Give to Help Haiti Today – Get Instantaneous Deduction on 2009 Return
February 1, 2010 by Taxcut Editor
Filed under Personal and Business Taxes
A few days ago in a email news post I made the distinction that the Haiti disaster is currently a qualified disaster says the IRS (http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=218615,00.html).
And I mentioned in that email, the IRS was rumoring that people would be able to take a deduction for donations to Haiti on this year’s (2009) tax return – rather than having to wait until you file your 2010 tax return. Certainly this would be quite an incentive for people who desired to donate money to the victims of disaster in Haiti to help them get back on their feet! Are you feeling the pressure of today’s taxes? Right now you can get $100 off your tax return for Cary NC Tax Prep needs!
As it turns out, the suggestions I was hearing and that you could have heard are TRUE! On January 22nd, the IRS adopted a special tax relief policy that allows donations for the Haiti disaster made after January 11, 2010 and before March 1, 2010, will be deducted on your 2009 tax return. Or, you could choose to take the deduction to your 2010 tax return instead, on the chance that in case you didn’t want to take advantage of this great incentive to assist those in need.
The inhabitants of Haiti are hurting very badly. These kinds of disasters are completely unavoidable, and are well, disastrous. Earthquakes and other forms of natural disaster create huge levels of carnage and widespread loss of homes. Entire families are without food or clean water. In many cases these families don’t even have the capability to acquire any level of stable living environment without the assistance of relief organizations (funded by donators like you!). Do your part today and donate whatever you can to assist the people of Haiti. I would certainly appreciate the added donations, and I’m positive all of the struggling people in Haiti would appreciate it to!
Stay tuned for more articles and information regarding tax season, taxes, and Haiti!
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Give to Haiti – Receive Immediate Deduction on 2009 Tax Return
January 31, 2010 by Taxcut Editor
Filed under Personal and Business Taxes
A few days ago in a email news item I made reference to the fact that the natural disaster that occurred in Haiti is currently a qualified disaster says the IRS (http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=218615,00.html).
And I mentioned in that email, the IRS was rumoring that people are able to make a deduction for contributions to Haiti on this year’s (2009) tax return – rather than having to wait until you file your 2010 tax return. Obviously this could be a huge reason to donate for people who desired to give a part of their wealth to the people of Haiti to help them get back on their feet! Are you feeling the pressure of today’s taxes? Right now you can get $100 off your tax return for Cary NC Tax Prep needs!
As it turns out, the suggestions I was hearing and that you may have heard are TRUE! On January 22nd, the IRS created a special tax relief policy that will allow contributions for the Haiti relief made after January 11, 2010 and prior to March 1, 2010, will be deducted on your 2009 tax return. Or, you can choose to take the deduction to your 2010 tax return instead, just in case you did not want to take advantage of this great incentive to assist those in need.
The inhabitants of Haiti are hurting very badly. These kinds of disasters cannot be avoided, and are well, disastrous. Earthquakes and other types of natural disaster create vast amounts of destruction and widespread loss of homes. Entire families are without food or clean water. In most cases these families don’t even have the capability to acquire any level of stable living environment without the assistance of other countries’ efforts (funded by donators like you!). Do your part right now and donate whatever you can to assist the people of Haiti. I would certainly appreciate the added donations, and I am positive all of the struggling people in Haiti would appreciate it to!
Stay tuned for more articles and information regarding tax season, taxes, and Haiti!
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A Short Timeline of Taxation of the US, Section 2
December 28, 2009 by Taxcut Editor
Filed under Personal and Business Taxes
W. Marc Gilfillan, CPA, NC, individual and business CPA and Tax expert, shares about the history of taxes…
1861 – After Lincoln’s election, southerners walk out on Congress and form the Confederacy with a new constitution to curtail the power of their newly formed country to tax.
1862 – The beginning of US income tax is levied to help finance the rising massive debts of the Civil War. If you are feeling the pressure with today’s taxes, call a CPA for Tax Preparation in Raleigh, NC for all your tax-related needs!
