00; of which 5:00 overtime - L07 Total hours = 46:30 (46.50 h)
adds L01 + L02 + L03 + L04 + L05 + L06 - L08 Regular hours = 40:00 (40.00 h)
the first 40:00 of the workweek - L09 Overtime hours (1.5x) = 6:30 (6.50 h)
L07 46:30 minus L08 40:00 = 6:30 - L10 Regular pay = $740.00
40.00 h × $18.50 = $740.00 - L11 Overtime pay = $180.38
6.50 h at 1.5 × $18.50 = $180.38 - GROSS PAY = $920.38
L10 + L11, each rounded to the cent
What we don’t do
- Tips, shift differentials, bonuses and commission.
- Overtime rules other than federal and California.
- Paychecks for states other than Ohio, Texas and Florida (yet).
- Pre-tax deductions such as 401(k) and health insurance on the paycheck pages (yet).
- Inherited IRAs.
- Anything we can’t source. If a rate isn’t in this ledger, it isn’t in a result.
Tested against worked examples
Every calculator is checked against a set of worked examples with known answers before it ships. Each answer was taken from an official worked example or table, or worked out by hand twice, independently, and compared. The examples run through the same code as these pages, and every release must match all of them exactly:
- 60 time and pay examples: time card weeks (overnight shifts, unpaid breaks, federal and California overtime, the half-cent rounding case), time durations past midnight, military time and salary conversions.
- 40 paycheck examples: Ohio (state, city with and without credit, school district on both tax bases), Texas and Florida. Every line must match to the cent and carry its source, tax year and as-of date.
- 30 retirement and savings examples: RMDs from the IRS tables, including the spouse table and first-year deadlines, and APY in both directions.
Part of each set was kept back and only used for the final check, so the code couldn’t be tuned to the answers. The timesheet PDF is checked too: Dana’s week must come out as one US Letter page showing $920.38.
Ledger entries
- Oct 19, 2026: first ledger. All rules and rates checked against the sources above.
- Oct 24, 2026: Texas and Florida paychecks added, on the same federal rules as Ohio.
Found a wrong number?
Every receipt line has a number (L01, L02 and so on) and every rule an ID in the ledger above, so you can point at exactly the figure you think is wrong. Check it against the official source in the ledger, and if we’ve got it wrong, we want to know.
A contact address for reports is coming soon and will be listed here. Until then, please note the page, the line number and what you expected.