Taxes
Some States Rake In Revenue, Others Struggle
© AP Florida Gov. Rick Scott and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie visit a Tampa Bay port. While Florida used a $1 billion surplus to cut taxes this year, New Jersey is facing a $2.7 billion two-year budget deficit. For the first time since the recession ended, state revenues and employment have both surpassed pre-recession […]
States Grapple With Unpopular Property Taxes
Debbie Hannon of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and others urge state lawmakers to eliminate property taxes that fund schools. Pennsylvania is one of several states debating how to lower property taxes or make them fairer. (AP) Follow on Twitter State Sen. David Argall thinks Pennsylvania’s law to fund schools with property taxes, which dates from the 1830s, […]
Lawmakers Jockey Over Budget Surpluses
Kentucky forward Alex Poythress, top, goes over Connecticut guard Lasan Kromah (20) during the NCAA college basketball championship game in April. The Kentucky legislature failed to approve funds to enhance Rupp arena, the Wildcats home facility, this session. Budget surpluses have set up competing pressures for state spending. (AP) Less than 24 hours after the […]
GAO Paid Tax Preparers More Likely to Err Than You
Watch those paid tax preparers: They are more likely than not to make errors on your return, a new study found. The Government Accountability Office studied a small number of tax preparers and found that 17 out of 19 made mistakes. The small sample is illustrative of earlier and larger studies. A 2008 GAO study found all […]
Tax E-Filing Gains in Popularity
A man waits to mail his income tax return at a Pembroke Pines, Fla. postal center. More Americans are using electronic filing to avoid such lines, leading to quicker refunds in many states. (AP) You can’t blame Minnesota taxpayers for being confused this tax season. The eleventh-hour addition of 10 new tax credits has flummoxed […]
Experts Debate Whether Tax Cuts Tax Breaks Work
Two experts agreed Tuesday that tax rates are part of the consideration when people and companies move from one state to another, but they were light years apart on just how much those tax rates influence location decisions. Joseph Henchman, vice president of legal and state projects at the anti-tax group Tax Foundation, argued that “incentives […]
States Pursue Tax Cuts as Recovery Takes Hold
Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton use crutches at his first public appearance at the state Capitol in St. Paul, since undergoing hip surgery. He was there to press for tax cuts, as many other governors are doing. (AP) Maybe New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo should borrow a pair of crutches. They might have helped Minnesota Gov. […]
In Some States, New Benefits for 529 Savers
Micaela Jones, 4, and Missouri Treasurer Sarah Steelman at the launch of a new partnership involving Missouri’s 529 College Savings Plan. Many states have made changes to their 529s in an effort to make them more enticing to savers. (AP) Parents and grandparents often turn to state 529 savings plans to sock away money for […]
Hunting Lost Revenue in Offshore Tax Havens
Fishermen clean a fresh catch along a beach in the Cayman Islands, a well-known tax haven. Some states are going after multinational corporations which avoid state taxes by stashing some of their earnings overseas. (AP) Some states are going after multinational corporations which avoid state taxes by stashing some of their earnings in offshore tax […]
Most States Have No Rules for Independent Tax Preparers
Only four states require testing and continuing education for hundreds of thousands of independent tax preparers who make a living deciphering the nearly 74,000-page U.S. tax code for many Americans. After a federal appeals court threw out proposed IRS rules regulating tax preparers, the Wild West of the tax preparation industry will continue for […]
Legislatures Consider Changes in Liquor, Beer, Wine Laws
Is it the last call for Pennsylvania’s state liquor stores, including this one in Harrisburg? States are considering bills concerning liquor sales, including one to privatize Pennsylvania’s liquor stores. (AP) In Shrewsbury, Pa., near the Maryland state line, a square cinderblock building sports huge painted images of beer and soda bottles painted on the side. […]
Governors’ Tax Plans Get Pushback From Their Own Parties
Protestors demonstrate in the Wisconsin Capitol during Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s State of the State address. Walker is one of many governors seeking tax cuts as state economies improve. (AP) Relatively rolling in dough for the first time in half a decade, governors are calling for tax cuts, increased spending on education and infrastructure, or […]