1872 – The income tax is abolished.
1894 – Congress creates an income tax as a result of southerners complaining that excessive reliance on tariffs skyrockets the costs of imported goods for farmers and consumers. Go here if you want help from a modern-day CPA firm in Raleigh, NC.
1895 – The US Supreme Court holds that the 1894 income tax law conflicts with the US Constitution’s bars on insituting direct tax.
1913 – The 16th Amendment is passed and removes that bar and Congress creates an income tax system.
1917 – World War I revenue requirements push up tax rates, with the biggest rate reaching 77% in 1918.
1924 – Publication of the names of taxpayers and how much they owe fails to complete the goal of enforcing paying the taxes and the practice ends.
1942 – Prior to World War II, the lowest income level for paying income tax excluded most wage earners. However, the cost of the war bumped the threshold down the income ladder and sent the top rate to ninety-four percent before the war was over.
1943 – To enforce compliance from the sharply increased number of taxpayers, Congress institutes tax withholding from wages, effectively turning employers into tax collectors.
In the 1940s Justice Jackson of the Supreme Court, former chief counsel of IRS, boasted about how law-abiding Americans were in reporting their income taxes. The system was based on the user’s honesty – there were only a few informational returns. Open resistors to the taxes were few and the underground economy was relatively small.
1962 – IRS Commissioner Caplin said “no other nation in the world has ever equaled this record of voluntary compliance. It is a tribute to our people, their tradition of honesty, and their high sense of responsibility in supporting our government.”
1982 – Chief Justice Neely said – “cheating on federal and state income tax is all pervasive in all classes of society; except among the compulsively honest, cheating usually occurs in direct proportion to opportunity.”
Stay tuned for Part 3 of the Timeline of US Tax Policy!
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A Short Timeline of Taxation of the USA, Part One
December 25, 2009 by Taxcut Editor
Filed under Personal and Business Taxes
W. Marc Gilfillan, CPA, NC, individual and business CPA and Tax expert, shares about the history of taxes…
Between 1868 to 1913, almost 90% of the federal government’s revenue was gotten from tax on alcohol and tobacco. While the Civil War was occurring there was a brief income tax, but it wasn’t until 1913 that the 16th Amendment permitted Congress to tax incomes “from whatever sources attained.” The initial 1040’s were due on March 1, 1914. There was not any money taken from paychecks and no money was sent in with the return. Every taxpayer’s taxes were calculated by IRS field agents and a bill mailed to the taxpayer on the first of June.
1766 – Colony leaders met to extinguish British taxes in place by the Stamp Act. The Stamp Act Congress, as it was called, was the start of the American independence movement and the beginning of the modern U.S.
1782 – The first Congress under the Articles of Confederation formed. This Congress had no taxing powers.
1789 – America granted a newly formed Congress the ability to tax. Without taxing powers, the first Congress of the United States barely survived 7 years prior to being dubbed a failed attempt; the second Congress, with taxing powers, is currently going strong after almost 300 years. If you are feeling the pressure with today’s taxes, call a CPA for Tax Preparation in Raleigh, NC for all your tax-related needs!
1792 – Alexander Hamilton coerces Congress to pass an excise tax on whiskey to increase earned income for the government and steady the increase in alcohol consumption. In the western frontier alcohol was the basic medium of exchange, and the 25% tax was harsh. By 1794 the area was in open rebellion. The father of the IRS was created to give the tax enforcement. Go here if you want help from a modern-day CPA firm in Raleigh, NC.
1832 – The national debt that remained after the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 is paid off. The South doesn’t see any reason for continued high import taxes that raise prices for Southern consumers and promote industrial monopolies in the North.
1850 – John C. Calhoun of South Carolina tells Congress that the South could leave the Union due to the fact that the overly oppressive taxation in the South increased funds that ended up in the North, creating a great shift in wealth from the South to the North.
