Lake taxes
My wife and I own a cottage on Lake Wassookeag and our son and his family have recently purchased a summer home on the lake. My point is this: to a lot of us the lake is, and has been, an important part of our lives and we feel that anything that might affect it adversely should not be allowed to happen. From what I heard in the Dexter Town Council chambers last week, I would say that there should be no changes made to the zoning regulations around this lake for any reason. It appears to me that the lake is the only viable water supply for Dexter. Stormwater abatement on Abbott Hill is not possible, razing the old high/middle school is too expensive, another road down the hill is not possible, and the list goes on.
I would urge the town planning board, code enforcement officer and any others involved with approving/disapproving zoning changes to think long and hard about what they may be doing in the name of economic development. The best way to make use of Lake Wassookeag as an engine of economic growth is to keep it clean and unspoiled and allow nothing to be done that might create problems in the future. Like many nonresident property owners around the lake, who pay generous taxes but make few demands on taxpayer services, we hope our collective voices will be heard. I hope all who make the ultimate decision on this proposed development will be guided to make the best ruling possible.
Lawrence Jacobs
Corinna
Drug abuse
I believe we do have a problem with prescription drug abuse here in Maine. I also believe that Gov. LePage is overemphasizing it to promote his personal agenda against the people who abuse the drugs, not the problem itself.
Drug abuse is a problem in itself, but even more than that, I believe it is a symptom of a greater ill. Being curious and wanting to educate myself about social problems, I did a little research, and Maine does indeed have one of the highest rates of prescription (i.e. opiates) drug abuse, but not in overall substance abuse. So, I wondered, why is Maine so high in prescription drug abuse? The answer: because we are a very rural state, and the illegal stuff doesn’t get here. Otherwise, if you do a little research, Maine has about the same rate as other New England states, Rhode Island being the highest, with little or no treatment for it. So now the folks with chronic pain, who already go through the third degree, are going to be told to stop taking them unless they go through more treatments that cost money and have questionable degrees of effectiveness. Oh wait, but LePage wants to cut programs that help people get off drugs.
What a waste of time, energy and resources. I thought elected officials were supposed to represent the people, not abuse their power to promote their own agenda of hate and discrimination.
Arin Quintel
Berwick
Candidate in District 34
Dan Levesque is running as the Democratic candidate for District 34 for the State Senate. Having known Dan for the better part of 28 years, I’ll tell you that he will be a strong candidate for District 34. Dan does not lack in is his hard work ethic and his ability to take charge of a situation and get things done. This was evident as I worked for Dan and the family-owned J. Paul Levesque and Son’s lumber mill beginning in 1985. The operations were maintained at a high level under his leadership. As general manager he played a large part in the profitable years for the family-owned business. Dan was also a very influential part of the Route 11 and 212 corridor improvements in the mid-1990’s, serving as the vice chairman.
I worked with Dan as a member of the Portage Hills Country Club board of directors for the past 10 years. Dan has demonstrated his leadership skills and involvement on various committees that served the golf course well. Dan has a strong business background going back to his 35 years with the sawmill business and as past owner of an office supply and Internet business. He would be a strong advocate for all the businesses in northern Maine. He will promote job growth in this area, as he did in helping bring an industrial park, cogeneration plant and spec building to the Ashland area.
Vote for Dan Levesque, Democratic candidate for District 34, for the Maine State Senate.
Michael Cote
Ashland
Taxing lessons
I like the idea of taxes. It’s all of us paying to do the things each of us can’t do by themselves: good paved roads and sidewalks, the interstate highway system, my town plowing the roads in the winter.
I also like helping folks when they can’t help themselves. A small change, job loss, illness, divorce can turn a life upside down very fast. Sure, most of us can “pull ourselves up by our bootstraps,” but some of us don’t even have shoes, never mind boots. I wish sometimes I had a little more say over where the money goes. Perhaps we could have a check-off on our tax forms to say that I don’t want to pay for any more wars, but I do want to pay to protect and feed kids and old people. I don’t think that I should be paying for the chaos that was 2008- present on Wall Street and elsewhere. I do think that our air, water, land and fauna should be protected, our meat and other food inspected. I am happy to pay for enough workers to make sure that bridges are safe and drugs are pure.
