What Warren would do with her tax hike. Earlier this month, Democratic presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren told us she wants to impose a wealth tax on “ultra millionaires.” Now she’s said what she’d do with the money: Provide free or subsidized child care to most families. She estimates her wealth tax would raise $2.75 trillion over ten years. "That's about four times more than the entire cost of my Universal Child Care and Early Learning plan," she said. By her count, that leaves plenty more for other spending initiatives.
About that 1040 postcard. The Treasury made a big deal about fitting the new Form 1040 on a postcard (though it really isn’t a postcard, according to the Postal Service). Now, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Richard Neal and Oversight Subcommittee Chair John Lewis want to know what the IRS knew and when it knew it when it designed the new form. The lawmakers say they want to "better understand the full extent of any due diligence done on the usability of the postcard by taxpayers."
Wisconsin lawmakers push a bipartisan tax credit for family caregivers. The proposal, backed by AARP, would create a $1,000 income tax credit for Wisconsin family members who care for qualified people who are elderly or live with disability in their homes. A similar bill died in the last legislative session, perhaps because of its $173 million price tag. The cost may fall if analysts take Medicaid savings into account.
A tax preparer refuses to file for a married same-sex couple. In Indiana, a tax preparer declined to prepare taxes for a woman and her new wife. The tax preparer operates in Russiaville, a municipality that has no ordinance barring discrimination based on their sexual orientation. The couple, whose marriage the IRS recognizes, found another tax preparer.
EU warns US: Put a tariff on our products, we’ll retaliate. European Union Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said this week that while President Trump has promised not to hurt transatlantic trade, the EU is prepared to scale back purchases of US soybeans and liquid gas in retaliation for US tariffs on European auto imports.
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