Rare Bipartisan Tax Bill Hurts Taxpayers

(Source: NYT Editorial, 4/10/2019)

The House passed a bill yesterday called the Taxpayer First Act. It prohibits the IRS from developing a free online software that most American households could use to file their taxes. The Senate is considering this bill today. It has bipartisan support.

This defies logic and common sense … until you pull back the curtain and see who is pulling the string. As the NYT explains:

“The explanation is sad but not surprising. The most vocal opponent of simplicity is Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, which has spent millions of dollars lobbying against efforts to reduce demand for its services. The company draws support from conservatives worried that making it easier to file taxes would make it easier to raise taxes.”