The first lesson folks seem to learn when they are financially well off is how to game the system so that the “little people” pay the most and they the least. I think the idea of taxes is based on fairness, but it would be hard to make that case looking at what we’ve got today.
Karen Tolstrup
Old Town
Celebration in Washington County
I read (BDN May 31) that Washington County will be celebrating June 9 at Machias the first naval battle of the Revolutionary War, the taking of the British schooner Margaretta by a group of Machias patriots June 12, 1775, in the Machias Harbor.
The records show that the first naval encounter of the war took place May 14, 1775, almost a month after Lexington and Concord, on the waters of Buzzard’s Bay south of the town of Fairhaven, Mass., then a part of Dartmouth, by a force of Fairhaven men commanded by Captains Nathaniel Pope and Daniel Egery in the sloop Success. They captured two British sloops and their crews.
Dee C. Brown Jr.
Bangor
Karen Tolstrup–Great letter! The ultra wealthy have been conspiring to demonize taxes for several decades now and it is reaching the point where most people overlook all the good reasons we have taxation and how taxes helped to make our country a world power. There seems to be a correlation to the reduction of taxes and decline of our security both at home and in the world. They want us to believe that if we give the wealthy more money they will work harder and if we give the poor more money they will work less. That’s crazy talk. I will vote for the candidate that says he will raise taxes on the wealthiest among us.
It should be obvious that state and federal government is too big, and clearly no longer affordable, yet you want to feed those pigs. What is it about $15,000,000,000,000 (trillion) in federal debt you don’t understand? Sheesh!
Please point to the clause in the Maine or U.S. Constitution empowering the government to redistribute wealth. Let me save you some time – you won’t find it.
You want to donate more money to these highly wasteful organizations, go ahead. When I want to help my neighbors, I give to United Way, which, for a small percentage to cover their meager operating costs, channels this money to local non-profits doing good, mission-oriented work, on a shoestring.
I do this joyfully, unlike on April 15, when I feel forced to support 400,000 abortions conducted annually by tax-subsidized Planned Parenthood. This is wrong, and it must stop.
Bear this in mind – more money was donated to United Way of Eastern Maine last year than the entire federal government received in cash donations. Think about that. It seems more people agree with my philanthropic choices that yours.
“more money was donated to United Way of EME …… than the entire federal government received in cash donations”.
I didn’t know that the federal government was in the business of receiving charitable “cash donations” What a very strange factoid. Are you proposing that the government should be run as a United Way charity?
Where it is our military that consumes the lions share of our budget and it is our nationalist incursions that create our massive debt, I would advise caution using the “pigs” moniker too freely. Some might take umbrage and it detracts from the civility we will need to solve the problem.
My belief that progressive taxation is the best solution stems from historical evidence. It is easy to see that our strongest times have been when tax receipts were high. If you are interested in the data to back this claim up–I suggest this:
http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html
or the short version:
http://www.businessinsider.com/15-charts-about-wealth-and-inequality-in-america-2010-4?op=1
Charitable donations are commendable but they will not restore our country to its former glory.
According to the OECD the US has the single most progressive tax system in the world.
The tax subsidizes don’t fund abortions — that’s illegal. Unless you want to argue that they indirectly fund abortions by freeing up funds for Planned Parenthood, but if that’s the case, then are you also concerned about your tax dollars going to big oil subsidizes that cause 2-4 million premature deaths through air pollution?
Karen Tolstrup: Well said.
Karen Tolstrup: spot on. It is not the wealthy that keep the economy buzzing along. It is the common, middle class folk that do. If the middle class consumer does not have money to spend, the economy will crash. Giving the wealthy Romney types a tax break will not trickle down to us peons one red cent.
