We're still waiting for Donald J. Trump's federal tax returns, but we have received some clarification on his New York condo's property tax bill. This isn't The Donald's Big Apple home, but another apartment for sale with similar views in New York City's Trump Tower. Trump's attorney asked the New York City tax collector to remove a tax break the presumptive Republican presidential nominee had received that typically is awarded only to taxpayers making less than $500,000. The city complied, thereby increasing Trump's tax bill on his Trump Tower condo by $1,046.41, according to The Wall Street Journal. The removed... Read more →
Elections
When Crain's New York Business reported in March that self-proclaimed brilliant businessman Donald J. Trump got a tax break available only to folks making $500,000 or less, the ostensible billionaire's people said it was a mistake. If that's true, it's an error that's being repeated. Crain's June 6 online article says that Trump once again received a middle-class tax break on the property tax bill for his luxurious apartment in Trump Tower (pictured at left) on Fifth Avenue. The initial report that Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, was poor enough to get a special Big Apple property tax break... Read more →
If you had any doubt that Donald J. Trump plays by his own rules, this will convince you that he's totally doing things his, and his only, way. While Trump is insistent that he won't release his own personal tax returns -- because the audits, all the never-ending audits! -- he expects potential VP candidates to reveal their filing info. Katy Tur, the reporter covering The Donald for NBC News, confirmed Wednesday, May 18, that Trump will ask all potential vice presidential picks to release, at least to the campaign, their tax returns. It's part of the presumptive GOP candidate's... Read more →
The 2016 presidential campaign has been an unusual one in many ways. The so-called political establishment has been under fire on both the Democratic and Republican sides. Usually reliable pollsters and pundits have seen their projections upended by a new type of electorate. And social media has become a major player in the race for the White House. But one thing hasn't changed. The presumptive GOP nominee is as reluctant in 2016 to release his federal tax returns as was the 2012 candidate. This year, it's Donald J. Trump who says he won't release his tax returns until the Internal... Read more →
Donald J. Trump has built his brand on being a successful businessman who's made billions. Republican presidential hopeful Donald J. Trump campaigning in Nebraska. He won the Cornhusker State's GOP primary. We're just going to have to take him at his word that he makes billions. That's asking a lot, since Trump regularly, shall we say, deviates from the truth. But that's where we are and apparently will remain. Trump told the Associated Press in an interview published today (May 11) that he likely won't release his tax returns before the Nov. 8 general election. Who's surprised that Trump is... Read more →
There are many nicknames for marijuana. Weed. Pot. Mary Jane. Cash cow. OK, that last one isn't an official moniker for pot. But it is how many state legislators see the mood altering herb. And it could be a reason why 4/20 could one day be celebrated nationwide. Photo by GoToVan via Flickr CC Pot's tax payoff: Nearly $700 million of medical and recreational marijuana was sold in Colorado, one of the first states to legalize recreational use of pot, in 2014. Data through last November shows that the 2015 numbers have already passed the 2014 mark, with nearly $895... Read more →
Crain's New York Business may have shed some light on why Donald J. Trump doesn't want us to see his tax returns. The magazine reports that the billionaire real estate developer got a property tax break designed for New Yorkers making less than $500,000 a year. Michigan voters apparently weren't concerned about Trump's tax returns, giving him that state's GOP primary win on March 8. Numerous publications, as well as The Donald himself, say that the Republican presidential nominee front-runner is worth billions, although the exact dollar amounts vary. Trump makes it simple for us, noting that he's "really rich."... Read more →
And once again this election season, it comes back to Donald J. Trump. Ohio Gov. John Kasich released seven years' worth of partial tax returns on Saturday, March 5, following the previously set pattern of U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida. That leaves Trump as the only remaining candidate for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination who has not made public any of his tax filings. He promises he'll let us see his taxes … eventually. This Twitter photo posted Oct. 15, 2015, is the only glimpse we've had of any of Donald Trump's tax filings.... Read more →
Donald Trump's opponents for the Republican presidential nomination have to be jumping for joy (OK, my one and only Leap Day reference, I promise) today with the opening he's provided them by playing coy about his personal tax returns. During last week's GOP debate, Trump cited Internal Revenue Service audit of his tax returns as the reason he's not releasing his 1040s to the public. While that's probably the sound advice he's getting from his tax counsel, Trump's main competitors are taking full advantage of the curiosity in the billionaire's taxes. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz are coming after Donald... Read more →
If you're feeling the Bern, you count Bernie Sanders's effective tie with Hillary Clinton in last night's Iowa caucuses as a win. However, Sanders is a loser on Capitol Hill when it comes to his tax plan. The party's leadership in Washington, D.C., has made it clear that it won't run on any platform that supports raising taxes on middle-class voters. Wealthy are the traditional tax target: Democrats have long argued for higher taxes, but the target has always been the wealthy. In recent years, that has been the $250,000 earnings mark for families. Higher taxes for the rich was... Read more →
