494
TurboTax maker Intuit spent millions in record lobbying blitz amid threats to tax prep industry
(www.opensecrets.org)
Fuck Inuit. Get the fuck Outufit
this post was submitted on 07 Feb 2024
494 points (99.2% liked)
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Wouldn’t it be wild if the government just…sent us our refund or our bill? Because they know how much taxes we owe or how much they owe us without needing to play the stupid fucking “gather all your forms” and put it into the right fields game.
That would also completely solve this problem by eliminating the need for turbo tax to exist at all.
For the very rich, its extremely hard to know what they own, filing taxes allows them to hide all the details.
So your government could do what the commenter above suggested for 99% of the population. Got it.
Because that’s what they do in my country. Your income is pre-filled, and most people don’t need to do anything other than double check it and click submit. If you want to get tax breaks for edge cases like uncovered medical care, extra schooling, travel costs as a freelancer, etc., you just follow the mostly easy steps and fill that in.
I want the rich to be taxed; the system is broken bc it allows for loopholes. 100% should just get a bill.
One doesn’t have to exclude the other. I sense the irony in saying this, being Dutch (whose country is considered a tax haven for the rich and corporations unfortunately), but we don’t have to pay for tax software at least. Worst case, you’ll pay for a tax advisor/accounted if you have a really complicated situation with shit like alimony and wish to squeeze every last cent from it.
Loopholes aren't bad, they're incentives for companies to do certain things rather than hard requirements for companies to do certain things.
It's when it's to such an extreme no or little tax is paid that there's a problem.
Loopholes also get a bad name because many of them are carved out to target specific people, companies, and demographics in ways that aren’t helpful to society at large.
Over 90% of tax revenue is collected from less than 10% of the population. Tax the rich is a campaign lie. It already happens. About 50% of adults pay net 0% or get out more than they put in.
The middle class is shrinking and the wage gap is getting worse partly because of the progressive tax system. Only the top 0.1% have the ability to not care about taxes. And even if you taxed them at 100%, they have the tools and money to avoid paying taxes on the vast majority of their wealth.
Tax as a wealth transfer is exactly how to close the gap between rich and poor. You can see the picture but you have misunderstood how the elements relate. Not allowing the 0.1% to escape taxation is exactly what has to happen.
The IRS does have some free options at https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free as the article mentions, but make sure not to take the bait and switch if you go with one of the companies like TurboTax.
Aren't those all part of the Intuit lead coalition, the Free File Alliance, which kept lobbying against the IRS creating their own free tax filing tool among other issues?
Note: Intuit and H&R Block left the coalition in 2021, after a no competition from IRS rule was lifted and the IRS announced making their own free tax filing tool.
"No, you can't give this to people for free and make their life easier! Then we can't make them pay for it anymore!"
Free File Alliance, wonderful name. Like a cult sponsored group trying to catch ex cult members.
I remember when I used TaxSlayer because it was from this link...lol
🤬😔
I don’t have a complex tax return but I’d rather pay an accountant to file my federal return for me than give these companies my business.
Whenever I can efile my return without giving intuit, hr block or other mega corp my business, that will be a great day
Don't know if they're a mega corp, but FreeTaxUSA has been great for me. Free for simple federal tax returns.
They are part of the Free File Alliance lead by Intuit that lobbied to prevent the IRS from creating their own free tax filing tool.
Not like we have much choice when it comes to free tax filing until IRS gets their direct file up and running for all.
Intuit helped found it but they left it in 2021.
They're scared. If it's available, fill for free. Ask your representatives to increase the program. Let them burn through their money.
Intuit should try to create something new, as opposed to ride TurboTax for its revenues! They could make a banking app to replace what they did to Mint!
Hell maybe they could fix their current garbage that they purchased like Tsheets and Workforce
They have QuickBooks I believe, which surely makes them money as well.
Fucking Quickbooks is a warcrime.
Tax payers aren't the customers. Intuit is the customer here and they are buying income streams from politicians. It's an artificial and unnecessary system.
I mean, considering inflation, I expect every year to be a record spending year.