Washington to Remove Exemptions for Candy and Bottled Water

SB 6143 signed into law by Governor Gregoire on April 23, 2010 includes several provisions that will generate additional revenue for the st...

VAT Mania

I think it is fascinating to hear so much discussion today about the need for a VAT in the US. All other industrialized countries have a VAT...

Can IRS Prepare Returns for Many Individuals?

This is a longstanding question. In several countries, the tax agency or employers handle income tax filing for many individuals. In 1996,...

President’s Bipartisan Fiscal Commission - First Meeting

The President's Bipartisan Fiscal Commission meets for the first time today (April 27, 2010) with President Obama joining them at the st...

Cap and Trade versus Carbon Tax - CBO Letter

on April 20, the CBO issued a letter to Congressman Christopher Smith on the costs to households of H.R. 2454 , the American Clean Energy a...

Earth Day and Taxes

Today is Earth Day! There is a significant connection to San Jose State University where I teach because the co-founder of Earth Day - Gaylo...

More Stimulus - Payroll Tax Exemption

In March, enactment of two health care reform laws overshadowed signing of another economic stimulus bill. On March 18, 2010, President Oba...

Signs of Tax System Problems - Serious Ones!

Today - tax day - among the emails I received are two that I think are good illustrations of how troubled our federal tax system has become....

Time to Demand a Simpler Income Tax System

As we complete our income tax returns this week (unless you got it done earlier), we are reminded of the complexity of the process. This yea...

California AB 2148 - Poor Tax Policy

On Monday April 12, 2010, the California Assembly Revenue & Taxation Committee is scheduled to discuss 18 bills. Among them is AB 2148 ...

Paul Volcker Again Mentioning a National VAT

CBSMoneyWatch .com has an article today - "VAT: New Tax Coming Soon?" by Cait Murphy (4/7/10). It states that in response to a C...

Ohio Tax Reform - Success or Not?

In 2005, Ohio made significant changes in its tax law. It added a gross receipts tax called the Commercial Activity Tax (CAT) and phased out...

First-Time Home Buyer Credit Problems

On April 1, 2010, the Treasury Department reminded people (if they read Treasury press releases), that they have just to the end of April to...

Tax Administration and Electronic Communication

Here is a proposal that certainly fits within the concept of "21st century taxation" - allowing the Franchise Tax Board ( FTB ) to...

Example of Alternatives to Solving Problems with the Tax Law

With the EPA announcing on April 1 that it is increasing fuel efficiency standards and adding greenhouse gas emission standards, we are remi...

People's Tax Problems and Possible Solutions

Yesterday, a blogger sent me a post on " The Ten Most Famous Tax Evaders of All Times ." It lists some very famous people with tax...