Tax Information With A Mother's Touch
Published by Eva Rosenberg, MBA, EA
Volume 6, Issue 263 June 18, 2004
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Tax Information With A Mother's Touch Published by Eva Rosenberg, MBA, EA Volume 6, Issue 263 June 18, 2004 |
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 » From: Somewhere Out There Dear TaxMama: Any comments on the passing of the 40th President of the United States of America, who gave us one of the most & greatest tax reform acts back in 1986? Hugs, David ;-)!  Gee David, I really don't have any comments about President Reagan, who, as governor or California was kind enough to cut my (and everyone's) California State Scholarship by 25% the very year I started college ... As to the Tax Reform Act of 1986, you shouldn't even get me started. It was/is AWFUL!!!!!!!! We all called it the Taxpreparer's Retirement Act. Instead of simplifying the tax code, it made filing taxes too hard for any untrained individual to do properly. It turned a simple thing like depreciation into a complex monster of rules. It created the idiotic concept of luxury vehicles - setting a price barely above the cost of KIAs as luxury. It eliminated the capital gains tax rates on installment sales - without a provision protecting contracts already in existence. You should have seen what happened to the income of senior citizens who had sold property on an installment sale, intending to collect a fixed income for 20 years or more. That cut their income dramatically. It phased out interest expense deductions, trying to legislate reduction of credit spending. It didn't work. People still run up credit cards - they just don't get to deduct the interest any more. These are just some of the things that come to mind, off the top of my head. It created concepts so complicated even IRS couldn't audit for them - like passive loss limits, active real estate limits .... and lots of other things you can't keep track of without a computer. As a taxpayer, I was offended by the bill. As a tax preparer, I've had ball handling audits for other tax professionals who were afraid they might have run afoul of the new tax law. I really, really wish legislators would look at more than their lobbyists' or parties' interests when they write tax law. They really need to look at the real costs to administer the law - and the burden they put on taxpayers to keep records, so they can comply. The tax code really does need simplification. And those very costly and confusing rebates really need to stop. See, David, you shouldn't have asked. ;~) Best wishes, Eva Rosenberg Your TaxMama  |
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| Library of Congress - ISSN 1532-0790 Copyright © 2000-2007 - Eva Rosenberg |
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