Don't Mess With Taxes

Everyone, and every company, looks for ways to lower their tax bills.

Last week at my other tax blog I looked at some side effects of these efforts.

Flexible savings accounts (FSAs) offer workers an easy way to put aside tax-free money they can spend on medical costs. But sometimes, in looking for ways to avoid forfeiting unused FSA funds, people can spend more than they intended.

As for companies, their phalanxes of accountants and tax attorneys help them avoid taxes at both the federal and state levels. A new study found that 265 of the most successful corporations cost state treasuries more than $42 billion in taxes between 2008 and 2010.

You can check out the details on these and other tax topics every Tuesday and Thursday at my Bankrate Taxes Blog.

And if you happen to miss them there, you can find a wrap-up here each Saturday.

You also might find these items of interest:

• It's FSA spending time
• GE and 14 other tax dodging companies
• Corporate taxes: time to cut the tax rate
  or to make sure companies pay at all?