How's that tax cut working out?

[zinfamous]

@Dulanic are you able to see who voted in the poll? I honestly want to call out the 6 people that are completely full of shit that voted for "Tax Rate Went Up - Income $0-50K"

Because that is literally impossible. There is zero situations that it is possible for that to occur

I'm going to default to "someonesmind1 literally never knows what the fuck he is talking about, ever" in response to this statement. This is in relation to your earlier comment claiming that there is absolutely no reason that anyone earning $50k would be itemizing.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

I'm going to default to "someonesmind1 literally never knows what the fuck he is talking about, ever" in response to this statement. This is in relation to your earlier comment claiming that there is absolutely no reason that anyone earning $50k would be itemizing.

It would definitely take some complex shit for someone making less than $50k to be paying more than 12k in mortgage interest and SALT, but I suppose it's possible. Not probable, but possible.

You would be hard pressed to tell me ANY situations where someone making less than 50k paid more taxes in 2018 vs 2017.

 

[DrDoug]

Some interesting anecdata:

Our daughter has worked over 11 years in the photo & electronics section of a small-town big box store in Oregon, just across the border from Cali. Californians along the border area and northern part of the state like to shop in Oregon to avoid Cali sales taxes, so store like hers see lots of traffic even though they are in a small town. Yesterday she told me it's clear that sales are way down in their store this year, in her words, "It's dead." She will know how bad it is when they get their quarterly sales and YOY results.

Complaints about smaller refunds are up among her fellow employees though. Way up. In a town where voting Republicans outnumber Democrats 2-1.

 

[ElMonoDelMar]

My federal tax bill went up almost $4k this year and I earned $7,500 more than last. The biggest impact to me was not being able to take deductions for unreimbursed business expenses. I drive a ton of miles for work and have a lot of customer lunches. My company pays for none of that and now I didn't even get to write that stuff off on my taxes this year.

I'm easily upper-middle class, but what frustrates me is I make too much money to write off things like my student loan interest yet don't make enough money to get all of the ultra-rich write-offs. I get hosed every year. This year was MUCH worse, though.

#MAGA or something like that. I can tell you that I am certainly tired of winning at this point.

 

[brycejones]

My federal tax bill went up almost $4k this year and I earned $7,500 more than last. The biggest impact to me was not being able to take deductions for unreimbursed business expenses. I drive a ton of miles for work and have a lot of customer lunches. My company pays for none of that and now I didn't even get to write that stuff off on my taxes this year.

I'm easily upper-middle class, but what frustrates me is I make too much money to write off things like my student loan interest yet don't make enough money to get all of the ultra-rich write-offs. I get hosed every year. This year was MUCH worse, though.

#MAGA or something like that. I can tell you that I am certainly tired of winning at this point.

The Kochs thank you for your kindly mandated donation from yourself and your children to them and their children.

 

[ElMonoDelMar]

The Kochs thank you for your kindly mandated donation from yourself and your children to them and their children.

Glad I could help! I know times are tough for the 0.01% these days.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Wife filed her taxes, I call her my wife since we’ve been together so long but we’re not married.
Her effective tax rate went up .7%
Not a huge hit but not a tax break either. She is salaried, her income is flat.

 

[Jhhnn]

My federal tax bill went up almost $4k this year and I earned $7,500 more than last. The biggest impact to me was not being able to take deductions for unreimbursed business expenses. I drive a ton of miles for work and have a lot of customer lunches. My company pays for none of that and now I didn't even get to write that stuff off on my taxes this year.

I'm easily upper-middle class, but what frustrates me is I make too much money to write off things like my student loan interest yet don't make enough money to get all of the ultra-rich write-offs. I get hosed every year. This year was MUCH worse, though.

#MAGA or something like that. I can tell you that I am certainly tired of winning at this point.

Glad I could help! I know times are tough for the 0.01% these days.

