Income Tax Day

[R. Richard]

For those of us in the USofA, it's Income Tax Day!

The IRS has a new policy. If you don't file on time, they send agents around to beat you up, waterboard you, then stick flaming splinters under your fingernails. If that doesn't work, then they torture you.

FILE ON TIME!

 

[TheeGoatPig]

I already got my tax returns (quite unusual for me).

 

[elfin_odalisque]

For those of us in the USofA, it's Income Tax Day!

The IRS has a new policy. If you don't file on time, they send agents around to beat you up, waterboard you, then stick flaming splinters under your fingernails. If that doesn't work, then they torture you.

FILE ON TIME!

Gosh, so they've gone soft this year! What about the killing of the firstborn?

 

[R. Richard]

Gosh, so they've gone soft this year!

It's the new kinder, gentler IRS.

 

[TxRad]

Gosh, so they've gone soft this year! What about the killing of the firstborn?

They finally figured out they were losing taxpayers that way.

I've had my refund since the 22 of January.

 

[elfin_odalisque]

They finally figured out they were losing taxpayers that way.

I've had my refund since the 22 of January.

Great, I get another year unless my dad fouls up.

Why can't we have a vote on what DC wastes its money on?

 

[littleblackdress50]

Great, I get another year unless my dad fouls up.

Why can't we have a vote on what DC wastes its money on?

What? and live in a real deomocracy?

Besides you aren't considering the unemployment... all those people counting blue fined grasshoppers would be out of work!!!

And do we really want that many lawyers going back to chasing ambulances?

And how would lawyers make a living what with no lawyers writing the laws for them?

I say keep it the same... government of the lawyers by the lawyers and for the lawyers..... can't trust the public to understand... after all they are so inferior to lawyers!

 

[trysail]

Keeeerist— it really IS tax day; I spent half the morning appealing my state's residential real property tax assessment. The bureaucrats always assume that no one's going to examine their methodology and the comparables. The comparables they used neglected a recent sale that ought to reduce the assessed value. I'll have to wait another two months to get the appeal result. It's always such a pleasure grovelling and scraping before arithmetically and conceptually-challenged Second Assistants to the Deputy Junior Manager of the Division of First Level Real Property Assessment Appeals of the State Department of Taxation and Assessments.



TAXMAN ( by George Harrison, of course )

Let me tell you how it will be
There's one for you, nineteen for me
Cos I'm the taxman, yeah, I'm the taxman

Should five per cent appear too small
Be thankful I don't take it all
Cos I'm the taxman, yeah I'm the taxman

If you drive a car, I'll tax the street
If you try to sit, I'll tax your seat
If you get too cold I'll tax the heat
If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet

Taxman!
Cos I'm the taxman, yeah I'm the taxman

Don't ask me what I want it for (Aahh Mr. Wilson)
If you don't want to pay some more (Aahh Mr. Heath)
Cos I'm the taxman, yeah, I'm the taxman

Now my advice for those who die
Declare the pennies on your eyes
Cos I'm the taxman, yeah, I'm the taxman

And you're working for no one but me
Taxman!

 

[Zeb_Carter]

What? and live in a real deomocracy?

Besides you aren't considering the unemployment... all those people counting blue fined grasshoppers would be out of work!!!

And do we really want that many lawyers going back to chasing ambulances?

And how would lawyers make a living what with no lawyers writing the laws for them?

I say keep it the same... government of the lawyers by the lawyers and for the lawyers..... can't trust the public to understand... after all they are so inferior to lawyers!

Yikes! Sounds like someone has a problem with shysters.

 

[Huckleman2000]

Before you wingnuts go off the deep end again, have some truth:

But does their anger reflect the truth about today's tax rates?

After all, neutral economists insist that, under the Obama administration, the overwhelming likelihood is that your tax burden has gone down, not up. Even conservative economic analysts acknowledge that there really is no basis for middle- and working-class Americans to believe that they're suddenly paying more.

"The only tax I think that has been put in place so far is an increase in the federal cigarette tax. I can't think of another Obama tax that has gone in place so far," said Chris Edwards, Director of Tax Policy Studies at the conservative Cato Institute. "I would say that people are angry because big taxes are coming down the road because of the gigantic deficit built up under Bush and continued under Obama."

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Before you wingnuts go off the deep end again, have some truth:

I call bullshit on that!

