Posted on 09/28/2015 3:51:07 PM PDT by RKBA Democrat
I've been reading the articles and analysis on Donald Trump's tax plan. I've read several articles, and everyone has an opinion as to whether it helps the poor, hurts the poor, if it taxes people enough, whether it's conservative enough....blah, blah, blah.
I couldn't care less what the theoretical impact is on some hypothetical person that exists in someone's imagination. What I care about are MY taxes. I have yet to see any posts or articles where someone takes out their tax return and figures it out. So I did that. I took out a piece of scrap paper and figured it out. It took all of 5 minutes, including the time to find the calculator.
The result: using conservative assumptions my Federal income taxes will go down by 42%.
I LIKE Donald Trump's tax plan! I like it a lot!
What I do want, no demand, is that all working adults who also vote, pay a percentage of their income in taxes - if even one person does!
That's what this country was founded on, all people being treated equally.
We can get around that by eliminating income tax totally, then establishing a consumption tax, which works for me also.
Whatever everyone settles on, each person pays something otherwise, those paying nothing, say in income tax (I use this because SS payments are supposed to be being kept for us until we retire, similar for Medicare) then everything, all the freebies going out to some people, will at least, have helped pay for their own freebies and they'll think twice voting for someone promising them more freebies as they'll now realize how those freebies aren't at ALL FREE, they just had their own taxes raised to pay for their freebies!
This system worked great on my teenage kids when they constantly had their gimmes going on, take it from their allowance or even the money they were earning and they began to demand fewer freebies. I once made all three pitch in to pay for one of the kids "free stuff!" They got that point a after only one such lesson!
Is that you, Bernie?
Looks like I win by about $7500. That’s enough to buy my vote!
Win. I go to 0%.
Everyone has a price . :-)
I just saw “ more than fifty percent”, it I’m not here to get into any arguments. I’m too tired and it is not worth it. It is an argument about NOTHING, since I am considering Trump and like some things about him but some people on this forum make it difficult.
Yay! Thanx, C....
Just suggesting something like a flat/fair tax is getting me accused of being a socialist on this thread...
Think they know the definition of a socialist?
Yikes!
Does anyone know if his numbers are based on AGI or Gross? I cannot find anywhere that is addressed.
I make 50,400 yearly and have for about 9 years. After deductions my AGI is in the 35,000 dollar range. So I guess I will pay more if it’s Gross. If it’s AGI then I am getting a huge raise.
Can you show me where in the plan it says that everyone one would pay nothing on the 1st 25/50 thousand (depending on status). That sounds great, but I assumed people making over that amount would pay on their FULL earnings at their respective rate. Would be great if I am wrong.
Retired with retirement income and SS income - cuts mine by about 45%.
“Everyone has a price . :-)”
Hey, might as well do something in my favor for once. I’ve pretty much given up on the rest of the wrongs in the country being righted without some bang-bang. That extra money can buy a lot of ammo. :)
This is actually part of the problem: being more concerned for how it affects you or me or whoever, rather than whether it helps the USA to begin producing again so we can start getting the debt problem under control.
This is Step 1.
I too would fall into the 20% tax bracket as a single filer with no dependents.
Looking at my 2014 federal return, my marginal tax rate was 25% but the effective tax rate, the rate at which I actually paid was 14% (actually 14.3411%).
With this huge reduction in rates, many of the current exemptions and deductions will become unnecessary or redundant.. Those within the 10% bracket will keep all or most of their current deductions. Those within the 20% bracket will keep more than half of their current deductions. Those within the 25% bracket will keep fewer deductions. Charitable giving and mortgage interest deductions will remain unchanged for all taxpayers.
I am not sure what the above statement taken directly from Trump’s plan means to me. I only had wage income, did not itemize and took only the standard deduction and exemptions, I don’t have a mortgage nor do I make enough charitable giving to bother deducting for it, ending up last year with a refund of $10.00. : ),
If I look at it one way; it would be a reduction for me of 5% on the marginal rate of 25% to a marginal rate of 20%. If that rate is then actually calculated on AGI exactly as it was calculated last year – using the same standard deductions and exemptions as last year, I would see a reduction in taxes of $781.15 or an overall 9% reduction in the effective tax rate – and that is the rate that really matters. However, “IF” I were to lose some or all of my deductions, taken as pre-tax payroll deductions for contributions to my 401k and to my HSA, on my pre-tax employer Section 125 health benefits, and or “IF” the standard deduction and exemptions were totally eliminated for me, I “could” actually end up paying more to the tune of $1,248.85 – a 14% increase. While the marginal tax rate would be lower, “IF” – and in the very worst possible case scenario, 100% of my gross income is now taxed under Trump’s plan, even at the lower rate of 20%, I end up paying substantially more because more of my income would now be taxable.
Before I jump on the bandwagon of how great this tax plan is, I’d really like to see some specifics as to what deductions will be eliminated or reduced for those in the 20% and 25% brackets. I seriously doubt his plan will totally eliminate or greatly reduce the standard deductions or exemptions or on pre-taxed employer benefits, but as ScottinVA said, “As always, the devil is in the details.”
Definitely. It'd go through the Congressional wringer for awhile, and many specific details would have to be fleshed out, legislated and reworked, but at least this provides a framework for a starting point. If it provides a simplification to what is a monstrous tax code, it goes a long way to improving the status quo.
I fail to see how this is really a simplification of the tax code, if anything it makes it more complicated as under Trump’s plan, if I understand it correctly, many exemptions and deductions would now be allowed or more importantly not allowed or reduced based on what tax bracket you eventually fall into. So that still means for many, completing and filing tax more than a one page tax return.
I fail to see how this plan “puts H&R Block out of business”. If anything it makes it- the tax code even more complicated and I’m guessing that the folks at H&R Block, especially the programmers for their tax software, and other tax preparers, are absolutely ecstatic over this.
If you are single and earn less than $25,000, or married and jointly earn less than $50,000, you will not owe any income tax. That removes nearly 75 million households – over 50% – from the income tax rolls They get a new one page form to send the IRS saying, “I win,” those who would otherwise owe income taxes will save an average of nearly $1,000 each.
I’d like to see how that really would work in practice. Sure there are those single people and married and filing jointly and are earning far below the $25k or $50k thresholds for needing to file anything more than” a new one page form to send the IRS saying, “I win,”” but those on the threshold, if they don’t know what their effective tax rate is going to be or what deductions or exemptions will be allowed until after they complete a tax return, it’s not really a simplification.
Thanks.
Our mortgage payments/home equity line of credit, property taxes, medical expenses/medical/medicare insurance and charitable donations are our big deductions.
Like many people in their 70’s plus, we love our home and plan to stay in it until we are carried out feet first. So in the past two years we refied and got a line of credit to make our home more energy efficient and senior needs like a walkin shower and ramps to get into our home and through it.
Hopefully, we can keep these deductions.
If not, making it easier to pay our income taxes and the benefits for our younger relatives and friends, Trump’s plan will be good for the people we know, love and care for.
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