It's good to have a sense of humor about it all. And, for sure, the financial elite will beat the cash out of the rest of us when they can. Owning the GOP is the best investment they ever made because it puts the tax man on their side.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

^^^^havent done my taxes yet but I’m okay paying more taxes, I’m not okay paying more taxes so some guy who has 100,000 times what I have gets a break PLUS we run up a record deficit while doing so.

 

[ElMonoDelMar]

Frankly, I say soak the rich. This shit where the middle and upper-middle class are paying a higher percentage of their income in taxes is bullshit. It's been this way for a while, but the 2018 tax bill just made it that much worse. Bring on that 70% top tax rate and let's pay down the debt and get some "socialized" healthcare out of it.

 

[Jhhnn]

Frankly, I say soak the rich. This shit where the middle and upper-middle class are paying a higher percentage of their income in taxes is bullshit. It's been this way for a while, but the 2018 tax bill just made it that much worse. Bring on that 70% top tax rate and let's pay down the debt and get some "socialized" healthcare out of it.

You fucking Commie!

 

[ElMonoDelMar]

It's sad that people actually think a true progressive tax system is communism/socialism, right? I know you're joking, but there are people out there that feel progressive tax systems are straight up communism.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

My federal tax bill went up almost $4k this year and I earned $7,500 more than last. The biggest impact to me was not being able to take deductions for unreimbursed business expenses. I drive a ton of miles for work and have a lot of customer lunches. My company pays for none of that and now I didn't even get to write that stuff off on my taxes this year.

I'm easily upper-middle class, but what frustrates me is I make too much money to write off things like my student loan interest yet don't make enough money to get all of the ultra-rich write-offs. I get hosed every year. This year was MUCH worse, though.

#MAGA or something like that. I can tell you that I am certainly tired of winning at this point.

The fact that your company isn't reimbursing you is what is incredibly fucked up. They should (at minimal) reimburse you for any miles minus whatever your normal commute miles are.

I would tell them to get me a rental car if they don't want to pay for the mileage.


EDIT: And wtf? You're paying for client lunches too? Again, that is entirely fucked up. Unless you're getting paid $250k+ that is in all honesty unacceptable.

 

[Greenman]

I drive a ton of miles for work and have a lot of customer lunches. My company pays for none of that

You work for a company that makes you drive your own car and pay for client lunches out of pocket? You need an attorney, not a tax break.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

You work for a company that makes you drive your own car and pay for client lunches out of pocket? You need an attorney, not a tax break.

Pretty much agree - I didn't say anything (since IANAL) but I honestly question the legality of that as well.

 

[ElMonoDelMar]

It is completely legal as I'm a 100% commission sales employee. When I hired on, I was offered a choice of two comp plans. One was all expenses paid and 20% commission on GP and the other was 30% commission on GP with no expenses covered. The plan I accepted when I was hired made more sense at the time because I could write-off all of the un-reimbursed business expenses. Thanks to this wonderful GOP tax cut, that's no longer the case. I feel like I should at least get a free MAGA hat out of this deal, but oh well.

I should also add that because this is ATPN, of course I'm making $250k+ per year. I thought we all were.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

It is completely legal as I'm a 100% commission sales employee. When I hired on, I was offered a choice of two comp plans. One was all expenses paid and 20% commission on GP and the other was 30% commission on GP with no expenses covered. The plan I accepted when I was hired made more sense at the time because I could write-off all of the un-reimbursed business expenses. Thanks to this wonderful GOP tax cut, that's no longer the case. I feel like I should at least get a free MAGA hat out of this deal, but oh well.

Gotcha - personally since your tax situation changed (and you do some calculations to determine that it is overall better) I would just go in and explain that since the tax laws changed you would like to change to the expenses paid model. Can't hurt to try?

Also if you don't mind me asking, what do you do that involves getting commissions with that level of income?

I should also add that because this is ATPN, of course I'm making $250k+ per year. I thought we all were.

