Most people pay little attention to their tax obligations, which we understand, as we are the richest and most privileged society ever to exist and so are very comfortable and complacent. However, taxes are a matter of political policy and as the economy changes so do tax policies. It would be helpful for everyone to at least take a moment and reflect on why the US separated from England, as when the Pilgrams came here they were heavily taxed in England and they risked life and limb as well as gave up creature comforts because they would then have NO TAXES. Nobody would have their hand out and “take away their money by force” which, framed in a different way, is also what a robber does. They take away your money by force. To be fair, taxes are charged in order to give you services, at least in theory. We have roads and hospitals and armed forces to keep other people from taking our life and property…all really great stuff! However, if your tax rate was 80% instead of 22% then all of that really great stuff would suddenly be under much tighter scrutiny. “Hey, I’m paying 10% of every dollar I make for schools and I don’t have children.” Or, “I’m paying 6% in road taxes and being blind will never own a car or drive on a road.” And so on.
The U.S. has supported the global masses for many decades now with social programs growing and growing and we have run up unimaginable debt. The government has borrowed from other countries by selling them our bonds, putting tariffs on their imports, etc., and it still spends much more that it “makes” in tax revenue every year. Everything points to a coming change in tax policy and although it’s obvious the ultra-rich should pay more, the common man is often an easier target and likely to pay a large bulk of the tab again.
That’s all the refresher of the bad news. But there are easy steps you can take to not fall victim to paying more than your fair share to clean up the country’s big mess. What can you do? Two simple things.
- Put 2 hours every month on your personal planner to study tax planning, with a goal of spending 24 hours (one entire day) every year learning about the legal and ethical ways you can reduce your tax bill.
- Google “tax planning services near me” and find a local tax planner. Sometimes, a CPA or an EA, but more often a financial planner or money manager that has taken up the study and mastery of tax planning.
The tax tidal wave is coming. You will either have a swim coach and a life jacket or you will give yourself to the sea.
