Posted on 06/21/2024 7:31:21 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
> Tips are gifts.
Unless they appear on the check as a “Service Charge”.
The actual money is important enough, but it would relieve these hard working people of the burden of doing the accounting for that money.
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I saw a CBS news segment last night where the Left is already trying to put a negative spin on Trump’s proposal. Seems like they are worried that the proposal will translate into votes for Trump.
“Viewed in that context, to describe President Trump’s proposal as being a drop in the bucket – a veritable rounding error — would hardly be an exaggeration.”
I think the purpose of income tax is to move money from one sort of people’s pockets into another’s. Otherwise, they could just print a bit more dollars than they do now, and it would be enough.
> It is not the Governments job to make it “fair”. <
I gently disagree with that. Folks who make the same amount of money should pay the same amount of tax.
As was noted elsewhere on this thread, the whole tip thing is small potatoes. The real problem with our tax code is the insane complexity. And that’s just the way Congress likes it. Favored groups get special breaks.
Voluntary tips should be considered gifts.
I wish I could take credit for it. I read it in the comments of another article, maybe here on FR.
I really hope Trump leans into this and the left keeps reminding the working people that it will "cost" as much as we already spent in Ukraine. in other words that could seriously cut taxes if we weren't constantly paying for foreign wars.
To amplify the point: the cost of the service is already paid in the bill, and the worker is already compensated (maybe at the minimum wage) for their work. Anything above that is a gift, not a payment for services.
Will certainly bring out the stripper vote. But, it would seem ‘streamers’ and other social media people who rely in tips or donations would have huge benefits, same for other areas.
We always leave 20%, if waited on at a table.
Tips for buffet restaurants, we also leave 20% tips.
Tips for self-service at a Chipotle or McDonalds or the like—very seldom.
simple answer to this issue is to ban the wage carve out for “tip earners” and make them paid as everyone else is in terms of minimum wage.
then tips can be tax free.
Yes, if it's a mandatory service charge it's not a gift. But if it's voluntary, it's a gift.
The world doesn’t work that way and I believe it shouldn’t. In your example the roofer has a defined wage. PS most are paid in cash and don’t pay tax.
The service employee may or may not make the tips you and the IRS credit them for thus they have fiscal uncertainty.
Additionally Roofers salaries go up steeply with more years on the job, service staff salaries don’t.
From Reddit: With 2 years experience the company I work for will start you at over $20/hr or at least $20/hr. I started at $16 5 years ago and am now at almost $30/hr.
The whole subject of who makes how much, for how much work, how much responsibility, how much training, how much personal risk, what credentials is basically arbitrary and controlled by market forces. The attempt to act as though this can be micromanaged and the hourly wage is trumps the gestalt of the situation is disingenuous.
RE: Voluntary tips should be considered gifts.
Oh yeah, eliminate taxes on that too. Thanks for the idea :)
Why tax anyone when they seem to just pull a $trillion or so a year right out of their backsides. Even one of Biden’s “economists” claimed they could print all the money they want.
> Tips are gifts. Gifts are not taxable. <
That’s an interesting point. Many years ago I read about a car dealer who was selling cars under book value. The customer made up the rest with a “gift”.
The state taxing authorities weren’t amused. Good try though, eh?
I should have said many are paid in cash, not most. The bigger construction firms are n the books
Agreed.
The greedy .gov uses taxes to control the population. (Reward their friends. Punish their enemies). They sure don’t refer to tax revenue to write budgets. Debt as far as the eye can see.
Although we disagree on some points, you are certainly correct about the uncertainty factor. The IRS knows how much the roofer makes per hour. The IRS can only guess how much the waiter makes per hour (wages + tips).
So now we have some guy in far-off DC deciding how much a waiter in Idaho makes. It’s a real mess.
Some folks here on Free Republic have proposed eliminating the income tax and replacing it with a consumption tax. Not the worst idea in the world. I’d add in some tariffs, too. But that’s just me.
Exactly right.
I hate when they called them “government revenues”. They are not revenues. They did not build, risk, invest, improve or work for that money. It’s just a tax on work and reward for risk. Call them tax receipts, not “government revenue”.
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