For those that are in the position for reform, it is important to again submit input to Congress.
Remember that the last efforts have put us on the radar and placed RBT as a logical solution.
Some of us are tired. We should all know that any input is helpful. One can send in the previous submission or simply send in a few lines.
Or, send in a larger and more researched article. It’s all up to you.
Or, send in a pre-formatted letter such as AARO has recommended.
https://aaro.org/images/model_letter_def.docx
Hatch, Wyden Launch New Effort to Seek Input on Bipartisan Tax Reform
http://www.finance.senate.gov/newsroom/chairman/release/?id=3bcf1fcf-9dd8-47d4-9202-21a0870cd8d6
Stakeholders and the Public Asked to Submit Ideas to Working Groups
WASHINGTON – Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) today announced a bipartisan effort to begin soliciting ideas from interested members of the public and stakeholders on how best to overhaul the nation’s broken tax code to make it simpler, fairer, and more efficient. The goal of this effort is to provide additional input, data, and information to the Committee’s bipartisan tax working groups, which are currently analyzing existing tax law and examining policy trade-offs and available reform options within each group’s designated area.
“By opening up our bipartisan working groups to public input, we hope to gain a greater understanding of how tax policy affects individuals, businesses, and civic groups across our nation,” Hatch and Wyden said. “In doing so, we will also equip our working groups with valuable input, and we hope these suggestions will help guide the groups through the arduous task of putting forth substantive ideas to reform the tax code in each of their areas.”
Individuals, businesses, organizations, and advocacy groups interested in submitting comments should send an email to the below bipartisan group or groups that relates to their area of interest. Please send submissions to each group of jurisdiction if an interest area covers more than one group.
Individual Income Tax – Individual@finance.senate.gov
Business Income Tax – Business@finance.senate.gov
Savings & Investment – Savings@finance.senate.gov
International Tax – International@finance.senate.gov
Community Development & Infrastructure – CommunityDevelopment@finance.senate.gov
Additional Submission Requirements:
- All submissions must be submitted as a pdf attachment. The attachment should be saved using the name of the organization/individual submitting the recommendations.
- Parties should list the name of the tax working group they wish to contact in the subject line of the email.
- Please include contact name, organization (if the submission is being submitted on behalf of a group), phone number, and email address, in the body of the email.
- Submissions will be accepted through April 15, 2015, and made public at a later date.
- If the above directions are not followed, the Committee reserves the right to not include the submission.
- If technical problems are incurred, parties can contact the Committee at 202-224-4515.
Each of the five bipartisan working groups is currently working to produce findings on current tax policy and legislative recommendations within its area, with the goal of having recommendations from each of the five working groups completed by the end of May. Submissions from stakeholders will be reviewed by the working groups and ideas can be incorporated into the each working group’s final recommendations. The five working group recommendations will be delivered to Chairman Hatch and Ranking Member Wyden, and will be considered in developing bipartisan tax reform legislation.
My impression exactly. And to think that until today I viewed Elizabeth Warren as one of the last best hopes for America, one of the only senators left who was standing up for the “little guy”. Well, apparently there are no “little guys” outside the USA: we’ve been hiding $100 billion under our mattresses!
@Publius
I do not see a comment by Calgary411 about Donnalane and yourself not being the same person so I presume you are referring to the comment I made about that.
The reason I know is simply because you and I have corresponded via email. And Donnalane has been “out” for a long time in various news articles and FB sites, etc.
🙂
@Barbara,
Yes, I used to think she was a passionate defender of the middle class. Now her attitude seems to be: you can be abroad, middle-class, or American — pick any two.
@ Publius, Embee, badger, et al.
The $100-billion-in-lost-tax-revenue myth traced to its source.
It was a guess!
http://www.nestmann.com/government-stats-strike-again#.VQpWlPJ0zcc
See also
http://isaacbrocksociety.ca/2014/11/16/the-american-public-sold-on-the-auction-block/comment-page-1/#comment-4333887
@ Shovel
Yep! We knew it was all along. Thanks for digging up that Mark Nestmann piece. All of these fact nuggets swirl around in the mists of my mind and then eventually drift away to a quiet dark corner. I’m so glad there’s always a Brocker who remembers (or does a successful search) and can bring them back to light. Good work!
Mark Nestmann wrote:
Does someone feel like setting the record straight at Sen. Warren’s office?
@Tricia
Yes, of course, you were the one who noted that I am not DonnaLane (or that other person on FB who got the same exact letter. Long day at the office yesterday.
