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And THAT is the part that concerns me. I too, when I was employed (and hope to be again) paid about a 48% tax rate. It bugs the life out of me, but I figured that it is part and parcel of having the luxury of calling the US home. I know that it went to fund SS payments, defense, education, etc.
Being part of the middle class, I knew that the wealthy receive very good tax breaks, but had hoped that at some point (maybe during the new administration) that those would be cut out. I also knew the poor or those on public assistance would not pay taxes on their income - but thought they at least had to file.
I am not talking about corporations since I believed this statistic to apply only to individual tax filers/tax payers.
I guess I was shocked at pretty much being an idiot in doing the right thing (the legal thing!) and paying an astronomical tax rate - but assuming that at least everyone else was filing THEIR returns - even if they had tax breaks I did not qualify for.
I don't want to disagree with most of your post but must tell you that in order to get any kind of refund one has to file a return. No return, no refund is the way it is supposed to be.
One other part of your post I have to take exception with is the part about SS payments. I am sure that you know that every worker "gets" to pay into the SS fund. Well now for about 60 years Congress has been spending the part that was left after the year's SS costs had been met. Therefore, all that "surplus" that should have been left got spent every year, however we are just getting to the place where SS payments won't meet needs. That would have only been one or two years if not for this recession and all the unemployment.
Anyway, if the Congress had kept their dirty paws off that "surplus" and let it accumulate like was originally intended we would have over $3 trillion in that fund. To call SS payments something coming from the Treasury is to misunderstand the whole thing. That "surplus", as Congress called it, should have been put in a lock box from the start and we wouldn't have all this noise about SS. Old FDR's Braintrust was not made up of idiots, but they were followed by lots of that kind.
You can call it an overpayment if it makes you feel better but typically it's because the employer applied a standard withholding rate and did not account for the different tax credits that each different employee could claim.
And how many new accountant types would many employers have to hire to do what you talk about? You are right but it is calling of too much of those employers. Those tax regs are a deep jungle.
I don't want to disagree with most of your post but must tell you that in order to get any kind of refund one has to file a return. No return, no refund is the way it is supposed to be.
One other part of your post I have to take exception with is the part about SS payments. I am sure that you know that every worker "gets" to pay into the SS fund. Well now for about 60 years Congress has been spending the part that was left after the year's SS costs had been met. Therefore, all that "surplus" that should have been left got spent every year, however we are just getting to the place where SS payments won't meet needs. That would have only been one or two years if not for this recession and all the unemployment.
Anyway, if the Congress had kept their dirty paws off that "surplus" and let it accumulate like was originally intended we would have over $3 trillion in that fund. To call SS payments something coming from the Treasury is to misunderstand the whole thing. That "surplus", as Congress called it, should have been put in a lock box from the start and we wouldn't have all this noise about SS. Old FDR's Braintrust was not made up of idiots, but they were followed by lots of that kind.
I don't want to disagree with most of your post but must tell you that in order to get any kind of refund one has to file a return. No return, no refund is the way it is supposed to be.
One other part of your post I have to take exception with is the part about SS payments. I am sure that you know that every worker "gets" to pay into the SS fund. Well now for about 60 years Congress has been spending the part that was left after the year's SS costs had been met. Therefore, all that "surplus" that should have been left got spent every year, however we are just getting to the place where SS payments won't meet needs. That would have only been one or two years if not for this recession and all the unemployment.
Anyway, if the Congress had kept their dirty paws off that "surplus" and let it accumulate like was originally intended we would have over $3 trillion in that fund. To call SS payments something coming from the Treasury is to misunderstand the whole thing. That "surplus", as Congress called it, should have been put in a lock box from the start and we wouldn't have all this noise about SS. Old FDR's Braintrust was not made up of idiots, but they were followed by lots of that kind.
Thanks Roysoldboy - I stand corrected and appreciate it on the SS payments.
And how many new accountant types would many employers have to hire to do what you talk about? You are right but it is calling of too much of those employers. Those tax regs are a deep jungle.
I don't expect them to. I just saying I believe that most 'overpayments' and refunds are caused by applying tax credits as opposed to too high a withholding rate.
I paid into social security when i had a paper route that the Govt thought was lucrative...lol... and i never did pay one dime to social security in my railroad career...we paid into railroad retirement another F.D.R. created government run agency.As for someone to say us tax haters are trivial ever here of the Whiskey Rebellion? The Civil War Income tax to fund the war that is still around like so much old lugage,a case of Herpes you are stuck with forever? How about the surcharge on phone bills to pay for the Spanish-American War? TOO MUCH TAX-TAX-TAX...HOW ABOUT LIVE WITHIN YOUR MEANS UNCLE SAM ?
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