bodyThe American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that was signed into law by President Obama back in February included little in the way of immediate, direct relief for consumers. Sure, there is the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit. And billions have been set aside for highway construction projects. But those super-targeted funds haven't done much to help millions of struggling Americans make ends meet over the past few months.
The one small victory for taxpayers in this regard came in the form of the Making Work Pay Credit. The credit, essentially an across-the-board $400 cut in the payroll tax, works out to roughly $8 more in the pockets of every working American per week.
The logic behind these measly incremental payouts is that we'll be more likely to spend the extra sum if it comes to us in the form of small, regular payments. Had the government sent us all checks for $400 we'd be much more likely to put them in the bank, hence defeating the purpose of the "stimulus."
Makes sense. And whether it comes to us all at once or little by little, extra cash is extra cash. But there is one tiny catch. And yesterday the IRS published another alert aimed at getting Americans to sidestep a nasty little surprise tied to the new credit.
The bottom line: Your employer could actually be giving you more money than you're entitled to. Due to standardized IRS withholding tables that were updated to take less from all taxpayers, regardless of their individual circumstances (most importantly, marital status), it's possible that you shouldn't be receiving the full extra amount in each check. And what your employer giveth every two weeks… the IRS will eventually taketh away when you file your income-tax return next year.
Married couples with two incomes, individuals with two jobs, taxpayers who can be claimed as a dependent and those receiving pension payments are most vulnerable to this little clerical quirk. According to the IRS, your best course of action to head off a smaller refund or, heaven forbid, a tax-due bill next year: Adjust your withholding.
The good news: Changing your withholding is as simple as completing a new Form W-4 and handing it to your employer. What's more, the IRS offers a publication and worksheet, as well as a calculator that will help you figure your withholding allowance correctly.
For more information from the IRS, check out its resource center for the Making Work Pay Tax Credit. Or sit back, relax, and fire up this entertaining and informative video clip:
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What extra money? The little extra that is in my pay check goes right into my household budget. I hardly noticed it until a friend of mine pointed it out to me. What I would like to see happen is this, Stop sending OUR taxes dollars overseas helping out other countries combat hunger, the homeless and STOP buying foreign made goods that were assembled by children in sweat shops. We need to take care of OUR country first!!! We need to revive the American Dream and not fund another country's dream.
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People will do what is profitable for them. When having children out of wedlock was frowned upon (and you were viewed negatively for the lack of responsibility for your behavior) children born without 2 parents was a small number. When the government decided to 'help' unwed mothers, the numbers skyrocketed. The government promotes irresponsible behavior by paying for it - plain and simple. This goes to those who didn't get an education - now they can get a grant -- to those who won't work -- they can get paid to do nothing and free food. I am all for giving people who lost their jobs some real help but for the moochers I have little sympathy - except for the children of these people who will continue the cycle.
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I am telling you the extra money in my pay is helping. Just yesterday my personal chef told me that his limo driver had to let go his landscaper. I said hold on. Don't you know that we are all getting 8 more dollars a week? He said he would hire back the landscaper but he was only allowed to cut the front grass.
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you really dont know what you want you were sreaming that you wanted change yes we can > the reason i wrote you wanted change is because i had already asked for chanege back in cuba and boy did we get change
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Wasn't it Obama that criticized Bush's stimulus checks of $600 saying that it won't help families in need that when he was elected he was going to help the middle class. If he thinks that $600 was a joke did he really that $400 was going to help out more people? I'm sick & tired of being labeled Racist because I didn't vote for the crook. I told a co-worker who is black that she is more of the Racist since the only reason you did vote for him because he was black and not because of any of his so called policies. Now that they have a "brother " in the white house and we see how liberal they are in Washington, the black & latin communities will expect more govt hand outs and get them.
body
Here's some small comfort -- in recent months I did read of three local Section 8 housing certificates being "pulled" due to fraud, primarily having unreported employed persons living in the home. However, I truly believe there are dozens of incidents of fraud which go undetected for every one which is caught. Unfortunately, the system initiated by LBJ's War on Poverty merely enables those who wish to be leeches on society. The scary part is that the more voters who become dependent on the system, the less impetus to elect leaders who are willing to correct the problem.
I read today that our federal government wants lenders to forgive student loans which are not paid in 25 years, 10 years if one works in the public sector. Another example of the government enabling irresponsible personal behavior and encouraging dependency on government (and who is going to vote against the hand that feeds?). While I fully agree with the proposal to base monthly student loan payments on documented income rather than a rigid loan amortization schedule, I am adamantly opposed to debt forgiveness because it encourages frivolous, irresponsible behavior. My husband's family is full of individuals with degrees in Cultural Anthropology, Folklore, etc. who then look to the government for jobs once they realize that, despite having a college degree, they possess no marketable skills and are fit only for government work. And our tax dollars will pay for their so-called educations! Meanwhile, we get no tax breaks to send our son to college to become an engineer because we earn "too much". But we can subsidize those who fail to pay their own legal obligations!
body
I've read blog after blog of the same comments. My wife and I have the same story. Work two jobs, go to school and pay a fortune in taxes. Everyone needs to write to your representatives in Washington and tell them how you feel. We need to work together to hold them accountable. For many years these people have been able to enact laws and no body was watching. It's time to watch them. The internet makes it easy. Also before you vote find out how the person you want to vote for feels about these issues. This can be changed but we have to write and tell the right people and let them know when we are not happy about what they are doing. Also attend the Tea parties going on around the country. There is strength in numbers. Also I have started notifying companies who advertise on major news networks who are not be objective in reporting the news. I'm tired of the news media telling me what policies they support instead of questioning what government is doing. Let's all get together and start a letter writing campaign to let then know how the middle class working people really feel.
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yes are goverment is lazy. i also have neighbors who live off the system.fancy cars,foodstamps, and to lazy to work.what a shame .i am in need off help and i cant get any.i work and am honest. my husband passed away two years ago. and ive been strugling ever sence. i asked my neighbor how they do it? they said we just do.the system has loop holes and they know were to find them. why dont the goverment send all off us a copy so we all can scam the system. then everyone can be happy and get out off dept. how great would that be?
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I'm a 68 y.o. registered nurse who is supposed to be retired but still working part time. Why? Because of all those ignorant greedy people on Wall Street and in those unaffordable houses. And to top it off Social Security suspended it's yearly cost-of-living increases for 3yrs. There's a reasson you see so many "older" nurses, just ask one why she's still working. At least I have a job. That may be a foreign word to all those wellfare mothers!!
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that was signed into law by President Obama back in February included little in the way of immediate, direct relief for consumers. Sure, there is the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit. And billions have been set aside for highway construction projects. But those super-targeted funds haven't done much to help millions of struggling Americans make ends meet over the past few months.