Exactly.
The Margaretta a great story, though the actual story is the more interesting one than what is commonly known.
http://www.amazon.com/Revolution-Downeast-James-S-Leamon/dp/0870239597
Here is the book that has a place on my bookshelf.
Karen Tolstrup – with the percentage of people who don’t pay federal income tax approaching 50% that check list would be unavailable to a lot of people. If the financially well off are gaming the system many are not doing a great job. Per the IRS in 2009, taxpayers who made $1 million or more paid on average 24.4 % of their income in federal income taxes. Those making $100,000 to $125,000 paid on average 9.9 % in federal income taxes. Those making $50,000 to $60,000 paid an average of 6.3 %. Now the 15% tax rate for capital gains and dividends creates an overall low tax rates for many wealthy but don’t forget that many in the middle class have a zero percent tax rate on capital gains & dividend and don’t pay any tax on those items of income.
Multiply those percentages and tell me how much they have to live on. I probably won’t be very sympathetic to this argument.
I never really understood why it’s boiled down to what someone earn versus what someone just needs and that the difference should be taken away from them. Maybe you’re not saying this, but there are people who work VERY hard to earn the $100,000+ they receive. When people work work hard to earn more money only to have a higher percentage taken from them as their “fair share,” I wonder why people think that’s okay.
Well that’s because the question now is how do we balance the budget in these tough economic times. There is no denying that working and middle class families earn their money. Those aren’t the people being discussed. Maybe someone with 100,000 for an income works twice as hard as someone with a 50,000 income, maybe! But I don’t think anyone can honestly say that someone with a 10 million dollar salary is working 10 and 20 times harder “earning” that money. I don’t think many buy the idea that compensation equates directly to the amount of energy a person puts into their work.
I think ultimately it’s just about the fact that we hear people complaining about tax burdens. When a politician (Flemming from LA) complains about only having 400,000 left over after feeding his family and investing in his LLCs people don’t feel too sympathetic. That’s because so many in the country are unable to put any money away right now and yet they’re the exact ones being cited as a viable option to increase taxes on (“increase the tax base”).
Actually some laborers work a lot harder than, say, engineers. As long as the guy on the bottom earns a living wage I have no problem with those who earn more. And, remember the country was doing very well when tax rates on the wealthy were over 70% from ’56 to ’80. “The truth is that there is actually very little evidence to support the argument that high taxes on the rich slow growth. In the United States, per capita growth was much slower between 1980 and 2010 when top marginal tax rates were low than between 1950 and 1980 when rates were high.” http://blogs.smartmoney.com/encore/2012/05/18/high-tax-rates-for-the-wealthy/
They do not have a higher % “taken” in fact the wealthy actually pay a smaller % of their income in taxes than the working poor if you count all taxes and fees. Keep in mind that Romney paid about 14% in taxes. The working poor pay almost a quarter of their income in taxes and fees.
The working poor pay nothing in income taxes. So, if you’re going to compare Romney’s income tax percentage to that of the working poor, stick to one tax or the other.
Please note that msallyjones referred to “taxes and fees” not to just *income* taxes. There is much more to the burden than income tax and to ignore that fact is simplistic and disengenuous … at best.
I would need to see the data that shows low income people pay 25% of their income in taxes and fees. I think that is BS.