Stay tuned for Parts 2 and 3 of the Timeline of US Tax Policy!
http://www.marccpa.com/
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The History of Taxation, Part Nine: Tax Law, the Slaves, and the American Civil War
December 25, 2009 by Taxcut Editor
Filed under Personal and Business Taxes
W. Marc Gilfillan, CPA, NC, individual and business CPA and Tax expert, shares about the history of taxes…
“Slavery – the one cause of the Civil War.” – John Stuart Mill, 1862
Can there be any doubtful thoughts about this topic? Certainly the American Civil War was about the slavery issue… was it not? Well actually, one of the greatest hoaxes in our history is that the Civil War began because of the slavery issue and that Lincoln, the Great Emancipator, fueled a terrible war to break the chains of bondage that enslaved over 3 million black Americans. Right before the war, the South had everything its way.
In 1860, the South controlled the Supreme Court and Lincoln and Congress were approving a constitutional amendment to protect slavery forever! What happened?
We should rewind the time back to the year 1832. By 1832 the national debt from the War of 1812 had been paid and the South saw no need to keep up the exorbitant import taxes that seemed to only jack up prices for the South’s consumers. Either the South paid high import taxes on imported goods or it bought Northern manufactured goods at excessive prices. Either way, the South’s money transferred to the North. To say the least, the South was not happy with this arrangement. If you are feeling the pressure with today’s taxes, call a CPA for Tax Preparation in Raleigh, NC for all your tax-related needs!
So, in 1832 a convention was hosted in South Carolina to nullify these federal import taxes. The South declared the tax was unconstitutional and authorized the governor to resist the enforcing of the import taxes instituted by the national government. It seemed like a civil war was in the making. Mild tempers won over, however, and the Great Compromise of 1833 reduced import taxes over the subsequent few years to an area the South could tolerate. Go here if you want help with a modern-day Tax Return in Raleigh, NC.
Over the ensuing years, however, Northern corporate and manufacturer interests bullied into Congress more taxes that again stressed Southern planters and allowed Northern Manufacturers to become rich once again. In 1850, John C. Calhoun, the South’s most outstanding spokesperson, delivered a speech to Congress. His speech listed 3 grievances of the South that may cause secession from the Union and war. The first two involved fears about the gradual decline of power of the South in general and the states in particular.
The third, and only solid grievance, was about taxation. In Calhoun’s view, national import taxes was a targeted legislation against the South. Huge amounts of taxes on the South raised money that was used in the North. The focus of economic life in the country was steadily changing strongly to the North. Calhoun spoke of secession if the taxes weren’t reduced. But what of the slaves? Well, in his campaign for the presidency in 1860, Lincoln repeatedly said he would not do anything about slavery in the South. Actually, most Northerners did not care much about black men in bondage, just as little as how much they worried about the Native-American in the West or impoverished uneducated workers in factories. By and large many black slaves got substantially better quality treatment and more compassion than their counterparts in the North. Lincoln, in fact, promised Southern plantation-owners that fugitive slaves would be caught. The Congress and then the Supreme Court (Dred Scott decision) continually affirmed that slavery wasn’t going anywhere.
However, just as Lincoln was elected and Congress assembled in 1861, they enacted more high import tariffs. Slavery wasn’t an problem – higher import taxes were. In his inaugural address Lincoln stated he would collect the customs in the South even if there happened to be a secession!
Fort Sumter, near the entrance of the Charleston Harbor, started to fill with federal troops to support the collection of the new taxes. The Civil War began in 1861 when South Carolinians fired on the federal garrison at Fort Sumter. The inevitable had been brewing for years – but it wasn’t about the slaves. It was about tax policy.
Two years later, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, and then only following repeated military battles, as the last resort to rally the North behind a noble cause. With respect to the slave issue – most Northerners didn’t care much concerning black people in bondage, no more than they cared about Native-Americans in the west and the poor illiterate peasants in the factories. Ironically, most black slaves got better treatment and greater compassion than their impoverished counterparts in the North.
That’s it for the History of Taxes Series!
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