Monday, July 30, 2012

The Importance of Tax Record Keeping

›
It is not difficult to find professionals who advise, whether in person, on web sites, or otherwise, that tax records should be retained for...
Friday, July 27, 2012

Federal Ready Return: Index

›
Several readers requested an index to the series of posts on the federal Ready Return proposal. Here it is. Federal Ready Return, Part One:...

The Limits of Taxation

›
In the current atmosphere of anti-taxation sentiment, opposition to tax increases, and efforts to curtail government, it was surprising but ...
Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Fourteen: Conclusion

›
The nation is not ready for federal Ready Return. Nor will it ever be, until and unless the federal income tax law is overhauled. Ready Retu...
Monday, July 23, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Thirteen: IRS Authority

›
Ready Return is something that the IRS has authority to implement. Section 2004 of the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act...
Friday, July 20, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Twelve: Taxpayer Acceptance

›
Ready Return will not work if taxpayers do not accept it. All indications are that Ready Return will fall flat. As I pointed out in First ...
Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Eleven: Conflict of Interest

›
Ready Return creates a conflict of interest, not, as some claim, because it gives the IRS the dual roles of tax return preparer and tax coll...
Monday, July 16, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Ten: IRS Capacity

›
Ready Return would impose significant demands on IRS resources. Imposing Ready Return on an IRS saddled with computer system problems is unw...
Friday, July 13, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Nine: Economic Impact

›
Ready Return proponents claim that it will save people several billion dollars in taxpayer return preparation fees. If that’s true, that put...
Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Eight: Burden on Business

›
In order for Ready Return to work, even putting aside all of its other flaws, the IRS would need W-2 and 1099 2 forms to be submitted earlie...
Monday, July 09, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Seven: Taxpayer Acquiescence

›
Another danger of the Ready Return method is that it can induce taxpayers to accept IRS positions to which they would object if raised durin...
Friday, July 06, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Six: Security Risks

›
Ready Return poses serious security risks for taxpayers, particularly if the system is set up in a manner that requires taxpayers to access ...
Wednesday, July 04, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Five: Efficiency

›
Advocates of Ready Return claim that it saves people time. After I shared my opinions about Ready Return on public radio , as described in F...
Monday, July 02, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Four: The Persistence of the Tax Gap

›
The IRS claims that this system would eliminate the tax gap, estimated between an $300 and $400 billion annually. See Daniel Horowitz, The I...
Friday, June 29, 2012

Federal Ready Return, Part Three: Income Tax Return Accuracy

›
Though Ready Return advocates praise their proposal as a generator of increased tax return accuracy, the reality is quite different. To assu...