Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Tax Ignorance: Legislators and Lobbyists

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I noted previously, in New Jersey to Follow in California’s Tax Footsteps? , that New Jersey faces some difficult decisions if the intentio...
Monday, December 28, 2009

A Tax Lesson to be Learned

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Imagine. A fund designed to make payments to those in need. A tax levied to put money into that fund. In good years the fund balance grows. ...
Friday, December 25, 2009

A Holiday Tax Gift

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Earlier this week, along came the news that Pittsburgh’s mayor has abandoned his effort to have the city enact a tax on tuition. This decis...
Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Snow and Taxes

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The area where I live has been clobbered with a snowstorm that comes in second on the "inches piled on" list. I'll spare every...
Monday, December 21, 2009

A Citizen Vote on Taxes

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Too often, the only people who get to vote on taxes are legislators. Granted, citizens can vote on taxes indirectly by making choices among ...
Friday, December 18, 2009

Testing Tax Bureaucrats Just Part of the Solution

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As expected, the tale of Philadelphia’s Board of Revision of Taxes continues to grow. My commentary began with An Unconstitutional Tax Asses...
Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Tax Credit for Chocolate?

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A colleague passed along some very important news about chocolate. According to this report , chocolate is pretty much a "superfood....
Monday, December 14, 2009

Tax Bureaucrats Lose Work, Keep Pay

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The tale of Philadelphia’s Board of Revision of Taxes continues. A little more than a week ago, in This Just Taxes My Brain , I commented on...
Friday, December 11, 2009

Tax Law Going to the Dogs in a Fishy Proposal

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The tax law is complicated. Attempts to simplify it encounter opposition from the special interest groups who gain an edge by reason of thei...
Wednesday, December 09, 2009

When It Comes to Taxes, How High Is High?

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With my curiosity tweaked by a TaxProf Blog posting , I took a look at the OECD’s recently issued Revenue Statistics 1965-2008, 2009 Edition...
Monday, December 07, 2009

Tax Loss? Tax Win?

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Last week, an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer , that in some versions was accompanied by a “Yankees Lose” tagline, suggested that profe...
Friday, December 04, 2009

This Just Taxes My Brain

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I don’t understand it. After I read about it in this news item , I thought about it and concluded that it made no sense when viewed rationa...
Wednesday, December 02, 2009

The Obey War Tax Proposal: Sensible?

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David Obey, a representative from Wisconsin, has renewed his call for a war tax to fund any increase in expenditures to finance the war in A...
Monday, November 30, 2009

Poll on Tax and Spending Illustrates Voter Inconsistency

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In New Jersey to Follow in California's Tax Footsteps? , I noted that "Now New Jersey gets a chance to see what happens when tax re...
Friday, November 27, 2009

An Orphan Tax Provision?

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Section 30B of the Internal Revenue Code provides a credit for alternative motor vehicles. Section 30B(h)(3) provides that, “The terms ‘auto...
Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Gratias Vectigalibus

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“Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I don't plan to post tomorrow, and I have a feeling many regular readers won't be checking in. So though ...
Monday, November 23, 2009

Do We Get What Our Taxes Pay For?

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My short essay on The Math of Tax and Spend brought a very perceptive response from Daniel Hoebeke, J.D., a reader who is Gift Planning Off...