US President Barack Obama used a press briefing on the April 15 tax filing deadline day to reiterate his pledge to “greatly simplify” the US tax code in the long-term, and emphasize the tax relief he has already delivered for working- and middle-class Americans.
"We will make it quicker, easier, and less expensive for you to file a return, so that April 15 is not a date that is approached with dread each year," Obama said in remarks at the White House.
Obama has proposed that the tax filing process should be dramatically simplified so that the majority of taxpayers who must file an annual tax return can do so in five minutes or less.
The President also stood by his long-standing intentions to end tax breaks for companies “shipping jobs overseas” and individuals who have made enough money not to need them – a bracket in which he included himself.
“For too long, we've seen taxes used as a wedge to scare people into supporting policies that actually increased the burden on working people instead of helping them live their dreams. That has to change.” Obama remarked.
“We've passed tax cuts that will help our economy grow. We've made a clear promise that families that earn less than USD250,000 a year will not see their taxes increase by a single dime. And we have kept to those promises that were made during the campaign,” he added.
Recently enacted tax changes that have benefited low- and middle-income taxpayers and small business owners include: the Making Work Pay credit, which, it is claimed, 95% of American families are eligible for; extended loss carrybacks for small firms, allowing them to offset current losses against past income for five years instead of two; a USD2,500 college tax credit; and a USD8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit.
The tax returns of the President and First Lady, released by the White House on tax deadline day, show that the Obamas reported joint adjusted gross income of USD2,656,902 for 2008. The vast majority of the family’s 2008 income was derived from royalties from the sale of the President’s books. The Obamas paid USD855,323 in federal income tax.
The President and First Lady also reported donating USD172,050 – or about 6.5% of their adjusted gross income – to 37 different charities. Their Illinois income tax return showed that they paid USD77,883 in state income taxes.The White House also released details of Vice President Joe Biden’s tax return, which shows that he and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, jointly reported an adjusted gross income of USD269,256 and an after-tax income of USD183,315. The family’s primary sources of income were salaries from the United States Senate, Widener University, Delaware Technical and Community College, as well as royalties from the audio rights to the Vice President’s book. The Bidens paid USD46,952 in federal income taxes, USD11,164 in Delaware state income taxes, and donated USD1,885 to charity.
.
Network Tweets
Network BlogsContent
provided by
|
Archive | Resources | Partners | Site Map | Links | Newsletter Archive | Contact | RSS Feeds | About | Syndication | Advertising & Marketing | Recruitment | Terms & Conditions | Privacy & Cookies
Copyright © 2012 - All Rights Reserved - Tax-News.com
IMPORTANT NOTICE: Tax-News.com has taken reasonable care in sourcing and presenting the information contained on this site, but accepts no responsibility for any financial or other loss or damage that may result from its use. In particular, users of the site are advised to take appropriate professional advice before committing themselves to involvement in offshore jurisdictions, offshore trusts or offshore investments.
Write a comment