This is a telling decision. Free tax filing should be the norm. The nearly mandatory, third-for-profit-party tax software is so obviously detrimental to both citizens and government. Block and Intuit making fortunes is prima facie waste, which DOGE putatively exists to eliminate.
From this one item, we can see that DOGE does NOT exist to reduce or eliminate waste, but rather has another motivation. Because it is secretive, unaccountable, and not elected, we can easily predict DOGE will diverge further and further from its putative purpose. Because its real purpose isn't known, we will have to infer that from its actions.
Less obvious, DOGE will become a huge problem. It's possible US citizens will dispose of it in just as undemocratic a fashion as it was created
There shouldn't be a stand-alone TurboTax-like tool to fill out analogs of paper forms; it should just be a part of the IRS web page.
Why can't I log in, see what information employers and banks and whatnot have submitted about my income, add any pertinent information about deductions or additional income, appeal any inaccurate information, then click 'request refund' or 'pay dues', select which bank account to use from the information they already have, and be done?
Subsiding smaller companies to compete with the larger ones isn't going to fix the problem, it's just going to entrench the industry and empower more lobbyists.
Tax software isn't expensive and complicated just because. It's expensive and complicated because the tax code is expensive and complicated. Otherwise there would be a ton of free tools.
People are focused too much on the tooling. Do you think having the government re-write TurboTax software and give it away for free is a good idea? Do you think they would do it cheaper? They literally employee hundreds or even thousands of people to support this software.
You'll pay one way or another, whether its tax payer funding of IRS or through TurboTax. I guess the question is whether you think some government agency can write tax software more efficiently than a private company.
Some people don't understand software and think it doesn't require maintenance, which is especially wrong when you're trying to work with ever changing federal and state tax codes. I'm surprised whenever I see this issue on HN, presumably an engineering heavy group, this idea of "free tax filing software" is so popular.
I'd prefer they simplify the tax code and this problem takes care of itself
I'm one of the genuinely very happy and very grateful users of IRS Free File, and I'm genuinely pained to know I'm going to be fucked moving forward trying to file my taxes because of these moves -- and for what, for me to have to go through more hoops and make sure some dickhead at Intuit can buy another yacht?
*(I know about the efforts to maintain Free File externally, but the question then becomes for people in states that need to file onwards, will they be able to continue onwards with their state in a similar way? I'm in NY, so this is a big one for me.)
I think people vastly underestimate the degree to which having a necessary 3rd party interpret the tax code down to plain-ish english serves as a liability transfer from the government to that 3rd party and the taxpayer.
Basically no taxpayers like the current situation. It persists because the government itself likes it hence why seemingly flimsy low effort lobbying is all it takes to persist the status quo.
If the government says "check this box if you X" and people are mislead and check the box and the government fucks them for it they will complain to politicians who will (pretend to) fix it, likely at the expense of the bureaucracy.
If the 3rd party "check this box if you X" and people are mislead and check the box and the government fucks them the government can say "well it's your responsibility" and the 3rd party can say "well you signed the liability waver" and the racket can basically go on to infinity as long as they keep tweaking it to prevent a class action.
Talk to federal contractors about their experience with DOGE. They’re literally cancelling contracts and helping to their friends recapture the money as new federal contracts since the money needs to be spent anyway.
The congressional hearings over this are going to be excellent CSPAN viewing.
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[ 3.2 ms ] story [ 38.4 ms ] threadFrom this one item, we can see that DOGE does NOT exist to reduce or eliminate waste, but rather has another motivation. Because it is secretive, unaccountable, and not elected, we can easily predict DOGE will diverge further and further from its putative purpose. Because its real purpose isn't known, we will have to infer that from its actions.
Less obvious, DOGE will become a huge problem. It's possible US citizens will dispose of it in just as undemocratic a fashion as it was created
Why can't I log in, see what information employers and banks and whatnot have submitted about my income, add any pertinent information about deductions or additional income, appeal any inaccurate information, then click 'request refund' or 'pay dues', select which bank account to use from the information they already have, and be done?
Subsiding smaller companies to compete with the larger ones isn't going to fix the problem, it's just going to entrench the industry and empower more lobbyists.
People are focused too much on the tooling. Do you think having the government re-write TurboTax software and give it away for free is a good idea? Do you think they would do it cheaper? They literally employee hundreds or even thousands of people to support this software.
You'll pay one way or another, whether its tax payer funding of IRS or through TurboTax. I guess the question is whether you think some government agency can write tax software more efficiently than a private company.
Some people don't understand software and think it doesn't require maintenance, which is especially wrong when you're trying to work with ever changing federal and state tax codes. I'm surprised whenever I see this issue on HN, presumably an engineering heavy group, this idea of "free tax filing software" is so popular.
I'd prefer they simplify the tax code and this problem takes care of itself
To ease pain IRS should do one simple thing. Show the list of mandatory incomes the tax obligations based on those numbers.
The same for states too.
This simple thing can be done for businesses too.
It takes away the guess work and fear of miscalculation and prevents shady companies operating.
*(I know about the efforts to maintain Free File externally, but the question then becomes for people in states that need to file onwards, will they be able to continue onwards with their state in a similar way? I'm in NY, so this is a big one for me.)
Basically no taxpayers like the current situation. It persists because the government itself likes it hence why seemingly flimsy low effort lobbying is all it takes to persist the status quo.
If the government says "check this box if you X" and people are mislead and check the box and the government fucks them for it they will complain to politicians who will (pretend to) fix it, likely at the expense of the bureaucracy.
If the 3rd party "check this box if you X" and people are mislead and check the box and the government fucks them the government can say "well it's your responsibility" and the 3rd party can say "well you signed the liability waver" and the racket can basically go on to infinity as long as they keep tweaking it to prevent a class action.
The congressional hearings over this are going to be excellent CSPAN viewing.