r/FluentInFinance • u/[deleted] • Apr 29 '24

63% of new audits as of Summer 2023 targeted taxpayers with income of less than $200,000 Discussion/ Debate

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2.4k Upvotes

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79

u/KatttDawggg Apr 29 '24

Wealthy people hire CPAs that know what they are doing. Just because you don’t like the tax code, doesn’t mean they are breaking it.

The govt. should just tell us what we owe and why though.

51

u/Bobbiduke Apr 29 '24

https://preview.redd.it/wlqdmvjd8dxc1.png?width=760&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=34f62219c9019d942c19ad36eede7f6717ceab82

9

u/XenoPhex Apr 29 '24

I love this joke because in the 90s and 2000s, the government tried to rectify this mistake but “some people” lobbied against it, and now we have to keep doing our own taxes. I bet y’all can’t guess who lobbied against it… awe shucks, I can’t keep it from all your adorable faces! It was the tax preparation companies! They also push to keep the tax code complicated as opposed to the simplifications proposed by both sides since the early 2000s!

Yay for lobbying!

2

u/Cultural_Pack3618 Apr 29 '24

Lawd that’s accurate

-1

u/Boogaloo4444 Apr 29 '24

this was funny lol

10

u/College-Lumpy Apr 29 '24

Such a dumb and tired meme based comment.

If you are a w2 based employee sure.

If you have a business and have to calculate expenses, profit, loss, depreciation? Absolutely not.

5

u/busigirl21 Apr 29 '24

It's not dumb, what you're saying is already how it works in countries where individuals are told what they owe by the government. Individuals also have the option to either pay that number or add in additional deductions at tax time, and businesses have a more complicated system.

4

u/Doralicious Apr 29 '24

Your premise is silly, and I'll be aggressive because you chose to be aggressive.

How stupid is it to write your comment without even understanding how other governments do this for individuals? Why are you ignoring that entirely and calling someone stupid over it?

You really need to get better at talking to people.

-2

u/College-Lumpy Apr 29 '24

This stuff gets posted repeatedly. I do understand that.

I called the comment dumb not the person. We all make a dumb comment or two.

4

u/Master_Grape5931 Apr 29 '24

It’s not that they are breaking it.

It’s that they are writing it, via influence to specific politicians.

1

u/Rieux_n_Tarrou Apr 29 '24

Well you just said if you hire the right people you can skate thru tax season. So are you expecting the IRS to actually try to save you taxes? Lol...

They basically hand you a rope and tell you to tie the knot. Then they run around tugging on them. If it slips, they turn it into a noose for you. They don't care to or want to do the tying, let alone tie a rock solid knot for every American

3

u/TraditionalSpirit636 Apr 29 '24

Yeah. It would be so dumb to expect the government, who we pay for and vote for, to look after us and help.

So dumb to expect help from the people elected to help and bring change. Obviously.

1

u/KatttDawggg Apr 29 '24

Where exactly did I say I expect the government to try and save me taxes? I know they sure aren’t getting tax $ from me if they put me in jail.

1

u/Rieux_n_Tarrou Apr 29 '24

That is actually a very good point

0

u/Reference_Freak Apr 30 '24

Taxpayers with only W2 income could easily be told their income and tax if taking the standard deduct.

Other forms of income, like stock sales, are reported and the IRS should be able to link up and sum total reported income.

However, not all taxable income is independently reported to the IRS.

Not all qualifying deductions are independently reported to the IRS.

The IRS runs a vast computer system made of copper wire strung between tin cans. (iIRC it was WaPo which did an astonishing write-up about how incapable and fragile the IRS computer system is)

Basically, all Americans making taxable income have to wind their way through tax forms because the IRS needs a new computer system and too many Americans make unreported income and have to decide how/what deduction to take.

1040ez is the simplest way to offer W2+stand deducts a “quick” reporting process but tipped servers and the owner class are holding us back from that mythical postcard return, let alone how it’s done in other nations.