List of taxes and fees
Accounts Receivable TaxBuilding Permit TaxCapital Gains TaxCDL license TaxCigarette TaxCorporate Income TaxCourt Fines (indirect taxes)Deficit spendingDog License TaxFederal Income TaxFederal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)Fishing License TaxFood License TaxFuel permit taxGasoline TaxHunting License TaxInflationInheritance Tax Interest expense (tax on the money)Inventory tax IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)Liquor TaxLocal Income TaxLuxury TaxesMarriage License TaxMedicare TaxProperty TaxReal Estate TaxSeptic Permit TaxService Charge TaxesSocial Security TaxRoad Usage Taxes (Truckers)Sales TaxesRecreational Vehicle TaxRoad Toll Booth TaxesSchool TaxState Income TaxState Unemployment Tax (SUTA)Telephone federal excise taxTelephone federal universal service fee taxTelephone federal, state and local surcharge taxesTelephone minimum usage surcharge taxTelephone recurring and non-recurring charges taxTelephone state and local taxTelephone usage charge taxToll Bridge TaxesToll Tunnel TaxesTraffic Fines (indirect taxation)Trailer Registration TaxUtility TaxesVehicle License Registration TaxVehicle Sales TaxWatercraft Registration TaxWell Permit TaxWorkers Compensation Tax
From the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities (statistics come from the Congressional Budget Office)
The notion that “half of Americans don’t pay taxes” not only overstates the share of households that do not pay federal income taxes in a typical year. It also ignores the other taxes people pay, including federal payroll taxes and state and local taxes. …The reality is that the income tax is one of a number of types of taxes that individuals pay, both over the course of their lifetimes and in a given year, and it makes little sense to treat it as though it were the only one that matters. Some 86 percent of working households pay more in payroll taxes than in federal income taxes. In fact, low- and moderate-income people pay a much larger share of their incomes in federal payroll taxes than high-income people do: taxpayers in the bottom 20 percent of the income scale paid an average of 8.8 percent of their incomes in payroll taxes in 2007, compared to just 1.6 percent for taxpayers in the top 1 percent of the income distribution. …Low-income families also pay substantial state and local taxes. Most state and local taxes are regressive, meaning that low-income families pay a larger share of their incomes in these taxes than wealthier households do. The bottom fifth of taxpayers paid 12.3 percent of their incomes in state and local taxes in 2010, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) model. That was well above the 7.9 percent average rate that the top 1 percent of households paid.(it adds up to about 22.7% of income is paid out in taxes and fees in families in the lowest income brackets)
Ok but how does that figure when you subtract those taxes from the EITC and other subsidies like food stamps etc.?
I mention that because millions of people get more “back” in their return than they pay in including payroll taxes.
I thought “payroll taxes” were actually saved in a trust fund, and thus aren’t taxes but forced savings. Or is that a sham…:)
Seven years ago, during tight times for my family, we earned less than $50,000 for a family of four and according to turbo tax, taking a standard deduction, we had a negative tax burden (mostly thanks to EITC). Times were tight, but I didn’t feel poor. Sure I contributed to payroll, but those are “savings” that I’ll draw upon one day. My family now makes about $100,000/year and according to turbotax my effective rate is 6.27% (mostly due to home mortgage and child credits; Federal only). I feel solidly in the middle class right now, but looking at this number, I can’t say I feel overtaxed, nor can I say that in general, the middle class or those who make less are “overtaxed” compared to the rich. We can scream about the 1% all we want, but I have a hard time imagining that we can make our code much more progressive than it already is.
Is that before or after the EITC?
Tell me about it. I now earn about $100,000 but it took me years of 60+ hour weeks to get there. No one was going to hand it to me, and I do bristle (somewhat) at the notion of being “punished” for working hard and earning more by an increasing proportional tax burden. That said, I don’t think my burden is very high due to deductions for home mortgage and children. Of course, I certainly don’t feel rich with college costs looming.
I also don’t have much sympathy for those who whine that they are stuck in the lower middle class when they work only 40 hours a week. The opportunity is there: work harder then everyone else and you WILL be noticed by your boss. If we stick to the 40 hours should = “living wage”, the developing nations (namely China and India) are going to eat us for lunch over the coming decades because they WILL work harder than that.
But the very wealthy don’t “earn” wages. Most of the money they take in as income is from capital gains. You can cite income tax numbers all you want, but ultimately for the very wealthy, their entire tax burden is much lower, like Romney’s 14% for example.
You are forgetting to calculate capital gains tax, curently at 35%, that is already assessed to these investment earnings.
