IRS Makes Massive Announcement About New Tax Bill

The IRS is paving the way for Americans to put off the disastrous Republican tax plan for at least one more fiscal year.

Background: 

The GOP has faced constant criticism since passing its tax plan. Critics claim the plan favors the rich and punishes the poor.

While most Americans will see their taxes go down next year, in about seven they will increase, while corporations will still see a decrease in their flat rate. The plan benefits the elite CEOs and Donald Trumps of the world, by pushing to the side poor, working families.

The plan also eliminates the healthcare mandate produced under Obamacare that required all Americans to carry healthcare or pay a fine. Experts predict that dropping this requirement will pave the way for younger, healthier Americans to drop their health insurance, which will drive up premiums for older, sicker citizens.

The bill also took aim at one major love for big cities: deductions on state and local taxes.

Under the GOP bill, there is a $10,000 cap on the amount of state and local taxes a person can deduct from their income. Big cities will suffer under this new rule, and a lot of those cities just so happen to be Democrat-controlled.

What’s Happening Now: 

As a result of this provision, citizens in those targeted cities ran to their officials with one major request: to pay their taxes early and get their deductions for at least one more year.

The GOP plan specifically stated that income taxes could not be paid early to avoid the cap, but didn’t comment on property taxes. The IRS just cleared up that vagueness.

According to The Hill:

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced Wednesday that homeowners can deduct their prepaid 2018 state and local property taxes on their 2017 returns if the taxes are assessed and paid this year, postponing possible hikes from the tax-reform legislation signed into law this month.

The announcement came after swarms of homeowners lined up at tax offices around the country attempting to prepay their 2018 taxes before the end of the year, allowing them to avoid a new $10,000 cap on the amount of state and local taxes that can be deducted from income before determining federal tax liability.

The IRS’s statement depends on whether or not state laws allow the taxes to be assessed and paid early, but this is a huge break for those panicking on this sudden restriction on their taxes.

And people are taking advantage of the new break: officials have stated they are getting overwhelming amounts of calls from those who want to just get their taxes taken care of now rather than waiting for later.

One official in a state targeted by the new deduction clause, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, stated an intent to get around this new law. He said that this provision, which takes aim at blue states, is what is financing the major cuts for the wealthy, who often reside on the red end of the political spectrum.

It turns out even when the GOP manage to get something done, the rest of the country is determined to undermine their terrible ideas.

And why shouldn’t they? The GOP hasn’t produced anything worthwhile since announcing Trump as their candidate for president.

H/T: The Hill