I consider tax loopholes those little things that people use tax attorneys for. I don’t consider interest on mortgage a loophole. I do consider taking an empty basement and writing it off as a office a loophole. I don’t consider taking the tax break on a yacht a loophole. But I do consider moving that yacht to another state to claim the tax break a loophole(ala John Kerry)
There are over 67,000 pages in the tax code. I am willing to bet that 99% of that you and I will never see in our lifetime. if you play by the tax code, you shouldn’t have a problem with any of this, rich or poor. However, if you are trying to circumvent the tax code with attorneys playing legal games based on changing of a word or phrase, heck yes that should be closed.
I have no clue how much revenue this would generate. And the president randomly selecting industries for this because it sounds good to the base is not the answer. And I would believe that any “rich mans” tax loophole that they do close probably has been superseded with something else and this will have no impact on anyone. But it sounds good and I doubt the media is going to take the time and peruse 67,000 pages to find what that would be.
Unless it was a republican.
Is it in the tax code that an empty basement qualifies as an office? Or are you talking about tax evasion?
I don’t consider taking the tax break on a yacht a loophole. But I do consider moving that yacht to another state to claim the tax break a loophole(ala John Kerry)
There is no loophole here. If you homeport the vessel in another state that doesn't charge high taxes, it makes sense. Maybe MA should lower its taxes and more yachts like Kerry's would come back to the state. How do you propose MA change its tax laws to capture this loss in revenue?
However, if you are trying to circumvent the tax code with attorneys playing legal games based on changing of a word or phrase, heck yes that should be closed.
It is not circumventing the tax code. If it were, the violators should be prosecuted. There is nothing wrong with "legal games." If the tax code is poorly written, change it. Maybe we should have less rules and regulations and revenue might increase. The more the government tries to micromanage businesses and bleed them dry with taxes, the more they will resist by finding ways around the chains and shackles they have been placed in. Maybe I am nuts, but I believe the fruits of my labor should belong to me and that the less I give to the government the better. Instead, there seems to be the presumption that my property belongs to the government and they will decide how much I can keep.