Grace-Marie Turner: Obamacare will make every day feel like April 15th
By: Grace-Marie Turner
OpEd Contributor
April 13, 2010

New taxes on investments, taxes on medical supplies, taxes on drugs and health insurance, and taxes on you if you are just breathing… the list of taxes Americans will face just got a lot longer thanks to ObamaCare.

The health overhaul plan just enacted represents the largest tax hike in U.S. history - $569 billion over 10 years through a dizzying array of taxes and fees that promise to frustrate taxpayers at every turn. ObamaCare will make every day feel like April 15th.

And despite President Obama’s campaign promise that no one making $250,000 or less would see a tax increase, Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation confirms that these tax hikes will hit millions of middle- and working-class families who are struggling to make ends meet.

Here are just a few of the most egregious ObamaCare taxes that hard-working Americans will be facing in the $2.6 trillion health overhaul bill:

“Breath tax”: The infamous “death tax” now has a new sibling: the $17 billion “breath tax.” The new health overhaul law requires everyone in America who breathes to have health insurance by 2014; some will get subsidies, but most will have to pay a fine if they don’t buy the health insurance required by the federal government. Last week, Internal Revenue Commissioner Douglas Shulman said that enforcement of the individual mandate will come by seizing tax refunds and “collection, if need be.”

Taxes on medical devices: Surgical scissors, wheelchairs, intravenous bags, dental retainers and braces, CT scanners, stretchers, exam room tables, heart stents, pacemakers, surgical gloves, spineboards at every local pool, scales at a doctor’s office or health club, any diagnostic test for any disease or condition – all will be among the products and procedures subject to ObamaCare’s special $20 billion medical device tax beginning in 2013. This tax will make these medical supplies more expensive, will drive up the cost of health care and health insurance for Americans, will threaten jobs in the medical device industry, and confiscate money needed for new innovative breakthroughs.

New Tax on Health Insurance Providers: Even though soaring health costs are the problem Americans most wanted government to solve, ObamaCare promises to drive costs even higher by instituting a new $60 billion tax on health insurers. Insurers and health plans can be expected to pass along this tax to policyholders through higher premiums. So starting in 2014, Americans will be forced to buy health insurance, and the federal government will be actively making it more expensive.

Medicare Payroll Tax: Starting in 2013, ObamaCare increases the Medicare payroll tax for many small business owners and others earning more than $250,000 a year. This tax hike will place yet another burden on small business owners who the country needs to create jobs and lead the economy into recovery. This job-killing payroll tax is estimated to raise $86.8 billion over seven years.

New Tax on Investment: In addition to the Medicare payroll tax hike, investment income will now be subject to a tax of 3.8% starting in 2013 for those in higher income categories. Even middle-class homeowners who realize a capital gain of $250,000 or more on the sale of their home will be hit by this Medicare tax, which will drain another $123.4 billion out of taxpayers’ pockets and into the government’s coffers over seven years.
New Drug Tax: ObamaCare’s new tax on brand-name drugs kicks in next year and is estimated to raise $27 billion over nine years. The public can expect to have these costs passed on to them in the form of higher drug prices and higher insurance costs.

Simply put, this health overhaul plan will take at least $569 billion out of the pockets of taxpayers and businesses over the next ten years through new and higher taxes, and will make the problems of soaring health costs even worse. No wonder the more Americans hear about ObamaCare, the less they like it.

 

[cloudy]

Old news to me. I filed way back in January, got my refund, and spent every penny.

 

[stephen55]

I'm a Canadian. Our tax day is Apr. 30th for most people.

We don't have an income tax per se.

Because we are a Socialist, almost Communist country (according to ami), the government feels that everything a citizen earns belongs to The People.

So what we do is send Ottawa a cheque (note Canadian spelling) for everything we earned the previous year and Ottawa sends back a cheque for what they think we deserve to keep.

 

[R. Richard]

Ripped off from Bankrate.com:

Time's Up! It's Tax Deadline Day

You've put off filing for 104 days, but any more procrastination could cost you. So don't just sit there.

Actually, do sit there just a bit longer. Stick with Bankrate.com, and we'll walk you through what you have to do today to get the Internal Revenue Service what it wants.

Don't Ignore The IRS

The key to surviving last-minute tax filing is realizing that the IRS will not be ignored.

These guys aren't kidding around when they set deadlines. The IRS wants your paperwork, and it wants it now. If you don't file your return today and you owe taxes, you may owe an additional penalty for failure to file unless you can show reasonable cause. The assessment is 5 percent per month (or any part of a month, even just a day) of your balance due.

