Posts Tagged ‘tax’

Jeff Fouts, Tax Attorney responds to Complaints, Negative Reviews – Part Two

Wednesday, July 6th, 2011

This is a two-part post, Please read Part One Here »

Yesterday I shared with you that a handful of people have written negative comments about my tax law practice on the Internet (sites include ripoffreport dot com, complaintsboard dot com and scam dot com).  Today I’ll cover why I think people have complained.

Why do people complain even when we have a great record?
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Adam Smith was right: We need “certain” tax

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

Adam Smith wrote the book “The Wealth of Nations”, a massive work that set the tone for employment, economics, and industrialization in the US. Published in 1776, much of Smith’s work is as relevant today as it was back then.

Among his many insightful economic positions, he believed that taxes were a good thing but they should be “certain, and not arbitrary”.

No one here disputes that we shouldn’t have taxes. Taxes are necessary to pay for roads and police and the many other services that come with living in the US. But what we do have a problem with is that the tax code has become a tool to redistribute wealth, taking it from some and giving it to others, ultimately redefining the American Dream into something that looks more like a socialist economy.

Adam Smith believed that taxes should be “certain, not arbitrary” but our taxes right now are anything but certain! Filling out tax forms – accomplished by wading through an overwhelming number of forms and documents – is akin to pulling the lever on a slot machine… but a slot machine that punishes you instead of rewards you!

Smith proposed a flat tax. While I realize that there are many challenges to implementing a flat tax, and there are reasons why a flat tax might not work, it is the most equitable form of taxation because it is certain and knowable. In fact, a flat tax might actually decrease the amount of bureaucracy and expense incurred by the IRS every single year in trying to understand their own tax code and then trying to enforce it.

The Washington Times has a fascinating article that starts by talking about the IRS and how IRS employees are receiving a growing number of threats for trying to enforce Congress’ tax laws but then, on page 2 of the article, it launches into a scathing examination of IRS employee culpability and ultimately concludes with other great thoughts by Adam Smith. Read the full article here.

Letter to President Obama

Friday, March 13th, 2009

Dear President Obama,

Your recent election to the highest office in the land was a loud call from some American voters that they wanted you in office. And those who didn’t vote for you? Well, you’re their President, too. As you recognized at your inauguration, we live in challenging times.

I’m not here to talk about wars or the economy or the work you have to do in representing the millions of people who did, and who did not, elect you to office.

I’m writing this letter to remind you that the White House is not your house. It is my house… and the house of the millions of other taxpaying Americans who live in our great nation. In other words, the work you do and the decisions you make should always be guided by remembering the people on whose backs this nation is funded. You should follow the Constitution, and not do anything that contradicts it.

As a fellow American, representing other Americans, I write to you requesting the following considerations:

  • Don’t be drawn into Washington’s bad habits of spending millions of dollars without fully realizing that each and every one of those dollars came out of a taxpayer’s pay check.  Plus the interest which must be paid to the government’s creditors
  • Remember that you were voted in my millions of people who have to work long days (and sometimes 2 jobs) because they are overburdened in the taxes they pay. If they paid less tax, they would have more to spend and spending is good for the economy.
  • Right now, you probably have other people preparing your income tax return for you because your focus is on the American impact of global affairs. But don’t forget that millions of Americans will have to prepare increasingly complicated income tax returns.
  • Bureaucracy is costly. While a small part of the government’s bureaucracy   is Constitutionally necessary to run our country, simplicity and clarity should win out every single time. Your administration should model for American companies what a lean, efficient, spending-conscious organization should be like.
  • Your taxpaying public is made up of less well off people, middle class, and wealthy people. And all of those groups should be treated fairly and not punished. America is a land of opportunity, not class warfare.  We shouldn’t tax the rich just to give to the less well off. That is a form of tyranny of the majority toward the minority.  We all hope to someday do well, please don’t treat those folks who happen to be doing well like cash cows to be milked for the rest of Americans spending whims.

We’re a great nation in a world that is experiencing turbulent economic times, and our hard-working, taxpaying people are already suffering under a terrible tax burden.  We need you to follow in the footsteps of our Founders and spend less on bailouts and things that will cause tax increases, and more on restoring the sense of limitless opportunity in this country!

Who Sings About the Taxman?

Tuesday, March 10th, 2009

Who sings about the taxman? …a bunch of people, as it turns out.

This video uses “the Taxman” song by The Beatles and is clearly created by high school students. But the video is comical and the chase sequences remind me of many British comedies:

Or, if you like the song but prefer something a little more authentic, here’s the 1967 cartoon by The Beatles themselves:

Okay, I realize that those two videos weren’t technically about the IRS. But it does show that the problems we face with the IRS are not unique to the US. Rather, the taxman (and taxwoman) are universal problems.

Here’s a song, titled “The Tax Collector”, that your grandparents probably laughed at. It’s by Flanders and Swann. I can’t make out all of the words (and I’ve searched diligently for the lyrics and can’t find them) but it sounds pretty funny. In my opinion, it’s worth a couple of listens!

This song is a little more specialized. And his heart’s in the right place although I don’t think we’ll see this song on a Billboard chart any time soon.

And this song is about Fair Taxation… not surprisingly, it’s from the Fair Tax rally in South Carolina


Your tax dollars are hard at work

Wednesday, January 14th, 2009

Nothing makes me more proud of our current tax system than to see it efficiently and intelligently use the tax dollars we Americans pay into it. After all, we’ve sweated for every hard earned dollar and we believe in what America stands for so we are happy to contribute to it.

Okay, while I do agree with the sentiment of my previous paragraph, I am saying it ironically because of this January 3rd story from the Associated Press.

The article describes how Detroit defense lawyer James Howarth received a bill in November indicating that he owed the IRS $0.05. That’s a nickel. One shiny, round nickel. The letter sternly warned that he could face penalties and interest if he did not pay his nickel.

That’s stupid enough on its own. After all, the IRS easily paid 10 times that amount to send him the letter. (I’m calculating a discounted rate of about $0.35 for the stamp, $0.02 for the paper, $0.05 for the envelope, $0.03 for the ink, and $0.05 for the wage of the low-paid intern who licked the envelope and put it in the “outgoing mail” stack). And in an effort to further stupefy everyone, they will want him to send the money to the IRS by mail. That’s a stamp. An envelope. And they don’t take cash so you have to write a check.

Are you done slamming your head against the wall from the nonsense?

Well just wait, it gets better!

Later, the same article reports, the IRS sent Mr. Howarth a letter telling him that he is the lucky recipient of a $0.04 refund. That’s right: 4 pennies! 4 little, tiny, round coppers can go back to his account!

The irony is, since the refund is below the IRS’ $1 threshold, he has to request it if he wants it. Mr Howarth’s frustration is clear when he points out that the IRS demands immediate payment of even the smallest amount, but they make him jump through hoops when they have to pay him back his own money.

The article then relates that Mr. Howarth called the toll-free number to clear up the issue, as any concerned citizen would, and finally gave up after being on hold for so long. If he ever does get through to anyone, it will cost several dollars in wages and time to correct the issue.

Does this make sense to anyone? This is another great example of our tax dollars being wasted by the IRS. A few simple procedures which can be automated by a computer would have solved this problem.

Fouts Law Office · 772 Maddox Drive, Suite 114 · East Ellijay, GA 30540 · Tel: (800) 509-2770 · Fax: (706) 636-5293
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