Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
I just actually READ my new lease. There's a State tax on rental income which landlords have to pay, here. The lease actually, unapologetically, stated that the 4.5% tax is included in the cost of my rent. And if the tax rises, I'll have to pay it, via higher rent. Parasites.
@Crash Apparently, the pass through of this tax is legal. You should check the qualifications to recover a portion of "renters payments" via a direct credit with your next tax return for Hawaii. Many states have some form of relief to reduce one's tax burden within certain gross or net yearly income levels. Imagine how much your mentioned parasites would require if you were a property owner, eh?
Double counting, missed items, a pretty nonsensical list.
The first four men in the bar supposedly pay nothing because in this hypothetical, they pay in proportion to the taxes they pay. So I guess they pay no sales tax for anything?
Quick thoughts about some of the items on the list:
- The list includes fees for state parks, but not for national parks.
- A soda/fatty food tax is typically just the usual sales tax. This item is a complaint that some food items don't get a special exemption from the sales tax. What more concerning is that thirteen states don't exempt any food items. Three of those don't even reduce the tax rate for food.
- Many states levy a tax on personal property (autos). This is assessed as a registration fee based on the value of your car. (It's deductible, subject to SALT limitations.)
- Fees on electronic transmission of tax returns. I get more back on my credit card than I pay in fees. Does that count as a negative tax?
- "Individual health insurance mandate tax." I agree that it still exists, but given that its rate is 0% it's not something one need be aware of. Unless you live in Massachusetts.
And on and on. Personally, no matter how much I aspire to it, I doubt I'll ever have to think about a federal estate tax. (There is no federal inheritance tax, though that's on the list.)
“I like to pay taxes. With them, I buy civilization.”
― Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
A broader discussion of regressive and progressive taxes might be useful. Sales taxes on necessary goods--and necessary is a debatable term obviously--are regressive in that poor people spend a greater proportion of their income on essentials--such as food and housing--than the rich. So the sales tax rate on basic necessities has a greater impact on the poor than the rich and is therefore regressive. But what is a basic necessity? I don't think soda is. In fact, it is one of those products that is essentially destroying the health of many Americans and has a hidden cost--or tax you could say--on our healthcare system. I also am not particularly fond of property taxes for one's primary residence, yet believe they are absolutely justified for secondary residences, investment properties and summer homes. The prospect of eviction for someone who has essentially paid off their house seems unjust, and when those property taxes are used to finance schools as is often the case, it leads to an inequitable school system in that high property value areas have more funding than low property value areas. So while not exactly regressive, property taxes and rental taxes certainly seem problematic. By contrast, income taxes, estate taxes, corporate taxes and capital gains taxes make complete sense to me.
ISTR that the US is the only major democracy that funds education at the local level using property taxes;other countries fund education at the federal level.
The website also contains links to Americans For Tax Reform and Tea Party Patriots, groups who support the Republican party who tried to repeal the ACA which I depend on. So obviously this website is useless for me !
The list is so obviously a screed (at least the URL contains "editorial") that its best function may be as a quiz for tax wonks: how many errors can you spot?
Example: Excise Tax on Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans, i.e. "Cadillac" plans
The Cadillac tax was part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). But it was among the more controversial provisions of the law, and was eventually repealed—after being delayed twice—before it ever took effect.
Wouldn't it be more honest if people who boasted of not paying taxes also boasted of the consequences such as saying "I've stiffed soldiers, police officers, firemen, teachers, etc. of their salaries since 2012 and I found a way to keep stiffing them for 5 to 10 more years," even though I've benefitted from their services? Or "I found a way to avoid helping children and the elderly have healthcare or to avoid helping the hungry get fed or helping the roads I drive on every day get repaired."
Humor me...we all have a tax or a fee that is a pet peeve...The Bottle Bill
Maybe not a tax, but a fee in 10 states (The Bottle Bill) on containers.
When time comes to return these containers, the redemption experience is as close to purgatory as I want to be.
In some states, the unclaimed deposits are like "pennies from heaven" for the concentrated benefit of the beverage industry (millions of tax free nickels and dimes) though some states have wrestled these windfalls away from the beverage distributors. Vermont has the good sense of directing the unclaimed money to clean up its waterways.
Humor me and acknowledge that taxes are a fundamental building block of civilization and pay for services that you and/or your friends and loved-ones personally need and have used.
Humor me and acknowledge that taxes are a fundamental building block of civilization and pay for services that you and/or your friends and loved-ones personally need and have used.
That’s how it should be. But if you live in a “gated community” you may have your own public safety department. If you can afford to charter a chopper you don’t really need to rely on public highways that much. If you send your kids to a private school the plight of public ones is of little concern. Parks? They’re so pedestrian. Why not just jet off to your own little beachfront enclave?