Even if you file on time but don't pay what you owe, the IRS can charge you. This nonpayment penalty is one-half of 1 percent of the tax due each month, or any part of a month, that isn't paid. The fine continues until it reaches 25 percent of your late payment.

If both penalties apply in any month, you get a small break on the failure-to-file penalty. The IRS will reduce it by what it's charging you for not paying, making your potential maximum nonfiling penalty "only" 22.5 percent.

TAX PENALTIES

• Not filing your return will cost you an additional 5 percent each month of any due tax.

• Not paying what you owe will add an extra charge of 0.5 percent each month of your due tax amount to your overall IRS debt.

• If you haven't filed or paid, the combined penalty rate is 22.5 percent.

• If you don't file or pay for five months, the 0.5 percent failure-to-pay penalty will accrue, up to 25 percent of what you owe, until the tax is paid.

• In that case, the total penalty for failure to file and pay could amount to a 47.5 percent of your tax bill.

• Interest also is charged on the overdue amount.

But when you combine the late-filing and nonpayment penalties, even with the IRS "discount" on the late-filing charge, your total tax penalties could be substantial if you continue to ignore your tax responsibilities. Put off filing and paying for five months, and the 0.5 percent failure-to-pay penalty continues to run, up to 25 percent, until the tax is paid. This means your total penalty for failure to file and pay could amount to a whopping 47.5 percent (22.5 percent for late filing, 25 percent for late payment) of the tax owed.

The IRS also charges interest, currently 6 percent, on the amount of tax due. The rates are adjusted quarterly.

And if your return is more than 60 days late, the minimum failure-to-file penalty is the smaller of $100 or 100 percent of the tax required to be shown on the return.

Interest charges also will continue to add up -- on the penalties, too. So let's get started and get your taxes done!

Another Shot at Postponement

Since you've waited this long, you might be inclined to put off the inevitable a bit longer. Guess what? You can -- sort of.

The IRS will wait for your return until Oct. 15 if you file for an automatic extension. You can do this by sending in Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File. You can e-file the extension request from your home computer or have your tax professional who is an IRS authorized e-filer do so for you. Regardless of which method you choose, the extension request also must be made by April 15, or postmarked with that date if you snail mail it.

The extension will give you six more months to get your tax act together. But you don't have to wait until that ultimate deadline. Any time you get your tax filing material in order before then, you can send in your 1040

Pay Anyway

Filing this form won't delay any money you owe Uncle Sam. While he'll wait patiently for your paperwork if you ask, he wants the money on its way today or all those interest and late-payment fees will be tacked on to your final bill.

How do you know how much to send? You don't have to be precise. As long as the amount comes to 90 percent of what you eventually owe when you crunch all the numbers, you'll be OK with the IRS.

The easiest way to estimate the amount to pay is to look over last year's tax return. If your financial and tax situation are basically the same as last year -- you have the same job, still married, two kids, deductible mortgage interest -- then what you owe this year is likely to be close to the amount you owed last year.

Choosing Your Form

By now, you may have decided that it's just as easy to file and be done with it. In that case, your first step is to pick which form to use. The IRS gives you three options: the 1040EZ, the 1040A and the long 1040.

If your tax life is very simple, the 1040EZ may be best for you. If you have a few items other than just your salary -- say, a student loan you've been paying interest on or an IRA contribution -- look over the 1040A. And if you have income from several different sources or plan to itemize deductions, then it's the long Form 1040 for you.

If the 1040A or 1040 works best for you, then you're probably going to have some added tax paperwork to complete -- Schedule A for 1040 itemized deductions or Schedule 2 if you file 1040A and have child care expenses. Once you determine the extra forms you'll need, you can download them.

Bankrate's Tax Guide has the most common forms ready to download. If you need others or additional instruction books, check out the IRS Web site.

Gathering the Data

Next, track down all your income documents -- W-2 salary and wage statements, reports on how much interest you earned last year.

Don't have them all? Get in touch with your boss and the other statement issuers and request copies now. If you have to wait for the duplicates, though, make sure you file an extension application.

If you're really committed to getting your taxes done today, there's a way you can file without the forms. For interest and dividend income, pull out your last account statements. They should have the earnings information you need.

As for your missing W-2, use the data on your final pay stub from last year to complete Form 4852, the IRS' authorized income statement substitute. Then, fill out Form 4852 in place of the absent W-2.

Filling in the Blanks

Now it's time to fill in the form blanks.

The key here is making sure you don't miss any deductions or credits (hint: Credits are usually better) that can save you some tax dollars.

