Monday, November 30, 2009
President's Tax Reform Task Force to Miss Dec. 4 Deadline to Issue Report
In typical Washington, D.C. fashion, the President's Tax Reform Panel (President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board (PERAB)) announced at 4:07 p.m. on Friday of Thanksgiving week that it will miss its December 4 deadline to deliver its report:
Statement from PERAB Chairman Paul Volcker on Tax Task Force
The tax subcommittee of the PERAB was scheduled to release its report on December 4th. But we have received more than 500 submissions of serious tax reform ideas from the public both in person and on our website and we had to cut them off to meet the original deadline.
I want us to review as many suggestions as possible and to have sufficient time to fully consider the hundreds of suggestions that have come in already. I have asked the Administration to extend our deadline and to reopen the website for submissions so that we can hear the widest possible range of ideas.
We still have the same specific mandate: to discuss the pros and cons of a spectrum of reform ideas relating to tax simplification, enforcement of existing tax laws and reform the corporate tax system without considering policies that would raise taxes on families making less than $250,000.
The PERAB is not tasked with providing its own policy recommendations for the Administration and the final report will be an almanac of options from a broad range of viewpoints.
We will be reopening the web submission form and extending the deadline for any suggestions in keeping with our mandate (suggestions may also be submitted via email) and will be scheduling more public meetings over the coming weeks. We expect to report back to the Administration after the holidays.
https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2009/11/presidents-tax-.html
Comments
They're waiting for the new version of TurboTax to be released.
Posted by: Woody | Nov 30, 2009 6:33:00 PM
I have mentioned before that the 1986 Tax Reform created some major dislocations, notably in rental real estate, precipitating the S&L crisis and subsequent bailout by taxpayers.
Everyone agrees that the current fiscal path is unsustainable. Everyone expects major tax increases of some sort, meaning disruptive change of unknown size, scope, and nature. This uncertainty will increasingly weigh on the economy, like an unopened telegram from the War Department. Call it a tax overhang.
It's really too bad that politicians put their own futures ahead of the country's future. Neither side will give an inch until the crisis hits, and they will try to pull the situation their way (tax cuts or spending increases) in preparation for that day. It's a classic example of Prisoner's Dilemma.
Posted by: AMTbuff | Nov 30, 2009 1:33:19 PM
Don't blame Paul Volker for the delay. At their summit meeting with His R. Highness Nobama they were thrown under the bus. Summers was caught napping. Volker had a deep look of shame and humiliation. It was a farce. Realize who Nobana is working for and it ain't the American People
Posted by: Shiekh Ali-Babba | Nov 30, 2009 12:28:26 PM
Any dread about the timeliness of this report being under the assumption that if it came out on Dec. 4th that the administration would have any time or resources to effectively handle it...
Posted by: Kyle | Nov 30, 2009 10:45:23 PM