You're going to watch tonight's Republican presidential candidates' debate from Des Moines, right? At least long enough to see if The Donald makes a surprise, showy entrance despite his pledge to hold a competing event. (And to play debate drinking games.) Click image to see NJ.com video on Trump's decision and its possible ramifications on the Iowa caucuses. Even without the GOP White House wannabe front-runner on stage, Donald Trump will likely dominate the night, which begins at 9 p.m. Eastern/8 p.m. Central on Fox News. You can bet the other candidates will bash Trump, both for bowing out, as... Read more →
Jeb Bush's tax proposal would save him $773,000 in taxes. Donald Trump hasn't released his tax plan yet (he says he will in three or so weeks), but in his 2011 political manifesto "Time To Get Tough," The Donald said he wants to abolish the inheritance tax. That certainly would be a big benefit to Trump's children who one day will inherit his huge estate. Republican candidates face off again in their second televised debate tonight on CNN. Will they talk taxes more this time? If so, keep in mind how their wealth affects their tax proposals. I'm not saying... Read more →
Oh, Congress. If we were dating, our relationship would be in Ashley Madison level trouble. The bad is that you are so predictable. Same old, same old political demagoguing and no action. Worse, all that talking plays into your tendency to procrastinate, which is incredibly annoying. Worst, your dilly-dallying is really messing up my and millions of other taxpayers' tax planning. Sir Patrick Stewart (left) and Sir Ian McKellen (right), two lions of British theater, teamed up in 2013 for a Broadway production of "Waiting for Godot." Waiting (again) for tax extenders: I am, of course, talking about the tax... Read more →
The Republicans who want to sit in the Oval Office in 2017 and beyond are gathered in Cleveland, Ohio, for tonight's first, and I use this term very loosely, debate. As everyone knows by now, the star of this quasi-reality show being broadcast at 9 p.m. Eastern Time by Fox News is real estate magnate Donald Trump. He's fourth from the left in the bottom row of photos above in case you don't recognized the hair. He will be joined on stage by (left to right starting on the top row and skipping Trump) former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, retired... Read more →
Mark Everson served as Internal Revenue Service commissioner from 2003 to 2007. Before that appointment by George W. Bush, he served in the Reagan Administration, as well as headed two Indiana state agencies, the Department of Administration and Department of Workforce Development. Everson also was the first Republican this year to announce that he wanted to be his party's nominee to run for president in 2016. He filed his paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on March 10, 13 days before Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas tossed his hat into the ring. Everson also is the only candidate not... Read more →
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is today's entrant into the ever-expanding Republican field to be the party's 2016 nominee for the White House. He's the 14th official major GOP candidate. Click image to watch Chris Christie's announcement that he's seeking the 2016 GOP nomination for president. On the one hand, it's good so see so many people interested in contributing to the country's political dialog. On the other hand, with so many candidates who don't have any chance of ever sitting in the Oval Office, and that includes you Donald Trump, the odds of conducting any substantive policy debate are... Read more →
More than 37 million Americans are expected to hit the roads this Memorial Day weekend, the traditional start of summer and its associated vacation travel. AAA says the number of people taking a trip this long holiday weekend is expected to be the most for the holiday since 2005. The bulk of them, around 33 million, will be hitting U.S. highways. And while pump prices have surged in advance of the holiday -- the national average price of $2.71 for a gallon of unleaded gas is a nickel more than last week -- AAA says that price still is the... Read more →
Oregon voters on Nov. 4 approved use of small amounts of recreational marijuana in their state. The fight over taxing weed, however, continues. The ballot initiative that passed by a 56-to-44-percent margin specifically gave the state the exclusive right to tax marijuana. City officials are fighting that provision. State vs. local taxation: Under Measure 91, which takes effect July 1, 2015, producers will be taxed $35 an ounce for the most potent parts of a marijuana plant. Marijuana leaves will face a $10 per ounce tax, while there will be a $5 levy for plant starts sold to home growers.... Read more →
Tax reform might have been an implicit issue in the Nov. 4 federal midterm elections, but the matter of assessing, collecting and exempting taxes was specific on many state and local ballots. In most cases, voters approved the tax ballot initiatives. Here's a rundown of the major measures. Georgia is the first state to cap its income tax rate. Peach State voters decided that keeping its current 6 percent rate will make the state more competitive with other states. Some say this is the first step toward eventually eliminating the state income tax. Stay tuned. Tennessee voters easily agreed to... Read more →
Most of us won't vote on tax-related ballot initiatives today, but taxes still will guide our choices, according to a recent poll. Public Opinion Strategies' (POS) national pre-election survey found that tax reform is a major concern for most voters. Overall, the Alexandria, Virginia-based political and public affairs research firm found that economic issues will be a deciding factor in how people vote today. Nearly all voters (96 percent) say economic issues are important to their vote. Almost three-quarters (74 percent) classify economic issues as "extremely" or "very important" in determining how they will cast their ballots. That sentiment was... Read more →