...Reforming the U.S. Tax Code Martin McDowell Professor Ken Lavery 11/24/13 Reforming the U.S. Tax Code A flat tax rate would be beneficial to all Americans. Critics of such proposals generally say that the wealthiest people in the nation would be the ones to benefit the most. The overall flat rate of tax would mean cuts for all Americans. The sheer simplicity of a flat rate is one of its biggest selling points. Rick Perry's plan offered in 2011 was imperfect, but it represented a overall structure and ideas. The focus of the plan scrapped, “the graduated income tax and replace it with a 20 percent flat rate. By throwing out rates as high as 35 percent and eliminating estate and investment taxes, the plan would grant a major tax cut for the wealthy…his proposal would also offer benefits to middle-class Americans by giving a $12,500 deduction for every member of a household while preserving exemptions for state and local taxes, mortgage interest and charitable contributions for anyone making less than $500,000. He said anyone could still file under the current code, and he also pledged to lower the corporate tax rate to 20 percent, from 35 percent” (Oppel, 2011). This means that taxes will be sliced for all groups in America: this will equate to more money for individual Americans, allowing them to make a greater investment in the private economy. The plan was criticized as being ambitious because of the fact that...
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...Reforming the U.S. Tax Code Accounting 307: Federal Taxation Professor Margaret Parrish Kinisha Doley-Griffin November 24, 2013 Should the tax system be reformed or should it not be reformed. That has been the question for years asked by congress and the people. Congress has not acted upon changing the tax system once during the debates. Many proponents of the tax reform support one system over another. We have heard multiple new suggestions for tax codes such as value added tax, a national sales tax, fair tax and the flat tax. The flat tax has been in talk since the 1980’s, it was first suggested by two colleagues at the Hoover Institution, Robert Hall and Alvin Rabushka. Hall-Rabushka proposed that the present system would be replaced with a consumption tax. (Lang, 2012) This means that income would be taxed at the amount withdrawn or initially earned. This is the only time that the money made will be taxed and you would pay no other taxes. The flat rate tax will be set initially at 19 percent and would offer a family exemption. The goal is to have the flat tax rate set as low as possible and to keep the taxation base as broad as possible. Their plan is to maintain revenue neutrality for the government and allow taxpayers to keep more money they earn in their pockets. In my opinion I think that the flat tax rate is as far as one can get. Yes, no one wants to pay taxes at all but living in America this is something that you must do or you will be fined. With the flat...
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...Itemized Tax Deductions for Individuals: Data Analysis Sean Lowry Analyst in Public Finance February 12, 2014 Congressional Research Service 7-5700 www.crs.gov R43012 CRS Report for Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Itemized Tax Deductions for Individuals: Data Analysis Summary Reforming or limiting itemized tax deductions for individuals has gained the interest of policymakers as one way to increase federal tax revenue, increase the share of taxes paid by higher-income tax filers, simplify the tax code, or reduce incentives that might lead to inefficient economic behavior. However, limits on deductions could cause adverse economic effects or changes in the distributional burden of the federal income tax code. This report is intended to identify who claims itemized deductions, for how much, and for which provisions? This report analyzes data to inform the policy debate about reforming itemized tax deductions for individuals. In 2011, 32% of all tax filers chose to itemize their deductions rather than claim the standard deduction. In addition, the data indicate that both the share of tax filers who itemize their deductions and the amount claimed by each tax filer as adjusted gross income (AGI) increases. AGI is the basic measure of income under the federal income tax and is the income measurement before itemized deductions and personal exemptions are taken into account. Although higherincome tax filers are more likely to itemize their deductions...
