Will President Trump Sign the Stimulus Bill?
Congress passed a massive stimulus, spending, and tax extenders bill, but it hasn’t been signed into law. Here’s what’s holding it up and what could happen next.
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Tax Collections Hit Record Highs With No Dip In Spending
With two more months left to go in the fiscal year, the feds are on a roll. Tax revenues for the first ten months of the fiscal year topped a record $2,672,414,000,000 (report downloads as a pdf). Those numbers represent almost 8% in growth of tax revenues over those collected in 2014. In pure dollars,…
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Government Shutdown 101: What Happens When The Lights Go Off?
With Congress and the White House unable to reach a conclusion on the budget, a government shutdown looms. What happens if we don’t have the money to keep the lights on?
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Mmm… Obama’s Plan Is So “Job-Creating”
President Obama will send his new jobs creation plan to Congress later today. He’s going to pitch it first in the Rose Garden surrounded by the kinds of folks that make for good press (vets and teachers, for example) and then send it to Congress for consideration. It’s not going to be an easy road….
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Debt Ceiling? What Debt Ceiling?
I’ve received a lot of emails lately asking me to explain what the debt ceiling is and what it really means. It seems that it’s a term that Congress likes to throw around without a lot of explanation. So here’s the scoop: As of August 2, the United States can’t pay its bills anymore. We…
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Fix the Tax Code Friday: Spending or Tax Cuts?
Over the past few weeks, there has been a lot of talk about states cutting spending. For example, in Wisconsin, there’s been a very public battle over labor union contracts while in New Jersey, the police force was cut in a city formerly referred to as the “murder capital of the U.S.” California has talked…
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Let’s Get Fiscal: Obama Proposes Budget
The deficit rag, oh yes the deficit rag! Those budget gaps can be a 12-digit drag! I’m telling you, that’s the deficit, they really made a mess of it, that’s the deficit ra-a-ag!* When I was in the seventh grade, my algebra teacher, Col. Maus, told our class that it was impossible for a person…
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Ask The Taxgirl: Who Owns The US Federal Debt?
Taxpayer asks: Hey taxgirl, I get that we have overspent in Congress. But who do we owe exactly? And what is the difference between the deficit and the debt? I know these aren’t really tax questions but you talk about it on your blog so I thought you might know. Taxgirl says: What great questions!…