I will write to her again. Zucman estimates that the U.S. might be losing $36 billion in annual revenue through the offshoring of $1.2 trillion in wealth by U.S. resident individuals, but also notes that he is only talking about financial assets. The real figure would be higher if real assets (gold, jewelry, property, art work) were included.
http://gabriel-zucman.eu/files/Zucman2014JEP.pdf
Nobody knows enough about the finances of U.S. persons residing abroad to say anything sensible. The two biggest populations of U.S.-born residents are in Mexico and Canada and aren’t wealthy.
I agree with Publius that the mere existence of a form letter on any issue would indicate the need for having created that form letter, i.e. lots of mail on the topic being addressed. However, it is maddening that the body of the letter is nothing but a regurgitation of what FATCA is and why the government believes it needs to exist. This stuff we know! That’s why we’ve written for help!
It’s like the nightmare where one is shouting and screaming but no sound is coming out.
Lies about the War on Drugs were not nearly as exciting as the lies in the War on Tax Evoision.
ATTENTION: Someone on Facebook
Would you please post the link that Shovel found re: Mark Nestmann’s discovery about that 100 billion dollar number? Sen. Warren’s form letter is under discussion on the Republicans Overseas Facebook page …
https://www.facebook.com/republicansoverseas/posts/362501500600318
Here’s the Nestmann link again …
http://www.nestmann.com/government-stats-strike-again#.VQpWlPJ0zcc
After thinking I’d never do it, I got a moment of inspiration and put my submission together to both the individual and international tax working groups. Glad that’s done.
@ bubblebustin
Thanks for your RO facebook comment AND getting your submissions into the finance committee. You should get reparations for lost LCUs when this is all over. I see from the Maple Sandbox that the ADCS team is asking questions of all 4 parties.
http://maplesandbox.ca/2015/fatca-letter-to-leaders-and-mps/
Thank you for the encouragement, EmBee! I’ve been feeling less than enthusiastic about yet ANOTHER opportunity (previous letters to W & M, our own Dept of Finance, etc, etc) to waste my time, but I remembered the saying that if you believe you’ll fail you will (or something like that).
Re the ADCS letters. Wonderful. Time to tweet!
@ bubblebustin
Lynne’s been busy tweeting. She’ll appreciate some tweet support I’m sure. I’m always pleased when there’s a respite from the condor pro-FATCA tweets.
Arguments breaking out on Facebook over Senator Warren’s letter. Some expats are playing troll (though in a good way) by joining Rah-Rah-Elizabeth-Warren-for-President discussions and denouncing her FATCA stance. Predictably, homelanders pretend sympathy, but claim such reactions are ‘over the top’.
It occurs to me what a goof Warren made by not even paying lip service to revising the law. The perception of US expatriates is that we are mainly white male right wing financial industry executives who eat live and breathe money and left the USA to avoid taxes. Even I once was surprised to find that the majority of US expats I met were not conservative Republicans. It seems that a large number of us live in places with social democratic parties, socialized medicine and public services, paid for from high taxes, and we see the benefit of this and wish it for the USA. We would be natural supporters of Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. But by leading the FATCA cheerleader squad, Warren has squandered such support.
As I recall, absentee ballots tipped the presidential election results twice in Florida. OK, maybe most were military ballots, but still, we need to remind these politicians that, with the hair’s breadth results in many states in the last two elections, expat votes can actually count. Maybe even add this point in letters to the Finance Committee.
Actually, that last survey showed that 17% are financial professionals. Probably now all either KPMG employees or independent condor contractors raking in the dineros.
Which survey do you refer to? I’d like to see how US citizens abroad are listed by profession. It can help me in some arguments I’m preparing.
can’t remember now. It was about 3-6 weeks ago it came out in an article. Don’t think it was actually a survey.
Barbara: Brilliant analysis.
Having been in past years a very active member of an EU country’s Democrats Abroad organization, for voter registration, no less, I concur that most voters abroad are Democratic. Many are educated middle class, typical liberal voters. Many are low-income, very normal (and nice) people, happy to live in highly taxed highly socialized EU countries. Totally Warren type.
I remember having researched how abroad votes could swing congress/senate/presidential votes. The potential was impressive.
…
The 2000 “stolen” election and subsequent Bush years were a huge boost to Democrats Abroad.
It now seems clear to me that FATCA will totally reverse this, bringing many voters to either switch to the GOP (while holding their nose, so distasteful they may find Republican policies) or to stop voting, and eventually to renounce.