In most cases, the bulk of the tax breaks go to itemizers. In this case, be sure you make the most of these deductions.

Some deductions, however, are available to every taxpayer, even those who claim the standard deduction. There are more than a dozen above-the-line deductions; check them all to ensure you don't overlook a tax-saving opportunity. If you're having trouble finding all those receipts, consider filing that extension request so you'll have a few more months to sort through the stack of tax documents in the corner.

The Home Stretch

Oh, wait! You just found the receipt you needed, so it's time to wrap up this process.

You've completed the forms, attached the required statements, made out the check, affixed your signature and sealed the envelope. Now it's time to get that tax material on its way to the IRS.

If you've done your taxes the old-fashioned paper way, head for the post office. But make sure it's a quick trip. Use the U.S. Postal Service's office locator to find the one nearest you. If it's getting late, call first to make sure the office will be open longer to collect tax returns.

Or you could dispense with paper altogether. You can download several tax software packages and use them to file electronically directly from your personal computer. If you don't want to clutter up your computer's hard drive, you can access essentially the same products online to complete your taxes via the Web. The IRS encourages this method via the Free File Alliance, which affords some taxpayers no-cost online tax prep and filing.

Of course, there's still time to take the rest of the day off and file Form 4868. It's usually better to file an extension than to send in a return riddled with mistakes.

 

[trysail]

Before you wingnuts go off the deep end again, have

[ ww.huffington post.com ]

some truth.

I needed some humor for the day. It's a tad funny that anyone could confuse that source with "truth." However, what's really hilarious is a belief that substantial numbers of others are going to innocently click on a link, ignore the source and make an identical mistake.

As ishtat's thread of today points out,
( http://forum.literotica.com/showthread.php?t=702654 )
the piper must always be paid.

Pray that you're dead and in the grave when the day comes ( today's pols are only too happy to fool and bamboozle the innumerati whilst bankrupting the offspring ).

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

For our Usual Suspects its I FUCKED THEM AGAIN DAY.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

And Harry Reid still thinks taxes are voluntary!

 

[R. Richard]

Well now, income taxes are voluntary. You either volunteer to pay your income taxes, or you volunteer to go to prison.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Well now, income taxes are voluntary. You either volunteer to pay your income taxes, or you volunteer to go to prison.

Yeah that sounds like a deal to me. Take my money, that I worked hard for, out of my pocket to give to someone who won't work for his own. Or have the IRS thugs haul you off to jail. Such a fucking deal.

 

[Liar]

I have another month until I need to panic.

I'm going to be hung over like a mofo next Saturday. Perfect opportunity to do it.

 

[trysail]

By: Elizabeth & Mallory Factor

Did you file your federal income taxes on or before April 15? Almost 50% of American households won’t be paying any federal income tax this year, and the reasons why have profound implications for our democracy as well as our economy now.


A series of tax reforms, generous exemptions and tax credits, including last year’s economic stimulus bill, have dropped millions of Americans from the federal tax rolls. Huge numbers of Americans are simply no longer affected by the federal income tax. The Tax Policy Center projects that 47 percent of all U.S. households will pay no federal income tax for 2009. And, the bottom 40 percent of income earners actually receive a cash payment from the government at tax time. This cash payment is styled as a “refund” but it is actually a net cash transfer from the government--not a refund of taxes actually withheld on income. And for many Americans, this cash transfer from Uncle Sam actually exceeds all federal, state and local taxes that they pay in any form during the year including sales taxes and social security taxes.


Of course, we are accustomed to the idea that high income earners pay more in taxes both in absolute terms and as a percentage of their incomes. But taxing only the top half of a society is not normal progressive taxation. Instead, the recent changes to our tax system are an example of politicians using the tax code for their own political ends. In this case, the so-called progressive Democratic politicians are using “tax reform” to grow their political base by creating a group of Americans that pay no federal income tax.


The people who don’t pay federal income taxes are, as the phrase goes, “rational economic actors” just as much as anyone. Like all people, non-taxpayers respond to economic incentives. Their demand for entitlements and government programs is naturally insatiable because they don’t care at all about the cost. Non-taxpayers don’t have any “skin in the game” and are completely indifferent to the government raising income taxes. So they will always support increasing government programs as a long as they get even a small benefit from them because it does not cost them a cent. It’s also perfectly rational for non-taxpayers to support politicians who favor more spending. Non-taxpayers get something for nothing, at least until the country becomes insolvent.


