Tax News Nov. 8-12

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News
FRIDAY
25 Million Taxpayers May Owe $3,000 to $5,000 More at Tax Time
An estimated 25 million taxpayers -- more than five times as many as last year -- will owe an average of $3,000 to $5,000 more at tax time if Congress doesn't act on an expired provision, according to The Tax Institute at H&R Block.
Panel Seeks Social Security Cuts and Higher Taxes
The plan calls for deep cuts in domestic and military spending, a gradual 15-cents-a-gallon increase in the federal gasoline tax, limiting or eliminating popular tax breaks in return for lower rates, and benefit cuts and an increased retirement age for Social Security.
Obama says he's not caving on tax cuts
President Barack Obama declared Friday that his "number one priority" is preserving tax cuts for the middle class, and sharply denied that comments by his senior adviser David Axelrod suggest that his administration is about to cave in to Republicans who also want to extend the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy.
Blowing up the tax code
The truth is, there's no escaping the need to make serious tradeoffs on taxes if the goal is to create a tax code that supports economic growth, provides enough revenue to fund everything Americans want their government to do, and achieves real deficit reduction when paired with spending cuts.
Top Earners May Face Big Hit
Proposed Elimination of Deductions, Investment Breaks Aims to Lift Tax Revenue.
Proposed gas tax increase fires up debate
Federal fuel taxes currently stand at 18.4 cents a gallon for gasoline and 24.4 cents for diesel fuel.
Companies Would See Big Tax Shifts
Tax-reform plans proposed by President Obama's deficit-cutting commission would radically change corporate tax policy and, business groups say, could improve U.S. competitiveness in global trade.
Spending, taxes top agenda of 'lame duck' Congress
A one- or two-year extension is the most likely outcome, said Roberton Williams, a tax expert with the non-partisan Urban Institute. But Scott Hodge, president of the non-partisan Tax Foundation, said lawmakers may not reach consensus and could instead let the new Congress deal with the issue early next year.

WEDNESDAY
Extending Tax Cuts, but With a Catch
Top Democrats Link Keeping Bush-Era Breaks to an Overhaul of Tax Code; Republican Aides Say They Are Open to the Idea.
Bipartisan vow: We'll fix AMT
More than 20 million taxpayers are at risk of having to pay the so-called wealth tax when they file their 2010 taxes next year, if lawmakers fail to act. But that's not likely to happen.

TUESDAY
NZ: Tax revenue falls short by $1.1 billion
Tax revenue fell short of Budget forecasts by $1.1 billion or more than 8 per cent in the first three months of the Government's financial year, as the recovery from recession proves slower than the Treasury expected.

MONDAY
Battle Looms Over Tax Breaks, Spending Cuts
Newly empowered Republicans pushed Sunday to extend Bush-era tax levels for as long as possible and pledged significant cuts in spending, as President Barack Obama sought to maintain his footing in an escalating budget battle.
Tax cuts: Obama wants a deal
The White House indicated more than once that President Obama would be willing to negotiate with Republicans to ensure the tax cuts remain in place on Jan. 1.
Taxpayers' bill on Freddie, Fannie foreclosures: $2B
Taxpayer-funded Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have spent more than $2 billion this year on foreclosed property expenses after acquiring tens of thousands of homes through foreclosures.

Economist Comments
FRIDAY
Use Options to Sidestep the Tax Man
A simple strategy can lock in the current 15% capital-gains rate on a bid-up stock while allowing for future profits from the same stock.
Commission Tax Plans Would Reshape American Economy
Huge swaths of the economy – housing, health care, and energy, in particular — would see their tax subsidies shrink or disappear, while wealthy investors would see higher rates on dividends and long-term capital gains.
A Growth Agenda for the New Congress
For now: Extend the Bush tax cuts, repeal ObamaCare, support free trade. After 2012: Enact a flat tax, stabilize prices, balance the budget, give politicians incentive pay.
It’s Time to Let the Estate Tax Die
The estate tax brings in only about $20 billion a year (with no revenue this year) despite marginal tax rates that have varied from 45 to 55 percent, because of its large exemptions and many loopholes.

WEDNESDAY
Tax-Unfriendly States For Retirees
Where's the best state for you to retire? For retirees living on a fixed income, state income and sales taxes can really eat into your nest egg.
The Worse Type of Bipartisanship
Based on fuel usage data from the Federal Highway Administration, the [25-cent per gallon] tax would raise about $43 million, and $17.2 million would be dedicated to deficit reduction.

TUESDAY
States' bailout: Largest 15 states spend over 220 percent of tax revenue
The federal government is quietly bailing out states whose tax revenues don't match state expenditures. Funding for this will run out in June 2011. What then?

MONDAY
Obama can cut a deal on taxes
...the current [tax] system is not well designed. In fact, there is no design, only the disordered meanderings of a sick mind.
Growth Through Taxes
Tax policy can play a key role in spurring an economic recovery—but not without sustained reform of both the corporate and individual income-tax systems.
Big question left for 2010: What about the tax cuts?
...should workers expect higher wage tax rates for 2011, those in a position to do so should accelerate work and invoices in 2010.

Blogs
FRIDAY
There Ain’t No Such Thing as a Tax Expenditure
...they describe those loopholes as “backdoor spending in the tax code.” It is incorrect and dangerous to equate tax loopholes with government spending.
Social Security and Family-Friendly Tax Cuts
...assuming all we cared about was Social Security’s finances, if we paid a lump sum tax credit of less than $22,000 for parents to have an additional child, Social Security would come out ahead.

WEDNESDAY
Our Tax Dollars Are Funding Bureaucrats Who Advise Congress that Higher Taxes Increase Prosperity
...CRS and CBO believe that government borrowing leads to higher interest rates, and they think that higher interest rates reduce investment. And since investment is a key to long-run growth, this leads them to endorse any policy — including higher taxes — that reduces red ink.

TUESDAY
Do Partisan Politics Spell Tax Hikes?
The argument that President Obama makes frequently—that tax hikes on the rich are necessary to close the deficit—holds no water. If President Obama and his supporters were intent on reducing the deficit by raising taxes, they would not just single out the rich for higher levies.

MONDAY
Morning Bell: Get to Work Stopping the Obama Tax Hikes
...at a time when our nation’s unemployment still hovers around 10%, President Obama’s tax plan raises taxes by $1.8 trillion over the next 10 years.
Debunking White House Pro-Tax Increase Propaganda
This new Center for Freedom and Prosperity video includes the full footage of the White House production, so viewers can decide for themselves which side is correct.
Thaler on the Estate Tax
He is in favor. [Greg Mankiw is] not.
Secondary Sources: Gold Standard, Fed Motive, Estate Tax
A roundup of economic news from around the Web.

Reports
None.