You’re being tricky. You’re adding both the state and federal tax, ignoring the tiers and plethora of deductions. It’s like the GOP talking point about the high corporate tax rate. Yes, it’s high on its face, but so few pay that level, the majority pay a fraction of it. Like I said, ultimately the burden is lower for the very wealthy, like Romney for example who pays an effective rate of 14%.
Wrong. The capital gains tax has been 15% since Bush’s 2003 tax cuts. Measure twice and cut once.
The income numbers which you don’t want to deal with show that the top 1% do pay a higher rate. There are many pay that a lower rate, over 1500 in this group paid no taxes, but the overall average is higher. The President likes to infer that the top 1% pays a lower rate which they don’t.
So why not get things in order and pass the President’s plan that bars going lower than a certain percentile?
Why make it a complicated calcuation that only CPAs can figure out? A simple change in the capital gains/dividend rate would take care of most of it. We don’t need another AMT though I do make money changing for the form.
What’s complicated about a specific figure that you can’t move below?
Karen Tolstrup – Many of the wealthy do “game the system” by taking advantage of the laws put in place by those in Congress that have done so as a return for favors and contributions to their campaign funds. Most of it legally, while others work the system by hiding assets, faking write-offs, and claiming massive donations. The tax system is broken, and needs to be changed. That’s why I back the Fair Tax. No loopholes, and no way to hide money.
But, there is another part of the tax problem and another very large group that “games the system”, and that’s the purposely poor. I know many that live for their unearned tax “returns” and earned income credits, both of which go against any intelligent thought. Many come into the bank each spring with checks up to 12,000 dollars from the IRS, when they didn’t pay in one red cent of income taxes during the previous year. Most didn’t have jobs, nor were they looking, because it was more beneficial for them to remain on the welfare roles than to work. Most are just dead weight, and are paid by the hard working that have to pay increased taxes in order for them to maintain their voluntarily enslaved lifestyle.
You see, Ms. Tolstrup, the gaming goes on at both ends of the economic spectrum. The rich pay off the Congressmen in order to get the loopholes written into the tax code, and the voluntary poor get rewarded by the Congressmen in exchange for their votes.
As a footnote, there are many poor, handicapped, and elderly in this country that truly need and deserve the assistance. But, there is an increasingly growing group that live off the government teat just because they can. The teat is drying up. But the progressives can’t seem to get hold of that.
I agree that the system is a game that cheaters, liars and thieves love to play. The rich and the poor of them. But the poor do not benefit to the degree that the rich do. And, I think it is a much smaller group that you suggest. How many of the 37,562
( http://www.statemaster.com/graph/eco_wel_cas_tot_rec-economy-welfare-caseloads-total-recipients ) do you think need to go? That works out, according to this website, to be 2.8 in 100. 12.3% live below the poverty level out of a population of 1,321,505 so that is 162,545 poor and only 37,562 use the welfare system? It looks like more poor are not gaming the system than are.
You’re talking about Maine stats. I was talking about the country as a whole. Either way, the gamers are alive and well and taking advantage of the system.
I agree.
I am also amazed at the “Christian” attitude some people have toward to poor and less fortunate. There are some moochers out there, but when reading the comment in this paper, you’d think that that vast majority of poor people are taking advantage.
Who are these “many” with $12,000 returns? How do you know they don’t have jobs and aren’t looking either?
Good point. I have never heard of this. How do we know this isn’t just an urban rumor, like that lady who dried her poodle in the microwave oven?
Something tells me I won’t get a response from EJP.
My wife works at a local bank. She has to cash their tax checks. This year she started seeing checks as large as 12k, and some of them actually brag about not working and getting all that money back.
Is she also their employment counselors and accountants?
Thank you for clarifying. However, this anecdote doesn’t really prove anything. When I worked in a bank, I saw and heard all sorts of things, but there wasn’t any way to verify the truth.
In a small town like ours, it’s pretty easy to verify what some people say.