Not quite, working my way up Getting close if you go by our gross household income. If I trusted my wife to be able to make that amount in her career I would love to take the easy road and just be stay at home daddy all day.

 

[ElMonoDelMar]

I left the company that had the no expense reimbursement policy earlier this month. The company I joined pays all expenses, so that won't be an issue moving forward.

Just to make it clear, I don't make $250k/year, but I'm paid quite well. I'm a sales engineer that does industrial equipment sales. It's a niche market that pays really well and I'm lucky to have gotten into it when I did. I just wish the tax law didn't eliminate those business deductions that I relied so heavily on when I signed my employment offer.

 

[fleshconsumed]

Frankly, I say soak the rich. This shit where the middle and upper-middle class are paying a higher percentage of their income in taxes is bullshit. It's been this way for a while, but the 2018 tax bill just made it that much worse. Bring on that 70% top tax rate and let's pay down the debt and get some "socialized" healthcare out of it.

Quick google search says Mitt Romney paid effective tax rate of 13.9% on $21.7 million income in 2010. My effective tax rate this year is roughly 14.75%. Why the fuck am I paying higher tax rate than him while making a tiny fraction of what he did?

 

[ElMonoDelMar]

Quick google search says Mitt Romney paid effective tax rate of 13.9% on $21.7 million income in 2010. My effective tax rate this year is roughly 14.75%. Why the fuck am I paying higher tax rate than him while making a tiny fraction of what he did?

Because anything else is socialism according to 1 of 2 major political parties in this country.

 

[Jhhnn]

It's sad that people actually think a true progressive tax system is communism/socialism, right? I know you're joking, but there are people out there that feel progressive tax systems are straight up communism.

It's been astroturfed right into their heads by decades of corrosive agitprop & disinformation by the thinktanks & media manipulators of right wing billionaires. As multinational Capitalism reaches for higher levels of organization & power they want the govt of the People to retreat & leave the running of the economic system to them.

And people go for it, because God, guns, abortion, freedom & all the rest of it.

 

[Sonikku]

Quick google search says Mitt Romney paid effective tax rate of 13.9% on $21.7 million income in 2010. My effective tax rate this year is roughly 14.75%. Why the fuck am I paying higher tax rate than him while making a tiny fraction of what he did?

The richer you get, the lower a % you pay. Amazon doesn't pay any taxes at all at this point.

 

[sao123]

I left the company that had the no expense reimbursement policy earlier this month. The company I joined pays all expenses, so that won't be an issue moving forward.

Just to make it clear, I don't make $250k/year, but I'm paid quite well. I'm a sales engineer that does industrial equipment sales. It's a niche market that pays really well and I'm lucky to have gotten into it when I did. I just wish the tax law didn't eliminate those business deductions that I relied so heavily on when I signed my employment offer.

Whether you agree with TrumpTax or not, all those deductions needed to go. Taxpayers shouldn't be subsidizing your employers businesses expenses.
Both Reps and Dems have been arguing for a simple progressive tax code without deductions, and that was needed regardless.

 

[Jhhnn]

The richer you get, the lower a % you pay. Amazon doesn't pay any taxes at all at this point.

Corporate entities have an amazing array of ways to avoid taxation. These two, for example-

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/earnings-stripping.asp

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/double-irish-with-a-dutch-sandwich.asp

Personal income taxes don't work that way because Americans pay taxes on all their earnings at home or abroad. I'm sure there are still ways for the insanely wealthy to game the system at that level, if to a lesser degree. Taxing LTCG's at a flat 20% is the best scam of all.

 

[Jhhnn]

Whether you agree with TrumpTax or not, all those deductions needed to go. Taxpayers shouldn't be subsidizing your employers businesses expenses.
Both Reps and Dems have been arguing for a simple progressive tax code without deductions, and that was needed regardless.

Oh, please. Given the opportunity to make the tax code truly progressive the GOP made it even more regressive at the tippy-top. That's merely the truth. Deal with it.