Tax return is nearly $3000 LESS because I worked part-time last year!

[StuckInKS]

I really don't understand why people keep bringing up social security tax in a thread about federal income taxes. They are NOT the same thing. I understand they are all money we pay the government, but they are not interchargeable. If you expect social security benefits you have to pay into the system.

Because people are moaning about how others are living off of them with the EIC and how terrible it is. Whine, whine, whine. NOTHING is fair. I am paying DOUBLE the SS/Medicare tax as you and it likely WON'T EVEN BE THERE when I need it. If I get to claim a little EIC to lessen that tax burden, I am not going to feel a darn bit guilty about it. Do I care that others are getting refunds with their EIC and that it's making HHS terribly angry? Nope. I'm just glad a get a hundred or two off the insane amount of SS tax that I pay, even though I'll likely never see that money again.

But, I guess your right. I do have the choice to get a minimum wage job and work double the hours for 3X less money. But then I'd get a fat refund from HHS's taxes and I'd also have to get some food stamps and maybe even welfare to support all these kids I had. I have marketable skills, but that is because I made them marketable. They have no value in the outside world without a degree.

P.S. this not a federal income tax thread. It's a "hey, my refund sucks because I worked" thread. Others turned it into a fed income tax discussion.

 

[StuckInKS]

I bet most people that dislike the EIC, would also be in favor of ending Social Security, I know I would.. Let me invest that money myself, would do a heck of a lot better!

We agree on one thing, but you aren't getting my vote on one without the other.

 

[luvsJack]

you got the answer u just didnt like it, the answer was the government is horrible let the churches do it again. stop fleeceing people that make more money thru taxes, to give it to the poor,,, who is going to pay the 14 trillion dollar bill??? not the poor.

No, you are repeating the statement HE made that I responded to. He didn't answer the question I asked. Charities and churches depend on voluntary giving. If people decide they don't want to help and stop paying, what will happen to those people? THAT was my question and he repsonded with a question not an answer.

 

[luvsJack]

why would you have 8-9 children if you cannt pay your bills???

Maybe they became unable to pay the bills after the children were born? Maybe they had 8 or 9 accidents? Who knows, but it happens. Should we allow the children to starve?

Besides, the poster didn't say that the person with 8 or 9 children couldn't pay thier bills. The pp was saying that the $900 tax bill would be a hardship.

 

[ohlas]

No, you are repeating the statement HE made that I responded to. He didn't answer the question I asked. Charities and churches depend on voluntary giving. If people decide they don't want to help and stop paying, what will happen to those people? THAT was my question and he repsonded with a question not an answer.

opps srry I thought that was the answer. my answer would be nothing. what is the government going to give out when they run out, how much more can we borrow? who is going to pay it back?

Im srry if i sound rude tax time makes me a grumpy head. I work with alot of min wage workers single moms that half live off the system and every year its im getting my refund, one is smart enough to trade her car in to get cheap new car, one is buying a laptop for 800, im saving my money for 3 months to pay the tax payment come april... so people can buy laptops.

 

[StuckInKS]

Im srry if i sound rude tax time makes me a grumpy head. I work with alot of min wage workers single moms that half live off the system and every year its im getting my refund, one is smart enough to trade her car in to get cheap new car, one is buying a laptop for 800, im saving my money for 3 months to pay the tax payment come april... so people can buy laptops.

Maybe she is going to use that laptop to better her situation by going to college online at night while her children are asleep or making extra money with a second work-at-home job? That way she won't have to be a "min wage workers single mom that half live off the system" with your hard-earned money anymore.

 

[tasha99]

You know what's shocking? I used the H&R Block tax refund estimator, and typed in the starting salary for speech language pathologists in Oregon schools. According to the calculator, I'll qualify for $1100 in EIC even after I have my Masters.

 

[cm8]

What I find funny is that business owners think $10 or $15 an hour is a "fair wage" because that is what was agreed upon, but want to complain that these same people are getting too much money in public assistance or refundable tax credits. That these families should starve or go without heat/lights/water because they can't make it on the $20,000 to $30,000 a year that they are so generously being paid.

Companies take advantage of workers to increase their bottom line. If unemployment is so bad that you have 100 overqualified people fighting for one $10 an hour job, then why pay more? (Even though your bringing in millions or billions in profit?)

You're against EIC? You think it is "stupid"? I think SS is stupid and would LOVE to put that money in my own retirement account. Instead, the entire fund will be bankrupt years before I am old enough to benefit (2046, under the current rules.) I would like to see kind of SS reform just as much as you would like to see the EIC eliminated.

I Agree. I am so OP that you did not get back what you were counting on. We have been fortunate as a family to not be on the receiving end of the EIC. I know many who are and they look forward to it every year.

 

[HHSTigerFan]

Why don't you answer the question? What do you suggest be done for those in need?

I think I made it pretty clear, churches and charities become more involved.. stop taxing us to death and let the free market system do what its designed to do, create jobs and less people will be needing welfare..