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...Common Sense Approach to Reforming the Federal Tax System On February 3, 2013 marked the 100th birthday of the 16th Amendment. The 16th Amendment paved the way for the creation of the federal income tax that continues to this day to have far reaching repercussions on the American tax payer. Before the ratification of the 16th Amendment, the birth of the federal income tax dates back to the Civil War. In order to finance the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln signed into law Revenue Act of 1861 on August 5, 1861. The Revenue Act consisted of a flat tax rate of 3% on income above $800 and 5% on individuals living outside of the United States. On July 1, 1861 United States Congress repealed the Revenue Act of 1861 and replaced it with the Revenue Act of 1862. The Revenue Act of 1862 introduced a progressive tax and established the Bureau of Internal Revenue. In 1872 Congress repealed the Revenue Act of 1862. One again elected officials tried to revive the federal income tax in 1894. However, in 1895 the federal income tax was declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court because the tax was not apportioned according to the population of each state. In an address to Congress on June 16, 1909 President Howard Taft proposed that Congress consider a new amendment to the Constitution. “I recommend, then, first, the adoption of a joint resolution by two-thirds of both Houses, proposing to the States an amendment to the Constitution granting to the Federal Government...
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...(AICPA) is the national professional organization for Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) in the United States. Founded in 1887, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) is the national professional organization of Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) in the United States, with more than 394,000 members in 128 countries in business and industry, public practice, government, education, student affiliates and international associates. It sets ethical standards for the profession and U.S. auditing standards for audits of private companies, non-profit organizations, federal, state and local governments. It also develops and grades the Uniform CPA Examination. The AICPA maintains offices in New York City; Washington, DC; Durham, NC; and Ewing, NJ.The AICPA celebrated the 125th anniversary of its founding in 2012. The AICPA’s founding established accountancy as a profession distinguished by rigorous educational requirements, high professional standards, a strict code of professional ethics, and a commitment to serving the public interest. The AICPA’s mission is to provide members with the resources, information and leadership that enable them to provide valuable services in the highest professional manner to benefit the public, employers and clients. In fulfilling its mission, the AICPA works with state CPA organizations and gives priority to those areas where public reliance on CPA skills is most significant. To achieve this mission, the AICPA develops standards...
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...Policing Matt S Rippee Sam Houston State University Abstract There is an abundance of white collar crime that occurs around all of us. The problem with this is too many people think that they can get away with it, and many of them do. To stop this influx of crime, a large number of agencies have been formed. These agencies use a joint policing style to combat white collar crime in the most effective way. Each and every day it is becoming harder to cheat the system due to the diligence and hard work that these agencies put forth. Policing White collar crime is around us everywhere. People that appear as if they have it all are scamming the system and profiting heavily from it. Due to these issues we have several agencies that work day and night to stop white collar crime. In broader terms there is really only three types of agencies that enforce white collar crime. This includes private agencies, formal criminal police agencies, and governmental regulatory agencies. With white collar crimes a lot of the time multiple different types of agencies will work together. This joint policing tactic is really the best way to explain the majority of success in white collar crime cases. Although there are only three types of agencies that go after white collar crime, those types have a large number of agencies within them. The first agency that I want to talk about is the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI is probably the most known...
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...the advantages of the American civil law system Recently, many societies across the globe are reforming their existing legal systems. The two main transatlantic models, common law and civil law, have great influence on such reforms. Civil law approach has numerous advantages as compared to the common law (Koch, 2004). Civil law judges normally dominate individual litigations and thus effective dispute resolution usually depends on competence of its judges as well as on assuring that the judges have authority to conduct their duties to best of their capacity and abilities (Koch, 2004). Most European nations and other countries such as French, Dutch, German and Portuguese follow civil law systems. English common law system on the other hand is followed in former English colonies including Australia and Canada (Koch, 2004). Common law is also followed in United States, though based on various constitutional statutes and laws ratified by congress, the U.S federal law encompasses a civil law system (Koch, 2004). The disadvantages and advantages of those two main systems is a continuing controversy. Written civil law dates back to times of Roman Empire and subsequently, the Germanic and Napoleonic codes created in 19th century (Koch, 2004). The term civil law is also referred to as statutory or codified law. Common law on the other hand derives from the English medieval common law system that was developed under Henry II in 12th century...
