Official. Tax Cuts are a bust for Middle Income taxpayers

There is no marriage penalty anymore with tax brackets. Dual income households with high pay do well there.

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I admire the wallnuts, they are pretty quiet about their tax returns, they may have had such huge returns they are goin going on vacation to spend their easy money as I did. :wink::blush::sweat_smile:

They also seem to not understand English, you know, “you will get $ to buy a brand new car or remodel your kitchen” BS.

(CNN) — A year after President Donald Trump’s much-touted tax cuts were signed into law, at least some of the results are in, and there are clear winners: Millionaires. Big corporations. And that’s about it.

Around the world, many prosperous and developed nations consider goods like affordable health care and high-quality education to be public and available to everyone, no matter one’s income. In most prosperous and developed nations, there is a generally agreed-upon norm of the state providing care and support to those who need extra assistance: The poor, the unemployed, the disabled. In the United States, this is not quite a universal goal. While liberals and many moderates want to expand unemployment and social security benefits, raise the minimum wage, offer paid leave to new parents and those caring for sick family members, and do a better job at supporting the poor, the conservatives we have elected to office do not. The dream of the GOP is to slash what they call “entitlement” programs — and what many other countries would simply qualify as decency toward your fellow countrymen.

It turns out that when you take billions from would-be tax revenue and put it into the pockets of millionaires, billionaires and massive companies, there simply isn’t enough left over to pay for the social programs so many of us, and particularly the vulnerable, depend on — including Social Security and Medicare. Republicans can do math, and they know this. But this was also the point: Not just to further consolidate resources among themselves and their millionaire friends, but to slash the safety net for the poor, the old and the disabled.

And what do they have to show for it? Not a stronger stock market. Not a population where the average American is wealthier or more economically secure. Just bigger bank balances for themselves and the ultra-wealthy individuals and companies who fund their campaigns. And the tax cuts haven’t forestalled the possibility of a market correction that former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said this week should make investors “run for cover.” As the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate setting committee meets Tuesday and Wednesday, Trump is already on the offensive, warning them “not to make another mistake” ahead of an expected rate increase.

For Trump and many of his allies, the government is yet another avenue for grift and personal enrichment, a pattern he has maintained for his entire life.

The Trump tax cuts exemplify the fundamental difference in objective between the American left and the American right, one that is only now coming into sharper focus. For Trump and many of his allies, the government is yet another avenue for grift and personal enrichment, a pattern he has maintained for his entire life. But now that he’s in office, he’s not just a greedy grifter; he’s a powerful kleptocrat. For the GOP, the government is a way of pushing failed ideas that enrich a few at the expense of the many, with the veneer of public service in place only to doll up malignant self-interest and bigotry. Democrats are far from perfect, and there is a much fair debate to be had on what the fairest and most effective tax structure should look like, but their goal is clearly not simply to make the rich richer and the poor poorer.

One year after the tax cuts, Republicans should look at them with shame. But then, that would require they look beyond their own bank accounts.

Only read the headline.

Keyword is “refunds”.

Evaluation should be done on “net tax burden”

& then Average for 2018.

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Glance through the article, if I didn’t mis-read, those taxpayers go about the business as usual, so a lower refunds imply higher tax burden. Have they pay less in advance as compared to last year, then inconclusive.

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Yup. How many people know enough about the new tax laws to adjust their withholding? Anybody here changed their withholding because of the new laws?

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I did.

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Lower or higher?

Lower, but I also haven’t done my taxes yet.

Which part of the law gave you the confidence your taxes will lower this year?

My taxes will definitely be higher this year, but I tend to lower my withholdings when I had refunds the previous year so I’m not giving Uncle Sam a free loan (no penalty).

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Smart girl. I did the same. In fact I’d rather pay penalty for underpayment.

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Do you need to make any change? I thought IRS lowers everyone’s withholding by default.

If you lower your withholding in addition to IRS adjustments, you may need to pay a penalty

You didn’t read what I just said. If you didn’t know before here goes: you don’t need to pay penalty for underpayment if you paid at least 90% of your taxes the previous year (this year they lowered it, I forget the percentage). I got a refund last year so even if I withheld zero this year I pay zilch in penalty.

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What does it mean by “paid”? The withheld tax is also paid tax. Did they mean the total tax liability instead of whether it was withheld or paid after the year end?

It means Uncle Sam needs at least 90% (now lowered) of your money paid in advance (through withholding or estimated tax payment) the previous year to waive your penalty.

Are you sure about this? I remembered something different, but I did not spent more than 5 mins on this

I didn’t spend too much time on it either. If you don’t believe me go ask your CPA, otherwise I’m gonna start charging you for providing financial planning advice.

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https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-waives-penalty-for-many-whose-tax-withholding-and-estimated-tax-payments-fell-short-in-2018

The IRS is generally waiving the penalty for any taxpayer who paid at least 85 percent of their total tax liability during the year through federal income tax withholding, quarterly estimated tax payments or a combination of the two. The usual percentage threshold is 90 percent to avoid a penalty.

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So if you had withholding of 85% of your 2018 tax liability during the calendar year 2018, you will have no penalty.

@harriet said something different, I need to change a fee as well.