A tax credit and a tax penalty are not the same thing.
With the health insurance tax penalty I’m being penalized for not doing what the government is trying to coerce me to do. I have no option. Do as they say or be penalized. The IRS will enforce this.
There’s no coercion with tax credits. I don’t have to take a tax credit, even if I qualify for one. There’s no forced penalty if I choose not to take the credit. I’d be foolish not to take it, but there’s no IRS forcing me to.
The IRS didn’t hire 15,000 plus agents to force people to take tax credits.
“...A tax credit and a tax penalty are not the same thing...”
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How so to the bottom line?