While very little gets done in Washington during an election year, deadlines must be acknowledged and addressed, such as the expiration of the Internet tax moratorium on November 1, 2014. Two days prior to that critical date, a lesser-known but nonetheless important matter is scheduled to come to an end. On October 30, 2014, the Free File Alliance’s partnership with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is up for renewal. The Free File Alliance is a consortium of tax software companies which makes free tax preparation software and free e-file available to certain taxpayers.
The Clock is ticking on Internet Taxation
Less than six months from now, citizens across the country could face new taxes. That is when the moratorium banning taxes on Internet access and discriminatory duplicate taxes on Internet services expires. While legislation to make the moratorium permanent has been introduced with bi-partisan support, the clock is ticking leading up to the November 1, […]
IRS Should Not Create Software That Already Exists
While very little gets done in Washington during an election year, deadlines must be acknowledged and addressed, such as the expiration of the Internet tax moratorium on November 1, 2014. Two days prior to that critical date, a lesser-known but nonetheless important matter is scheduled to come to an end. On October 30, 2014, the […]
Tax Day – For Some of Us
For most Americans, April 15 is a day of fear and loathing. It is time to account for all of the taxes owed to various levels of government. If someone has overpaid, money will be coming back. If a taxpayer has underpaid, a (sometimes large) check must be written. But if someone earns money that […]
Times Have Changed
Once there was a time when 30-page college papers were typed on portable electric typewriters, research was done in library stacks, and job applications were filled out by hand. Taxes were filed on paper and mailed (postmarked no later than April 15th) at the local post office, and shopping meant going to the local market […]
Obamaloans: The Bank of ACORN
After the public humiliation of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) in late 2009 and its subsequent dissolution (at least at the national level) by early 2010, one might have thought that the national shakedown group was dead and buried. But like a decapitated hydra, another beastly head has already taken its […]
Lights, Camera, Action? Not Without Tax Incentives
State governments across the country have enacted movie production incentives (MPIs), most commonly through tax credits, in an attempt to lure that business to their states. While the expenditures on these tax incentives are easily quantifiable, the same cannot be said for the benefits that their supporters claim are produced.
Declaration of Dependence
A February 4, 2013 Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report confirmed what taxpayer watchdog groups such as Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) have been warning about for years: Obamacare is an unprecedented disaster for every American’s personal health and the country’s economic health. CBO reported that 2.5 million people, a historically high number, will leave the […]
IRS’ Litany of Mismanagement
The IRS is in full crisis mode and the staff of Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) J. Russell George has been busier than a one-legged man in a butt kickin’ contest.
Just Give Me More Money to Spend
Well, finally a big government politician who admits it. It’s almost refreshing. Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn) said in a July 25 Round Table with Progressive Democrats of America, “The bottom line is we’re not broke, there’s plenty of money, it’s just the government doesn’t have it.” This statement is amazing as we approach a $17 […]