It sounds like being nosey…
You worked at a bank. I’m sure you knew things that you didn’t need to know without being nosey at all. It’s the nature of the job.
Yeah but he doesn’t go blatting them all over the internet.
Would you care to convert the terms ‘some’ and ‘many’ into real numbers? If your wife is so concerned about the possible illegality of these checks has she reported them?
Illegality? Who said they were illegal?
If they are not illegal, what’s the problem.
I guess ethical dishonesty means nothing to a liberal.
Look who’s talking about ethics. AHAH (gasp) WHOOOAHA!!!
As demonstrated by my post below, EJ has no problems with factual dishonesty. It’s his stock in trade.
It sounds to me like your wife should not be talking about customers’ business and account information to you or anyone else. Any “verifying what some people say” sounds like taking snooping to another whole level. Doesn’t the bank have confidentiality rules? That includes discussing things with spouse and family.
No names or account information was ever discussed. No snooping was involved. And no rules were violated.
By your name alone, you should be concerned about the hundreds of billions of tax dollars that are given to those that choose no to work or purposely remain under the poverty level in order to receive these large “tax returns”. This thread started out talking about the wealthy “gaming the system.” Well, there are far more on the lower end that are “gaming the system”. Don’t you see that as part of the problem?
I don’t deny that that is a problem. But you say there are more poor people taking advantage than there are rich people and while that may be the case, I believe that the amount of money that is “given” to the rich who game the system is more. Where does the figure you list come from, by the way?
Were these people who are suspected of defrauding the federal government reported?
Defrauding? These lazy societal slugs are gaming the system by using the loopholes provided to keep them on the roles of the poor and ensuring that they vote for the left on election day. Just like with the wealthy and their attempts to keep as much of their money as possible, the poor are using the system to get as much as they can for themselves. Meanwhile, the middle class ends up paying the bill.
We need the Fair Tax. It will solve the problem.
Please explain the Fair Tax.
In a nutshell, the Fair Tax eliminates the state and federal income taxes and replaces it with a consumer tax. It replaces the 22 percent of embedded taxes with a 23 percent embedded tax (that ends up being less than a 1 percent increase), and also eliminates FICA and the SS tax. The Fair Tax is the only tax system that has been studied and approved to actually increase revenues to the government and state coffers.
The Fair Tax does a few things that those in power will fight tooth and nail. For instance, the Fair Tax requires the repeal of the 16th Amendment, and it put the IRS out of business. It has to be ratified by the states in order to repeal the 16th Amendment, but, if explained truthfully, that should be no problem. Another thing the Fair Tax does is take away the ability for the Congress to assess taxes at will.
Just Google “Fair Tax” and read through a few of the sites. Be careful, however, because many of the anti-fair tax sites are purposefully misrepresenting it.
although that does seem fair it seems that it will make the poor even poorer. My mother is living on Social Security, and a small pension (about 1500 a month). She pays no income tax. She pays 5%-7% sales tax on purchases that require sales tax. Now you want her to pay 23% on her groceries, oil to heat her home, her phone bill, her cable bill, her hair cuts (she gets one every 6 weeks), her doctor visits, her car inspections and repairs. That does not seem like a very good solution.
Back in the 50’s (I forget the year) was the last time the national debt was decreased. The wealthy was taxed at 91%. CEO’s would not take extravagant salaries (who wants to take a big paycheck home and give 91% to the government), and would invest it in growing the company and giving employee bonuses and benefits.
How about we get back to that?
OMG don’t get him started on the Fair Tax, the economic idiots solution to all societal ills.
ET, those checks are earned income tax credit checks. In order to receive one you have to have worked.
Welfare checks are not given in a yearly lump sum. Are you talking about earned income tax credit checks? I believe one has to have worked in order to receive a “refund” and it is based on the amount earned. Correct me if I am wrong. “Many” is a rather indefinite number. Did your wife keep track of the number of people who cashed earned income refund checks?
People on welfare can get a tax refund and an earned income credit.
