TAX POLITIX
The Politics of Taxes
AETNA To Quit Obamacare Entirely
Last year, Aetna announced it would cease providing insurance in 11 states. Then in April, Aetna said that it would leave Virginia and Iowa, leaving just a few states with Aetna coverage. Now, Aetna has announced that it will leave Obamacare altogether, citing cost as the major factor. According to Bloomberg, "Aetna had indicated it might pull out earlier this month, when Chief Financial Officer Shawn Guertin said the company would take steps to limit its financial losses in the program. Aetna...
George Will, Don Boudreaux, and John D. Rockfeller
In this morning's Washington Post, George Will penned a column proclaiming, "[G]ood news: You are as rich as John D. Rockefeller. Richer, actually." Will drew inspiration for his column from my good friend Don Boudreaux, who is an economist at economist at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center and creator of one of my favorite blogs, Cafe Hayek. "Boudreaux asks if you would accept this bargain: You can be as rich as Rockefeller was in 1916 if you consent to live in 1916." At various times...
ACHA Tax Analysis: List of Taxes Repealed
Americans For Tax Reform put together their usual compilation of taxes affecting a piece of legislation. They have been following the crushing Obamacare taxes for years; now they have a list of taxes that are abolished by the ACHA bill passed on Thursday, along with potential tax savings: "The American Health Care Act (HR 1628) passed by the House today reduces taxes on the American people by over $1 trillion. The bill abolishes the following taxes imposed by Obama and the Democrat party in...
Michael Cannon on the AHCA
With the narrow passage of the GOP Healthcare bill this week, Michael Cannon wrote his critique of the legislation (GOP Healthcare Bill Is Not Repeal — It Is ObamaCare-lite, or Worse, May 4, 2017). Cannon is considered one of the foremost experts on Obamacare over the last 7 years. His displeasure with the bill focuses on problem of "community rating" inherent in Obamacare -- which remains in the ACHA. Here are his principle concerns: "House Republicans went behind closed doors and emerged...
WSJ: Trump’s Broad Tax Cut Plan
From the WSJ: "With Wednesday’s proposals—which include a 15% tax rate for all businesses, lower individual rates, a bigger standard deduction to benefit middle-income households and the repeal of the estate and alternative minimum taxes—Mr. Trump hopes to speed up economic growth and make his mark as a historic tax cutter. What the administration delivered Wednesday largely hews to tax-cut proposals Mr. Trump made during his campaign last year, but includes some crucial changes. Most notably,...
Trump’s Obamacare Tax Reforms Should Not Be Considered a Tax Cut
I'm sick and tired of reading over and over again in places both liberal and conservative that Trump’s (as well as the Republican’s) proposed tax reforms are going to give the lion’s share of the cuts to the top 1%. The entire concept is totally distorted. In fact, nobody has been talking about the series of tax changes that occurred when Obama and his Democrat cronies passed the Obamacare increases. These raised the Bush tax rates on only the wealthiest from 36% - 39.6 % and then again...
What Trumps Tax Returns Really Tell Us About His Rate
The clearest example yet of Media abuse of Donald Trump has surfaced in connection with the recently released excerpts from Pres. Trump’s 2005 federal income tax return. The return shows clearly and unambiguously that he paid an effective federal tax rate of 78.2%. Yet the press twisted the truth- outright lied - in reporting a tax rate of 25%, or even less. It is outrageous that the media is distorting the true tax rate that Donald Trump paid for the 2005 tax year. His 1040 that was released...
Middlebury Mayhem
Daniel Henninger was spot on in his assessment of the Middlebury College in his article, “McCarthyism at Middlebury” in the Wall Street Journal. Students shockingly felt justified to attack Charles Murray, a conservative pundit, because he had a viewpoint that differed from their own. Henninger puts this incident into perspective; this display of recklessness might actually be a turning point in the madness that has infected liberals and college campuses under the guise of “correct speech....
IRS Has Relaxed Rules Making the Obamacare Tax Penalty Payment Optional
In response to Donald Trump's Executive Order last week, the IRS altered its rules about tax returns and Obamacare's "shared responsibility" penalty. This is one of the methods of paying for Obamacare, and if collection of the penalty is not being strictly enforced, it will contribute further to the already unstable financial state Obamacare is in. From Reason.com: How much difference does a single line on a tax form make? For Obamacare's individual mandate, the answer might be quite a lot....
Humana Withdraws from Obamacare
Following in the footsteps of several major insurance companies in the past two years, Humana announced today that it will not be participating in the Obamacare exchanges in 2018, citing rising costs and risk pools. "The company said in a press release it has tried for the past several years to keep selling policies where it could offer "a viable product." It said it increased premiums, exited markets and tightened provider networks in hopes of stabilizing its individual market business. But...
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Changes on the IRS 1040 for Tax Year 2013, Part I
Most items on this year's 1040 are the same for last year. However, a few changes should be noted -- mainly related to adjustments for inflation. The new Standard Deduction amounts are as follows: Single: $6,100 Married Filing Separate: $6,100...