Incentives, Enforcement, and Protests | Tax Policy Center
On Capitol Hill this week. On Wednesday, the House Ways & Means Tax Subcommittee will hold a hearing on US participation in the global corporate minimum tax. The House Oversight and Accountability Committee will also hold a hearing that day with an IRS whistleblower regarding the Justice Department’s investigation of Hunter Biden. On Thursday there will be a Senate Finance Subcommittee on Health Care hearing on the need for reform of the US transplant system.
Is it okay if the IRA’s green energy tax subsidies cost more than expected? TPC’s Howard Gleckman writes, “If you believe that climate change is a left-wing fantasy, you probably think all subsidies aimed at mitigating it are a waste of taxpayer money and a windfall to business. On the other hand, what if you believe global warming is an existential threat to the planet? Then, the subsidy story is much more ambiguous.”
IRS collected $38 million in back taxes from 175 high-income individuals, thanks to audits over the past few months. IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel told reporters, “I know that as we enter upcoming budget negotiations, there’s an interest in scaling back IRS resources… scaling back means less accountability for the wealthy who … aren’t paying, and less of an ability to help taxpayers navigate our ever increasingly complicated tax code.”
One tax adviser has been charged with hiding $100 million from the US. Frank Butselaar of the Netherlands allegedly conspired to hid millions of dollars of income generated by his clients. Butselaar is accused of devising schemes using offshore entities to conceal earnings held by trusts. His clients include two internationally renowned DJs and fashion industry clients. Prosecutors allege that “Butselaar sought to play the long game… to perpetuate this tax fraud over the course of several years,” Special Agent Thomas Fattorusso of the IRS said in the prosecutors’ statement.
Municipal Finance Conference this week at Brookings. The Brookings Institution will hold its 12th annual conference on municipal capital markets an estate and local finance issues Tuesday and Wednesday. Learn more and register to attend in person or watch online here.
In wake of deadly protests in Kenya, religious leaders urge repeal of tax bill. The legislation increased the value-added tax on petroleum from 8 percent to 16 percent, the business turnover tax from 1 percent to 3 percent and levied a new 1.5 percent housing tax for salaried workers. Kenyans have protested the taxes, and the police response has resulted in the killings of as many as 10 civilians. Religious leaders are also urging President William Ruto to repeal the taxes.
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