And, no, my wife didn’t keep track of the number of people that cashed EOC checks. That was a really stupid question.
But, back on subject: Doesn’t it bother you that so many that don’t pay income taxes are rewarded with large refunds? Or is your disdain for the wealthy so great that you only see one side of the issue?
The issue today is the wealthy who don’t pay their fair share. You keep bringing it back to the hoards of shifty poor people who’s only purpose is to stiff the state of Maine.
Having worked in a bank myself (as well as being a customer of one), I think it’s irresponsible for an employee to be commenting on the banking transactions of customers. That hideous shirt that Mr. X wore the other day, sure, but not the amount and types of checks customers negotiate.
You’re losing focus on the problem of people gaming the system. You’re willing to profile the wealthy, but not the scammers on the other end of the spectrum.
The money pilfered at the lower end is a mere pittance compared to the gaming by and for the wealthy. It is worth noting that whatever money the poorer among us might be scamming is being spent and therefore going right back into the economy. That cannot be said for the wealthier among us who use their gains to further enhance their fortunes. Not good for the country’s economy by any means, or spin.
I have a laser like focus on exactly what you are trying to imply about the people that come into your wife’s bank.
from http://www.irs/gov
To claim EITC on your tax return, you must meet all the following rules:
You, your spouse (if you file a joint return), and all other listed on Schedule EIC, must have a valid Social Security Number.
You must have earned income from working for someone else or running or operating a farm or business;
Your filing status cannot be married filing separately.
You must be a U.S. citizen or resident alien all year, or a nonresident alien married to a U.S. citizen or resident alien and filing a joint return.
You cannot be a qualifying child of another person.
You cannot file Form 2555 or Form 2555 EZ. (Related to foreign earn income)
You must meet these EITC Income Limits, Maximum Credit Amounts and Tax Law Updates
And you must meet one of the following:Have a qualifying child (see who is a qualifying child below), orIf you do not have a qualifying child, you must:be age 25 but under 65 at the end of the year,live in the United States for more than half the year, andnot qualify as a dependent of another person.If you qualify for EITC, you have to file a tax return with the IRS, even if you owe no tax or are not required to file.
The rule clearly states you must have earned income. These days with all the low paying jobs it is quite possible to work and still be eligible for some types of assistance. Those people, you and your busy body wife claim are lazy cheats, are the working poor.
How much though? Can you earn $7.50 in 2011 and be eligible for the EITC? I think that isn’t in the spirit of the credit. And I don’t think you should ever have a negative tax liability on the federal tax return. The return should simply correct the tax owed. Assistance programs should be accounted for separately.
But I’m not convinced there are hoards of people “gaming the system” to get the EITC. It isn’t the cause of or solution to our budget woes.
The earned income tax credit was beefed up and strongly supported by that notorious socialist, Ronald Wilson Reagan.
It partially reflects a refund of social security taxes, is conditioned on one actually earning income, and is capped at well below $12,000. In 2010, the maximum credit was just over $5,600.
Should we disinter the Gipper for his heresy?
LOL@ disinterring the Gipper.
Bravo Karen. I stand with you on every point you made. Would that more of us felt the same. It might just be a more decent world to live in.
Walker wins WI by 7 points. Congratulations!
He is the champ!!!!!!
Amazing what $35 million dollars, of which 3/4 came from outside Wisconsin and the vast majority of that from less than 20 sources can do to an election when your opponant raises $4 million with less than 1/3 coming from out of state.
Many voters appear to believe that only Republicans work hard and pay taxes. Democrats either suck off of welfare or state jobs and neither group works or pays taxes. This idea has been enshrined in bumper sticker language “Makers and Takers” .
It has the same genesis as the out cry against public education, government and unions : the money being poured into conservative media by those that stand to benefit from the loss of power and loss of financial resources of working and middle class people.
Never underestimate the power of money in convincing people to vote against their own best interests.
Arin,
The reason the drug problem is where it is today is because no one ever stood up to the abusers. LePage is spot on!