Technology has changed the entire world, and one way that it has done so is in the way that taxes are handled. Paper filling still exists, but the number of people who use that method are dwindling. In fact, the IRS estimated that 90 percent of individual taxpayers will be filing their taxes electronically in 2018.
A couple years ago, the IRS adopted a Taxpayer Bill of Rights. The rights in and of themselves are not new – they were simply embedded deep within the tax code. The Bill of Rights simplified these rights for taxpayers and grouped them into ten broader categories.
Four years ago, California Governor Jerry Brown created a program, known as “California Competes,” in an effort to stimulate job creation in the state. The program awarded tax credits to businesses that created jobs. Recent reports, however, have indicated that many of the credits have been left unclaimed.
As you’ve likely seen recently in the news, Congress is considering a widespread tax overhaul. They are making efforts to pass the legislation before the end of 2017. Even though the effects of the bill would not take place until the 2019 tax deadline, it’s still interesting to consider how California would be affected by this bill.