State Revenue Down 14% in Georgia

Gov. Perdue is citing the state's grim economic picture for the loss of 25% of many of the state's agencies. The AJC reports that revenues for May 2009 were about $212 million less then May 2008.

Is the beast finally starving? Don't hold your breath.

The Pitfalls of Paying Taxes on Income Earned Illegally

No, this isn't another posted about pimping or prostitution. The AP reports that a prosecutor has seized thousands of tax records from an income tax preparer popular with Hispanics in Greeley, Colorado. In the search of 4,900 tax returns as many as 1,300 suspected illegal immigrants were discovered and now face deportation.

As I posted earlier, the IRS expects income from all sources, including illegal activity, to be reported. What is not granted is immunity from further prosecution in regards to those illegal activities. To be clear, most (if not all) of the 1,300 suspects were not involved in criminal careers such as pimping and prosecution. They are accused of being undocumented or using someone else's identity. The AP dispatch mentions that 70 people face charges of identity theft in the sting.

The other issue in this story is the means the prosecutor used to secure his evidence. The ACLU likened it to a 'house-by-house search of innocent homeowners in order to find a suspect believed to be in the neighborhood'. This is scary for me personally. It marks the first time I have ever agreed with the ACLU. Two judges also agreed which lessens the blow to my paradigm for understanding legal issues. The judges ruled that the prosecutor had no probable cause to seize the records. That decision has been appealed.

It will be interesting how the appeals are decided for two reasons. First, will this give prosecutors in other jurisdictions a tool to use against illegal immigration. Secondly, will the federal and state governments notice a decline in tax revenues. From 1996-2003 filers who used ITINs (numbers assigned by the IRS to those without Social Security Numbers) paid $50 billion in taxes.

My favorite part of this story is Maria Eugenia Rey's comment, 'If it's a crime to pay taxes, then the IRS should also be charged because they're the ones who gave us the ITIN.' To be clear, the crime involved is not paying taxes. It makes me wonder if this will give the tax protestor crowd any ideas.

The Memory of Filing the Proper Paperwork is Seared, Seared into Him

The AP is reporting that John Kerry has an IRS tax lien filed against his 2004 presidential campaign. The campaign was notified by the IRS that it failed to filed payroll tax forms for 2004. Spokeswoman Whitney Smith says, 'This is a clerical matter, nothing more, nothing less.' She said the IRS must have lost the payroll forms since the Kerry campaign filed them in 2005.

If Kerry says he filed, how could one argue? After all, filing tax documents are memories that become 'seared - seared into me' just like that Christmas in Cambodia.

$60 Million for 3,000 Jobs

It was announced Monday that NCR will move its headquarters to Georgia from Dayton, Ohio. The AJC also reveals that the state will spend $60 million dollars in tax credits to lure them here. In order for those tax credits to be triggered, NCR must have a payroll in excess of $150 million dollars.

State officials are downplaying the role of the $60 million tax incentives. Gov. Perdue spokesman Bert Brantley said it was a matter of treating NCR like a customer. When's the last time you felt treated like a customer by your state government.

NCR executives also downplayed the role tax breaks played in the decision. CEO Bill Nuti said the skilled labor force is the number one reason for the transition.

So if the state and the company both agree that the tax breaks weren't significant in the decision making process how did they arrive at $60 million? Ohio's best offer was $31.1 million. The income tax that employees will pay on $150 million in salaries will take nearly seven years to reach $60 million. If the 3,000 jobs are filled by Georgians that will help with the unemployment rate. More likely many of those jobs will be filled by people from outside Georgia which will not help the unemployment rate but should help a struggling housing market.

Luring businesses to your area has become a focal point of state and local politics, but $60 million seems a high price to pay. After all $60 million doesn't grow on trees.

The Ox is Getting Credit For Saving Gwinnett County Residents From Increased Property Taxes..For Now

The Gwinnett Daily Post reports that Gwinnett Commission Chair Charles Bannister decided to table the milage rate vote after consulting with current Insurance Commissioner and candidate for Governor John Oxendine. The Oxendine camp is quick to seize the opportunity to make people forget about his campaign problems. 'That's the kind of leadership John would provide statewide as Georgia [Governor]' Oxendines' chief strategist Jeff Breedlove said.

The tax protest is still scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight in Suwanee and will feature Oxendine and gubernatorial candidates Karen Handel and Eric Johnson as speakers.