Pardon my sarcasm, but I think it points to a larger isssue here.
haven't paid a dime in taxes since 2012, and may not pay them for 5-10 more years.
A more accurate list on taxation would point out that we all pay many "everyday" taxes well beyond income tax.
LMAO.
So sorry. I forgot to include the word "INCOME" taxes. Spent a lifetime of tax planning to ensure we would be able to pay personal income taxes when WE wanted to pay them, which may turn out to be not until the time of RMDs at age 72 or 75, depending on how that all shakes out in DC.
@hank: I get your sarcasm and share your disappointment. What occurred to me is that the wealthy you describe also have plenty of dough to give to political candidates who pass low tax policies and favor charter schools over those that the general public pays for with diminishing resources.
Comments
Apparently, the pass through of this tax is legal.
You should check the qualifications to recover a portion of "renters payments" via a direct credit with your next tax return for Hawaii. Many states have some form of relief to reduce one's tax burden within certain gross or net yearly income levels.
Imagine how much your mentioned parasites would require if you were a property owner, eh?
The first four men in the bar supposedly pay nothing because in this hypothetical, they pay in proportion to the taxes they pay. So I guess they pay no sales tax for anything?
Quick thoughts about some of the items on the list:
- The list includes fees for state parks, but not for national parks.
- A soda/fatty food tax is typically just the usual sales tax. This item is a complaint that some food items don't get a special exemption from the sales tax. What more concerning is that thirteen states don't exempt any food items. Three of those don't even reduce the tax rate for food.
- Many states levy a tax on personal property (autos). This is assessed as a registration fee based on the value of your car. (It's deductible, subject to SALT limitations.)
- Fees on electronic transmission of tax returns. I get more back on my credit card than I pay in fees. Does that count as a negative tax?
- "Individual health insurance mandate tax." I agree that it still exists, but given that its rate is 0% it's not something one need be aware of. Unless you live in Massachusetts.
And on and on. Personally, no matter how much I aspire to it, I doubt I'll ever have to think about a federal estate tax. (There is no federal inheritance tax, though that's on the list.)
A broader discussion of regressive and progressive taxes might be useful. Sales taxes on necessary goods--and necessary is a debatable term obviously--are regressive in that poor people spend a greater proportion of their income on essentials--such as food and housing--than the rich. So the sales tax rate on basic necessities has a greater impact on the poor than the rich and is therefore regressive. But what is a basic necessity? I don't think soda is. In fact, it is one of those products that is essentially destroying the health of many Americans and has a hidden cost--or tax you could say--on our healthcare system. I also am not particularly fond of property taxes for one's primary residence, yet believe they are absolutely justified for secondary residences, investment properties and summer homes. The prospect of eviction for someone who has essentially paid off their house seems unjust, and when those property taxes are used to finance schools as is often the case, it leads to an inequitable school system in that high property value areas have more funding than low property value areas. So while not exactly regressive, property taxes and rental taxes certainly seem problematic. By contrast, income taxes, estate taxes, corporate taxes and capital gains taxes make complete sense to me.
Example: Excise Tax on Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans, i.e. "Cadillac" plans https://www.verywellhealth.com/what-is-the-aca-cadillac-tax-4092993
Sure, include health care excise taxes that never existed, but miss taxes that are real, like the tax on brand name drug manufacturers and importers (since 2014, ACA).
https://www.irs.gov/affordable-care-act/annual-fee-on-branded-prescription-drug-manufacturers-and-importers
It's not as though Americans for Tax Reform isn't aware of current and potential drug excise taxes. They recently cosigned a letter to Congress complaining about same. (The BBB legislation would impose an excise tax on drug companies that refuse to "sell drugs their drugs to all distributors at the Medicare price".)
@stillers mentioned: A more accurate list on taxation would point out that we all pay many "everyday" taxes well beyond income tax.
Maybe not a tax, but a fee in 10 states (The Bottle Bill) on containers.
When time comes to return these containers, the redemption experience is as close to purgatory as I want to be.
In some states, the unclaimed deposits are like "pennies from heaven" for the concentrated benefit of the beverage industry (millions of tax free nickels and dimes) though some states have wrestled these windfalls away from the beverage distributors. Vermont has the good sense of directing the unclaimed money to clean up its waterways.
about-bottle-bills/the-fate-of-unclaimed-or-abandoned-deposits
Pardon my sarcasm, but I think it points to a larger isssue here.
So sorry. I forgot to include the word "INCOME" taxes. Spent a lifetime of tax planning to ensure we would be able to pay personal income taxes when WE wanted to pay them, which may turn out to be not until the time of RMDs at age 72 or 75, depending on how that all shakes out in DC.