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...Sin Taxes for Rising Health Care Costs Shante Dennard Eng. 122 Composition II Instructor: Jessica Harnish April 1, 2013 Over the years many states have failed to adjust tax rate inflation which has resulted in a loss of billions of dollars in potential revenue. That revenue could have help funded essential health and human needs programs or reduce the deficit. Revenue from alcohol and tobacco continues to be of more importance these days as our economy tries to overcome budget deficits. A 2008 report of the Congressional Budget Office estimated that increasing and reforming federal alcohol taxes could generate more than $28 billion in new revenue over five years. Alcohol and tobacco imposes enormous cost on society an according to the latest government estimates some $185 billion per year. Alcohol and tobacco should be taxed because health care imposes an enormous cost on society. This is associated with the underage use of alcohol and tobacco, traffic crash fatalities, certain crimes and alcohol related health problems. The author (Green, R. (2011) uses a public health nursing model, the Public Health Code of Ethics (Public Health Leadership Society, 2002), the American Nurses' Association (ANA) Code of Ethics (2001), and other relevant ethical theory to weigh and balance the arguments for and against the use of sin taxes. Some say that an increase in “sin taxes” will increase health care costs, but the government will take a greater role in regulating health...
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... he draws the attention of many Americans especially those who are independent and undecided about who to vote for. Mr. Trump has a very decorated background and has had a tremendous amount of success building his value. Trump is a conservative that offers conservative reforms through bold strategies in order to connect with constituents. His far-right position leaves room for discrepancies, like the other candidates also running for the 2016 Presidential Cabinet. Donald Trump is a conservative Republican supported by his impressive history to foster business across an array of fields. If he should go on to become the next president of the United States his proposal to reform regulations such as veteran affairs alongside a compelling tax reform may come to fruition. His positions are traditionally renewed, therefore making him appealing to the older, upper class American citizens who can merely stand the current ways presented by President Obama’s administration. According to Trump’s campaign website, he is opposed to the current state of the Department of Veterans Affair (VA). He offers his plan to reform it in three stages: First, to ensure our veterans get the care they need wherever and whenever they need it, second, to support the entire image of a veteran, and last, to make the VA great again(Donald Trump). In emphasizing to help...
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...Candidate Position Paper and Competitive Analysis I. Candidate biography Personal information Education Trump’s full name is Donald John Trump. He was born on June 14, 1946, which puts him at 69 years old. He was born in Queens, New York. Trump has been married three times, and has five children. In total, his parents had five children; he was the fourth of them. When Trump was thirteen he was sent to the New York Military Academy, where he was successful both socially and academically. Graduating in 1964 he was both a star athlete and a student leader there. He then entered Fordham University and two years later transferred to the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania, from which he graduated in 1968 with a degree in economics. Business Experience While Trump was in college, he began working with his dad during the summer. Shortly after graduating he joined his dad’s company, “Elizabeth Trump & Son”. Following this in 1971, Trump was given control of the company. He later renamed it, “Trump Organization”. Here are some of the places he was able to open up in the following years: The Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue, developed a casino property on the boardwalk for Holiday Inn/Harrah’s, had a partnership with Holiday Inn Corporation before buying it from them, purchased a Hilton Hotels casino-hotel in Atlantic City, and also acquired the largest hotel-casino in the world, the Taj Mahal at Atlantic City. He also bought the Eastern Air Lines...
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...Louisiana Tax Reform: Eliminating Corporate and Franchise Taxes The relationship between tax policies and economic growth is a topic that has been frequently debated. For decades, economists have developed studies exploring this relationship and analyzing its effects. These studies concluded that a negative relationship exists between taxes and economic growth. Taxes have a negative impact on economic growth because of how they influence the activities individuals and firms choose to engage in. Businesses and individuals often base their decisions on the overall tax burden, which creates a disincentive to engage in activities taxed at a higher rate. The Tax Foundation evaluates each state’s business tax climate every year in order to indicate which states’ tax systems are the most attractive to business and economic growth. According to the Tax Foundation’s 2013 State Business Tax Climate Index, Louisiana’s tax system is currently ranked 32nd, far below the rankings of progressive southern states such as Florida and Texas. In addition, Louisiana’s tax structure is poorly perceived because of its complexity. Therefore, in order to create a competitive advantage, the Louisiana tax system must be reformed. Several of the states that rank highest in the 2013 State Business Tax Climate Index do not levy a tax on corporations. Furthermore, the average annual growth rates for those states without a corporate income tax exceeded the growth rate of all other states...
