Don’t leave money on the table. The IRS has $1.5 billion in unclaimed 2018 tax refunds waiting for people who did not file a return that year — but they must claim the money by April 18. About 1.5 million taxpayers did not file a tax return that year. There is a three-year window to file and claim a refund; it closes for 2018 in two weeks. The median value of an unclaimed refund is $813.
IRS scrambles to hire. The Wall Street Journal’s Richard Rubin visited the IRS processing center in Ogden UT to see how the agency is managing its backlog of tax returns and its effort to hire new staff. It is a challenge. Rich described (paywall) one applicant this way: “Spencer Donaldson, 33, said he was driven to apply for an IRS job to get away from the stress of his work as a $14-an-hour assistant manager at an understaffed Domino’s Pizza Inc. location. Compared with Domino’s, he said, “It’s not going to be that bad.”
On the Hill this week… The Senate Finance Committee will hear testimony from IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig on the agency’s proposed Fiscal Year 2023 budget and the 2022 filing season on Thursday at 10:00 am. Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Director Phillip Swagel will defend the CBO budget request to the House Appropriations Legislative Branch Subcommittee tomorrow at 1:00 pm. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will testify on the international financial system before the House Committee on Financial Services on Wednesday at 10:00 am.
Illinois Senate Democrats announce $1 billion in tax relief. The state legislature adjourns on April 8 and the lawmakers announced an “inflation-busting” bill stuffed with largely temporary tax breaks to low-income workers, homeowners, parents, teachers, drivers, and volunteer first responders. Illinois residents with incomes of $250,000 or less ($500,000 for joint filers) would receive tax rebates—right before the November 8 election—of $100 each, plus $50 each for up to three dependents.
Germany plans an inflation adjustment for its tax code. Finance Minister Christian Lindner says “Rising wages must not be taxed away from people even though they’re losing purchasing power because of the current inflation.” The government will adjust its tax code so higher inflation doesn’t move workers into higher tax brackets.
In case you missed these from TPC experts on TaxVox… Len Burman offers birthday wishes to honor TPC’s 20th anniversary. Lucy Dadayan charts how rising oil prices have affected state budgets. Steve Rosenthal reviews the two new taxes for billionaires proposed by President Biden, while Howard Gleckman counts the many (other) ways to tax the rich. Robert McClelland and Livia Mucciolo report on new TPC research that shows the reduced mortgage interest deduction enacted under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act had very little effect on the size of new mortgages.
Tune in on Friday, April 15 to learn about global corporate tax reform. The Brookings Institution Hutchins Center and TPC will co-host an online event to examine the efforts of the OECD and the G-20. Speakers will include Treasury’s Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy Lily Batchelder, Georgetown University’s Lilian Faulhaber, the International Monetary Fund’s Alexander Klemm, and PricewaterhouseCooper’s Pam Olson. They’ll discuss how the recent agreement would affect multinational corporations, advanced economies, and developing economies; and the prospects for its implementation. See the agenda and register for the webcast here.
For the latest tax news, subscribe to the Tax Policy Center’s Daily Deduction. Sign up here to have it delivered to your inbox weekdays at 8:00 am (Mondays only when Congress is in recess). We welcome tips on new research or other news. Email Renu Zaretsky at [email protected].
