Robert ReichApr 18, 2023

In most wealthy countries, the government figures out how much in taxes you owe them — and for free. As all of you know, that’s not the case here in the U.S.

The reason? Tax prep companies don’t want it that way. And they spend big money on lobbying to make sure of it.
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RT @OpenSecretsDC
As TurboTax faced mounting scrutiny, Intuit spent more than $3.5 million on federal lobbying last year — a new record for the tax prep company. …
https://twitter.com/OpenSecretsDC/status/1648102538955337728

OpenSecrets.org on Twitter

“As TurboTax faced mounting scrutiny, Intuit spent more than $3.5 million on federal lobbying last year — a new record for the tax prep company. https://t.co/qxzbaw2VLN”

Twitter
Show threadNew AgeApr 19, 2023
@rbreich Counterpoint: Isn't it actually more transparent and empowering to publish a set of (simplified) tax rules and let citizens figure out their own tax per the rules (including using 3rd party preparers), rather than the govt simply handing one a bill or a refund? How would the govt know what income adjustments and deductions I need to declare or take in any given year?
Show threadJohn BolesApr 19, 2023
@rbreich @sunscream for a typical filer, most of these numbers are easily calculated from data already available to the government. I think the reasonable model is to have a standard form with your numbers filled in by the irs, with questions that could lead to recalculating for specific exceptions / situations. Ie pretty much what TurboTax etc charges people for.
Show threadNew AgeApr 19, 2023
@johnboles @rbreich
Possibly in low-income cases, the income data provided to the IRS is enough. But, if you're in the middle class, how would the IRS know if itemized deductions or the standard deduction is better for you? I can't imagine they know all of your medical expenses, for example. Checking and revising a pre-filled form from the IRS sounds like it's about as much work as filling out a return.
Show threadJohn BolesApr 19, 2023
@rbreich @sunscream it’s not much work. People pay TurboTax to do just that. And my insurer can prefill a form that would cover nearly all of my medical expenses that can be uploaded to the irs. Also, the standard deduction covers 87% of filers as of 2019.
Show threadNew Age
@johnboles @rbreich
I recommend people try out the IRS Free Fillable Forms, which also lets one e-file for free, and evaluate whether any commercial tax prep software is really necessary. It's possible that a good fraction of standard deduction filers will be able to get along fine without paying for any tax prep software, using what the IRS already offers.
Apr 19, 2023 at 1:56amWeb
Show threadJohn BolesApr 19, 2023
@sunscream @rbreich yeah that’s a good thing to remember