 

[HHSTigerFan]

I have read every post up to this point and have yet to see either credit mentioned. Some did mention the difference between refundable vs. non-refundable credits, but both the ones I mentioned are refundable -- like the EIC. The only difference I see is that one is available only to lower-income households and the other two are also available to higher-earning households.

You are dead wrong there, Child Tax Credit and Child and Dependent Care Credit are nonrefundable..

 

[HHSTigerFan]

Because people have different abilities to pay. A single person making $30k may be able to afford a $900 tax bill in April. A family of 10 living on the same likely won't be able to afford it and may have to miss rent or bills that will be hard to catch up on. They may have to get govt assistance for rent and food just so they can pay their tax bill.

They should have thought about that before becoming a baby factory..

 

[HHSTigerFan]

No, you are repeating the statement HE made that I responded to. He didn't answer the question I asked. Charities and churches depend on voluntary giving. If people decide they don't want to help and stop paying, what will happen to those people? THAT was my question and he repsonded with a question not an answer.

Based on past elections it appears that about half the people in this country have a view that the govt should help people that can't take care of themselves.. If those people start giving the same amount to their church/charity as what we could reduce taxes by thats 50% of the welfare needed right there.. Toss in the amount of money the fed govt could save by not needing so many employees running these programs and that the churches/charities are going to do a much better jobs of singling out the people cheating the system, and its now pretty close to a wash..

Does that all look good?

 

[HHSTigerFan]

And today I am going to be even grumpier over this topic.. here in the state of Illinois we passed a state income tax increase, going from 3% to 5%.. today we rec'd our first checks since that was made law and our net pay decreased by $85.. so now thats $170 (actually more as we are paid 26 times a year) a month less we are making because of increased taxes..

So where does that come from?? We have to cut somewhere, probably spend a little less eating out, maybe not see a movie we want to see, perhaps cut back on groceries.. so we are going to pass our loss off onto businesses, who in turn are going to either increase their prices to make a profit or cut jobs..

 

[sam_gordon]

Isnt free trade awsome....

But wasn't 'free trade' why unions came in and child labor laws had to be enacted? I guess we should do away with child labor laws also?

As opposed to the $14 trillion debt that our government has created trying to do everything for everyone?

Wow, you learn something new on the DIS every day. I never knew the $14 trillion debt was SOLELY because of "welfare" and tax refunds for the poor.

 

[HHSTigerFan]

Wow, you learn something new on the DIS every day. I never knew the $14 trillion debt was SOLELY because of "welfare" and tax refunds for the poor.

How about if we toss in the 50% of US households that pay ZERO income tax?? How close does that have us to not having that $14T number staring at us?

 

[sam_gordon]

Based on past elections it appears that about half the people in this country have a view that the govt should help people that can't take care of themselves.. If those people start giving the same amount to their church/charity as what we could reduce taxes by thats 50% of the welfare needed right there.. Toss in the amount of money the fed govt could save by not needing so many employees running these programs and that the churches/charities are going to do a much better jobs of singling out the people cheating the system, and its now pretty close to a wash..

Does that all look good?

Actually no. First, if you cut people's taxes, that money won't go to charity. Second, the money government saves by not needing employees to run the welfare programs will go to other government spending... it won't go to charities. AND you've just put how many more people out of work?

Yes, government spending is out of control. Couldn't agree with you more.
Yes, there are people who abuse the 'system'. Couldn't agree with you more.

But government spending has bigger problems than welfare abusers. Yes, there needs to be a way to cut down on abuse. But (as mentioned earlier), that's going to cost even MORE money.

 

[HHSTigerFan]

I disagree, don't see any programs that are wasting the American tax dollars like the welfare and other entitlement programs.. where in the US Constitution is the idea of welfare mentioned?

 

[palavra]

Great post - I remember living off of nothing but spaghetti and cereal for weeks at a time when in college (living on my own having to pay rent, etc). I went to school fulltime (15-18 hours a semester) and a 40 hour a week job. It was a killer but I got through it.

I'm a teacher, and I can tell you there are plenty of people who don't have the ability to do what you did. It's great that you could work full time and still do well in college. Some people couldn't do that and pass their classes. Going to school would take all their effort.

The cost of education is definitely a problem as well. Maybe in our day we could leave school with thousands of dollars in loans and find a decent job within a few weeks, so we could pay that money back. Today, with the unemployment rate so high, students are leaving university with debt and no job prospects. Our economy is changing. People can no longer rely on a college degree to land a job paying a living wage.

 

[palavra]

I disagree, don't see any programs that are wasting the American tax dollars like the welfare and other entitlement programs.. where in the US Constitution is the idea of welfare mentioned?

There are many aspects of our society today that aren't mentioned in the Constitution. The world was quite different 220 years ago. Societies grow and change over time. Our founding fathers could have in not way foreseen what life for Americans would be like in the 21st century.

 

[HHSTigerFan]

There are many aspects of our society today that aren't mentioned in the Constitution. The world was quite different 220 years ago. Societies grow and change over time. Our founding fathers could have in not way foreseen what life for Americans would be like in the 21st century.

So we should just throw the document away? Or just pick and choose when we follow it based on political beliefs and what will get people elected?