[Street] Tax Day -Ultra Working Group?!

Aria Littlhous casinellidaria at gmail.com
Mon Feb 20 14:37:12 EST 2012


Occupy JP is proposing to form an Intra-Occupy Tax Day Working Group.
Please contact us if you would like to participate! There are two
important issues to resolve immediately:

*What are our demands?
*What about the Tea Party Rally at the Boston Common Bandstand on
4/15?

Details below. We welcome your comments and input. Eight weeks and
counting.

A.

Our two discussions have included a report back on information already
gathered, things to think about and two possible draft demands to get
the ball rolling.

Draft Demand:

1.	The gargantuan and labyrinthine nature of the tax code inherently
favors taxpayers wealthy enough to hire lawyers. Occupy JP instructs
our legislators to radically simplify the tax code this year. The
Congress works for the people, the tax code should too.



2.	Occupy JP supports the proposal of our National Taxpayer Advocate,
Nina E. Olson, to Zero Sum Budget Title 26 as outlined part IV of her
testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee on 1/20/11. We
instruct our legislators to paass her proposal this year. The Congress
works for the people, the tax code should too.

Part IV: A Zero-Based Budgeting Approach Could Assist Congress in
Deciding Which Tax Breaks and IRS-Administered Social Programs to
Retain and Which to Eliminate.
My suggestion is to approach tax reform in a manner similar to zero-
based budgeting. Under that approach, the starting point would be a
tax code without any exclusions or reductions in income or tax. As
discussions proceed, tax breaks and IRS-administered social programs
would be added only if lawmakers decide on balance that the public
policy benefits of running the provision or program through the tax
code outweigh the tax complexity challenges that doing so creates for
taxpayers and the IRS. Some tax provisions and programs will meet this
test, while others will not. Factors to consider in making this
assessment include whether the government continues to place a
priority on encouraging the activity for which the tax incentive is
provided, whether the incentive is accomplishing its intended purpose,
and whether a tax expenditure is more effective than a direct
expenditure for achieving that purpose.47

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/nta_testimony_waysandmeans_01202011.pdf

Note: Although getting a legislative demand as specific at #2 through
any GA would be difficult, the advantages of supporting Ms. N.O.’s
proposal are many: it’s a good proposal, she’s non-partisan, it’s
already in the system, she has cool initials.

Other

We’ve contacted the New England War Tax Resisters. They will be
announcing the grants they award from a fund set up from the proceeds
of resistance on 4/15. They will get back to us about a possible
collaboration.

Senator John Kerry will get back to us about where Ms. No!’s proposal
stands now.

We will contact the advocacy group Uncut and see where they’re at.

The deadline for filing taxes is midnight April 17. The media
traditionally interviews late filers at the Fort Point Post Office, a
great place for kites.

Thanks. We look forward to hearing from you.

O! JP!


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