The so-called progressive Democratic politicians are rational actors too. By taking more and more Americans off the federal tax rolls, they are creating a permanent base of supporters for themselves. These politicians may claim to support increased government spending because of their concern for the less-fortunate but--hey, it also happens to be in their own political self-interest. And these politicians will continue to spend on these programs until our nation goes bust because they want to keep their jobs and grow expensive programs for their political base.


And what about the people paying all the federal taxes? Well, taxpayers respond to incentives too. When faced with increasing tax rates, taxpayers will reduce their income, which is why it is impossible to raise a lot of revenue by increasing taxes above a certain point. As taxes on income rise, taxpayers spend less time on work and more on leisure. They avoid sales of investments and assets which could trigger income until they can pair them with offsetting losses from other transactions. They spend billions of dollars on tax advice and structuring to reduce their tax burden, which makes economic sense for them but which is a waste of resources for our society. In the aggregate, a tax system that is hostile to investment and growth has a distortive effect which harms U.S. productivity and reduces the standard of living of our whole nation.


Under the Obama administration, many Americans accustomed to paying their share of federal taxes are being taken off the tax rolls. Recent tax law changes mean that for the first time, in 2009, a family of four making $50,000 can pay no federal income tax at all. This family may not change its behavior and outlook immediately from its taxpaying days. But the family’s economic incentives are now to keep America taxing and spending. And a family at this income level has surely suffered in this recession, but should they really pay no federal income tax at all?


Ronald Reagan once said that a taxpayer is “someone who works for the Federal government but doesn’t have to take the civil service examination.” Every American should have to work for the federal government at least a little bit. We need to move back to a broad-based tax system so that more Americans understand that there is no such thing as free money—government spending actually has a huge cost for our nation.


The so-called "progressive" politicians have turned John Kennedy’s “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country” on its head. And telling so many Americans that they don’t need to make sacrifices for our government, as we are now saying, is dangerous new territory for our nation and for the health of our democracy and economy.

 

[TE999]

Just wait until Congress rams through a VAT to help prop up our overburdened treasury...everybody will pay it regardless of income level...like gas, cigarette and liquor taxes...that seems fair to me...unlike our current reward and punish tax system. So it raises prices on everything sold, who in Washington cares as long as the tax bucks are rolling in.

 

[Bobby_3111]

I dont have any income taxes (federal or state)taken out of my check, I just put $125 a week into my savings account and then pay what I owe at the end of the year when I file.

After deductions, write-offs, etc. I end up with a little more in savings each year from the interest. Sure it isnt a lot, but it's better than giving it to the gov. weekly and letting them collect more money for their coffers.

Next year i'm thinking about CD's, too late for the 12 month ones, but maybe locking up the cash in a 6 month CD to get a little more would be good.

Either way i think if you are one of those people that are able to save money dont pay income taxes and just put what you think you would owe anyway into a savings account or CD's. Then when tax time comes around just take the money from your account and pay what ya owe. Earn something from saving and maybe have a little extra money, that tax refund is a big lump of cash at the end of the year yea but it's not worth it imo.

 

[Boxlicker101]

I dont have any income taxes (federal or state)taken out of my check, I just put $125 a week into my savings account and then pay what I owe at the end of the year when I file.

After deductions, write-offs, etc. I end up with a little more in savings each year from the interest. Sure it isnt a lot, but it's better than giving it to the gov. weekly and letting them collect more money for their coffers.

Next year i'm thinking about CD's, too late for the 12 month ones, but maybe locking up the cash in a 6 month CD to get a little more would be good.

Either way i think if you are one of those people that are able to save money dont pay income taxes and just put what you think you would owe anyway into a savings account or CD's. Then when tax time comes around just take the money from your account and pay what ya owe. Earn something from saving and maybe have a little extra money, that tax refund is a big lump of cash at the end of the year yea but it's not worth it imo.

That is the best way to go. Have an interest bearing money market account and pay once or twice per year bills, such as property taxes and annual insurance payments and income taxes and others from it. Unfortunately, the IRS hates to have people do this; they prefer to collect taxes from them as they earn their money, so they get it that much sooner. Eventually, they will insist that you change your withholding so you pay every month.

 

[Katyusha]

That is the best way to go. Have an interest bearing money market account and pay once or twice per year bills, such as property taxes and annual insurance payments and income taxes and others from it. Unfortunately, the IRS hates to have people do this; they prefer to collect taxes from them as they earn their money, so they get it that much sooner. Eventually, they will insist that you change your withholding so you pay every month.

They will? So long as you pay what you owe by April 15th every year, why should it matter how it gets paid?