The IRS is developing an online tax filing system

[ivwshane]

Here is some good news and something that should have been done a long time ago but was blocked due to lobbying by corporations.

https://www.npr.org/2023/05/16/1176417594/irs-taxes-filing-turbotax-intuit-tax-prep

The IRS is developing a system that would let taxpayers send electronic returns directly to the government for free, sidestepping commercial options such as TurboTax.

The agency plans a pilot test of the program next year.

Many other countries already offer taxpayers a government-run filing system. But the IRS plan is likely to face stiff opposition from the $14 billion tax-preparation industry.

Anyone remember Joe Isuzu? I guess he got a job with Intuit…just trust him.

A direct-to-IRS e-file system is wholly redundant and is nothing more than a solution in search of a problem," said Rick Heineman, a spokesman for Intuit, the company behind TurboTax. "That solution will unnecessarily cost taxpayers billions of dollars and especially harm the most vulnerable Americans

The Biden admin continues to impress me. I didn’t expect much from him so the bar was pretty low but damn, it’s nice to have someone in government that actually puts the average American first before profits.

 

[nakedfrog]

Hey Rick Heineman, eat my whole ass!

 

[IronWing]

I've been using the IRS' free fillable forms for years. It works but integration with info the IRS already has would make it a lot easier.

 

[repoman0]

Free file fillable forms already exist and even mostly do the math for you … been using them for almost a decade

 

[ivwshane]

This sounds more advanced than just having a form available online.

 

[dank69]

This sounds more advanced than just having a form available online.

Honestly the IRS should send me a bill. Why the fuck do we need to figure out our own taxes?

 

[UNCjigga]

Honestly the IRS should send me a bill. Why the fuck do we need to figure out our own taxes?

This is probably true for at LEAST 80% of Americans—at least the ones taking standard deductions who don’t have business income, capital gains or AMT to figure out.

 

[IronWing]

Honestly the IRS should send me a bill. Why the fuck do we need to figure out our own taxes?

The current system places the liability for errors on the taxpayer instead of the government, that's why.

 

[fskimospy]

The current system places the liability for errors on the taxpayer instead of the government, that's why.

The reason is rent seeking by tax prep companies. They should not exist.

 

[dank69]

The current system places the liability for errors on the taxpayer instead of the government, that's why.

Yeah and I'm not sure why the general populace let it get set up that way let alone let it go on for so long.

 

[akugami]

The current system is a scam lobbied by the likes of HR Block and TurboTax.

The overwhelming majority of Americans would be better served by simply having the government tell them, you paid X dollars in taxes this year, you should owe Y dollars in taxes, you either owe the government Z dollars, or the government owes you Z dollars. If you agree, just sign off on it, and if you disagree, file a return and send it in. The government already knows enough to accurately assess the taxes for 80-90% of the population.

And it's rich that they're worried about taxpayer money when they are leeching billions off the most vulnerable members of society. HR Block's revenue was over $3 billion last year, and Intuit's was over $12 billion, but Intuit sells other products as well. But considering Intuit's Turbotax numbers were about $1.6 billion in 2020, and seeing overdouble digit revenue growth each year, you can easily see it at $2 billion to $2.5 billion.

- Edit for some clarity

 

[skyking]

I use free fillable forms, and I have messed it up twice now over the years. One time I underpaid and they sent me a bill, and this year I overpaid and got $114 back because I used the wrong rate for capital gains.
I'm with @IronWing , not having to dick around with a bunch of info they already have will speed it up.

 

[evident]

The current system is a scam lobbied by the likes of HR Block and TurboTax.

The overwhelming majority of Americans would be better served by simply having the government tell them, you paid X dollars in taxes this year, you should owe Y dollars in taxes, you either owe the government Z dollars, or the government owes you Z dollars. If you agree, just sign off on it, and if you disagree, file a return and send it in. The government already knows enough to accurately assess the taxes for 80-90% of the population.

And it's rich that they're worried about taxpayer money when they are leeching billions off the most vulnerable members of society. HR Block's revenue was over $3 billion last year, and Intuit's was over $12 billion, but Intuit sells other products as well. But considering Intuit's Turbotax numbers were about $1.6 billion and seeing overdouble digit revenue growth each year, you can easily see it at $2 billion to $2.5 billion.

Hasan Minaj's Patriot Act show on Netflix did a great episode on this topic that sums it up very well.

 

[dank69]

I use free fillable forms, and I have messed it up twice now over the years. One time I underpaid and they sent me a bill, and this year I overpaid and got $114 back because I used the wrong rate for capital gains.
I'm with @IronWing , not having to dick around with a bunch of info they already have will speed it up.

This is what I mean. They know what you need to pay. Why the fuck do they make us guess?

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

This is what I mean. They know what you need to pay. Why the fuck do they make us guess?

I have a long running conspiracy theory that the whole US tax return system is specifically designed to be a combination of a jobs program, a grey market tax break for low income earners, a rainy day fund for people terrible at managing money, and an economic boost program for the commerical market.

 

[uclaLabrat]

Agree that the IRS should know everything already to calculate the bill. What i dont get is why the fidelity statements i get are so needlessly complicated. Some transactions report the cost basis, others dont. It doesnt need to be that hard.

 

[hal2kilo]

Here is some good news and something that should have been done a long time ago but was blocked due to lobbying by corporations.

https://www.npr.org/2023/05/16/1176417594/irs-taxes-filing-turbotax-intuit-tax-prep

Anyone remember Joe Isuzu? I guess he got a job with Intuit…just trust him.


The Biden admin continues to impress me. I didn’t expect much from him so the bar was pretty low but damn, it’s nice to have someone in government that actually puts the average American first before profits.

Welcome to the 21st century.

 

[hal2kilo]

Hey Rick Heineman, eat my whole ass!

Refused to fix their software issue after working with the product for over 20 years. GFYS.