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...SaRoya Morrison Christopher Klatt Political Analysis Government Structure Executive The Mexican presidency is the paramount institution of the entire Mexican political system. The presidency has been labeled as the “six year monarchy” because of the unchecked power that has stayed in office. Much of the presidential power derives from the president’s direct and unchallenged control over both the state apparatus and the ruling political party, the PRI. Presidents are directly elected by a simple majority of registered voters in the thirty-one states and the Federal District. Like in the United States, Mexico holds the titles of Chief of State, Head of Government, and Commander in Chief of the armed forces. The presidential candidates must be at least thirty-five years of age on Election Day and must be Mexican citizens by birth including the offspring. This clause was amended in 1994 to make the children of naturalized citizens eligible for the presidency. Effective in the year of 1999, In order to become eligible for the presidency, a candidate must reside legally in Mexico during the year prior to the election. The candidate cannot have held a cabinet post or a governorship, nor have been on active military duty during the six months prior to the election. Priests and ministers of religious denominations are barred from holding public office also. Legislative The legislative branch of the Mexican government consists of a bicameral congress...
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...Minimum Wage: The Effects of Minimum Wage on the Economy and Poverty Level in relation to Living Expenses Alison Denne Central Virginia Community College Minimum wage started with the “New Deal” program. In 1933, Roosevelt’s advisers decided to develop a National Industrial Recovery Act (NRA) to “suspend antitrust laws so that industries could enforce fair-trade codes resulting in less competition and higher wages” (Grossman, 1978). In his President’s Reemployment Agreement, Roosevelt accepted “to raise wages, create employment, and thus restore business” (Grossman, 1978). This began the arrangement of the government creating a policy for the working class. In order to offset the “overwork, underpay” regulations in the US economy,...
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...CAPSTONE PROJECT Project Title: APPLICABLE FINANCIAL POLICIES CHANGES THAT CAN BE USED TO ENCOURAGING HOUSE AND HOME OWNERSHIP IN MICHIGAN Submitted by: Submitted to University MBA/MS Program [list one] Capstone Mentor: [name] For University Use Date Received: ______________________________________________ Reviewed by: _______________________________________________ Approved/Disapproved: ______________________________________________ Signature: ______________________________________________ Date: ______________________________________________ Comments: ______________________________________________ ______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Abstract The need to encourage house or homeownership has been in the government’s strategic plan since 1934, however, the current financial policies and practices in the housing finance and the mortgage market has characterized by minimum flow of capital in the secondary mortgage market, confusion on the main control authority and various ill practices. This fact has necessitated various changes in the house and homeownership financial. This study collected both primary and secondary data, and found out that the government must set the right policies that will empower house and home...
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...From border security restructuring to a complete overhaul of the system, anyone in this country has an idea to handle the ordeal. In preparing for this paper, this author spoke to family and friends for their opinions. One relative suggested the United States ratify Mexico as the 51st State, leaving the seated president in power as governor, turning each state into a county with the respective governors retitled as mayors. The working theory holds that the United States could then intervene and lend aid to the more impoverished areas of the newly formed state. Resulting from this, illegal Mexican immigration becomes a nonissue, Mexican citizens see improved living conditions within a few short years, and the United States gains a large tax-paying citizenship. Admittedly, without benefit of research or a visit to the country, this family member’s theory consists of stereotype and over-generalization. Even so, it illustrates the point. With unemployment rates soaring, and the economy in a tailspin, many blame illegal immigration for current turmoil, and many theories abound. California If considered as an independent nation, California would rank among the world’s 10 largest economies (Hutchinson Encyclopedia, California, 2009). From rural to metropolis; from dry desert to lush forest to sand beaches; from unemployed or destitute to upper class, noteworthy, or famous, California’s diversity makes the state in ideal cross-section and case study for the United States. In...
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