Bush’s tax plan has suggested severely limiting the mortgage deduction and eliminating deductions for interest on home-equity loans or mortgages for vacation homes. So today’s Fix the Tax Code Friday question is: Should we eliminate the deduction for home mortgages? Or should we limit the deduction to first time home buyers?
New Jersey is one of the first states in the country to pass a fairly comprehensive Domestic Partnership Act that would allow couples who register as domestic partners to receive the same benefits as a married couple under state law (not federal law). This applies to taxation, too. Married couples are allowed to file tax…
My daughters received their forms 1099-INT for their “Little Savers” accounts at our local bank last week. Since they are under the age of 16, we must report their income on our personal income tax returns (the infamous “Kiddie Tax”). The tax policy rationale is that wealthy parents should not be able to shift income to their…
In light of President Bush’s plan to allow a standard deduction for all persons who pay for healthcare insurance (or receive insurance through an employer), today’s Fix the Tax Code Friday question is: Should itemized deductions be eliminated completely in favor of a standard deduction?
I continue to receive a number of questions about withholding – it seems to be the most confusing of issues that directly affect individual taxpayers. So, today’s Fix the Tax Code Friday question is: Should we do away completely with the withholding system and allow taxpayers to pay quarterly or annually?
Few can argue that our Social Security system doesn’t need fixing. Even fewer can agree on how to fix it. A number of alternatives have been suggested from shelving the entire system and starting from scratch to simply changing the investment schemes available. So, this is your chance to voice your opinion. Today’s Fix the Tax Code Friday question…
Most individual taxpayers are on a calendar year for tax purposes – and that just wrapped up on December 31, 2006. Business taxpayers, however, may elect to choose their own tax year if there is a business purpose for the election. So, today’s Fix the Tax Code Friday question is: Should individual taxpayers be allowed…
It’s the post holiday season, which means post credit card season. A lot of folks would love to deduct the interest on personal credit cards on their own taxes. Years ago, you could: personal loan interest was completely deductible. That was eliminated in the late 1980s. Today’s Fix the Tax Code Friday question is: Should…
As I mentioned on yesterday, holiday bonuses (and the equivalent) are taxable. Seems a little Grinch-y to some folks. So today’s fix the tax code Friday question is: Should holiday bonuses be taxable? And if not, which holidays should be included for purposes of such an exemption?
The next installment for my daughter’s private school tuition is due in about a month. We pay approximately $10,000 per year. It sounds steep, sure, but we are also the recipient of fairly low real estate taxes in Philadelphia. My friends across the river pay about $5,000 to 7,000 more in real estate taxes than…