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Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

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Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#631

Post by tathougies »

guelo wrote: post #352
Calloggs wrote: post #298

Planet Money covered tax filing a few years ago and visited it again recently: https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?stor... My understanding is that the main opposition appears to be (1) the tax preparation lobby to protect their business interests and (2) anti-tax activists that believe that making people calculate their own taxes will make them more aware of how much they are paying in taxes. The…

I would classify causing mass pain for political gain as purely evil.

Right because filing your taxes is the moral equivalent of strapping the population to the torture rack

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#632

Post by tathougies »

cascom wrote: post #578
tathougies wrote: post #403

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The second argument blows my mind because I can't imagine that the set of people who would just pay the IRS without double checking their math are reviewing the tax filings from the third party they use right now. In other words, I would really like to see a survey of how people currently file their taxes in comparison to how they think they would if there was an IRS free filing for everyone or something like the R…

It’s worth it to me to pay a couple hundred dollars not to deal with it it and have someone else's signature on my return - that being said I have a back of the envelope spreadsheet that estimates my tax liability using about 5 inputs and is usually pretty accurate vs my prepared return

Are you under the impression that having someones signature on the return means you do not owe tax penalties if they do it wrong? If you read the copious amount of detailed instructions the irs provides, you'll soon find that thats not the case

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#633

Post by tathougies »

robmaister wrote: post #466
tathougies wrote: post #403

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The second argument blows my mind because I can't imagine that the set of people who would just pay the IRS without double checking their math are reviewing the tax filings from the third party they use right now. In other words, I would really like to see a survey of how people currently file their taxes in comparison to how they think they would if there was an IRS free filing for everyone or something like the R…

There's a few companies that are allowed to efile that do very little besides convert the IRS paper forms to web forms and do the arithmetic for you. They tend to be a lot cheaper than TurboTax/H&R Block. I've been using one of them (OLT) the last two years has worked well enough for me and efile processes a lot faster than paper. I also believe people should be filing their own taxes and understanding how the system…

I make sure to mail them in so uncle sam has to waste his money paying an actual person to input my data.

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#634

Post by nwah1 »

tathougies wrote: post #626
ransom1538 wrote: post #580

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The US has the most idiotic tax system. Your employer, your mutual funds, your 401k, your bank -- everyone reports what you make to the government. The government already knows what you owe (excluding those that itemize). They should just print out a summary and hand over a bill / refund.

No they don't. There's a gazillion things you could do or claim to lower your tax bill. Moreover, if you set up all yoyr withholdings correctly then you do not need to file anything. You only need to file if you owe (ie you set up withholding wrong) or want yoyr money back (ie your withholding was wrong)

That's the problem. There shouldn't be a gazillion things, and the fact that there are is a major reason why rich, savvy, and unscrupulous people are able to game the system while average people pay full freight.

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#635

Post by tathougies »

Zeebrommer wrote: post #470
fsloth wrote: post #25

Oh man, I've had government provided automatic filings for ages now (Finland). US is really odd how it emphasizes the benefit of the middleman over the benefit of the individual citizen (it seems). Or have I completely misunderstood what's going on here?

Same in the Netherlands. These types of backwards laws make America look bad.

On the other hands, Americans are much less likely to commit tax fraud than other countries, so perhaps the netherlands should encourage more people to report their sheltered assets?

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/04/why-ame...

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#636

Post by tathougies »

jason_slack wrote: post #506

I just filed my taxes this morning. I owe the government $4,600. I received an "underpayment penalty fee of $44" because I did not "pre-pay an estimated tax" each quarter. Something I have never done in the ~25 years I have been paying taxes. Not only do they want the $4,600 by 4/15 they also want an estimated $1,200 "pre-payment" for 2019 by the same date or I will incur this same fee of $44 next year.Plus 3 more pa…

Estimated tax has to be filed by anyone with non withheld income. This is readily available knowledge on the irs website. Its not your money once uncle Sam taxes it. It is the irs's money the moment you earn it. Out of courtesy, they loan it to you for a quarter but it is certainly not 'your money'. We shouldnt brag about not paying the same tax everyone else pays.

If this makes you mad, perhaps you'd be interested in lobbying for lower taxes

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#637

Post by tathougies »

jason_slack wrote: post #512
lukeqsee wrote: post #510

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Strictly speaking, you're holding their money for a year without interest. The estimated payments are not prepayments—they are payments that match what most W2 employees would pay every paycheck, but isn't the case for 1099 (or otherwise self-employed) individuals, since they don't have taxes withheld from their paychecks.

I get where you are coming from. What if I have a baby in January or February? Then I would qualify for a deduction and then I am indeed overpaying them. What if I lose my job? or get a job that is less money? It's not their money unless I earn the money to pay them, IMHO. It should go both ways.....why can't I ask them to estimate a refund then and give it to me in advance?

You can change your withholding at any time by filing a w 9 with your employer. Certainly for life events like a child, this is possible.

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#638

Post by tathougies »

astura wrote: post #432
jonathankoren wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is literally 1040-EZ.

1040-EZ went away in 2018, 1040 is now the only form. :(

The new 1040 form is shorter and easier than the old 1040 ez though

Re: Congress Is About to Ban the US Government from Offering Free Online Tax Filing

#640

Post by SkyBelow »

SilasX wrote: post #51
SkyBelow wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>US is really odd how it emphasizes the benefit of the middleman over the benefit of the individual citizen (it seems). I wonder what extent this is decided by how we vote. As long as voters pick the politician who prioritizes the middle man and gets their campaign contribution is selected over the politician who prioritizes the public but whose opponent gets the middleman's campaign contribution we will continue to…

Is the public really to blame for this? Is there an actual broad constituency that doesn't want this, or at least who trusts an interest group to represent them and who doesn't want this?

Want and behavior aren't always aligned. Does anyone want to be unhealthy? Yet many people act in ways that makes them very unhealthy, some of whom have the ability to change it but choose not to.

How much does someone want something if they aren't willing to change their behavior to increase the chance of getting it?

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