18 thoughts on “Contact US House Ways and Means Committee re Tax Reform NOW!”

1. Bubblebustin‘s letter:

   “I am a US citizen who has lived in Canada since childhood. Much to my surprise, I recently learned I am also considered a US taxpayer by the US government. After spending six figures of my retirement income earned solely in Canada to come into US tax compliance, I am now faced with having to renounce my US citizenship due to the ongoing complexities of filing US taxes from abroad. This is something I do not take lightly.

   No other country undergoing tax reform has maintained a tax system based on taxing its non-resident citizens. The US should join the rest of the modern world and allow its non-resident citizens the ability to thrive as Americans in the US do by returning to a system based on residency, as every other citizen of every other country (save Eritrea) enjoys.

   Americans are renouncing their US citizenships in record numbers, not because we do not cherish our US citizenships, but because we must in order to live normal lives. I fail to see how the US benefits from such policies that either prevent its citizens from leaving the US, or once gone cause their US citizenship to be such an extreme problem for them that they are forced to renounce US citizenship.

   The US government is the single biggest threat to Americans living abroad. You have the power to change this. I implore you to do so.”

2. Karen‘s letter:

   “When my ancestors emigrated from England to America in the 1630s they were seeking freedom: freedom to live, work, and worship as they pleased. Their descendants were among the patriotic Americans who fought for freedom from taxation without representation in the Revolutionary war. My grandmother proudly researched and documented her ancestry so that she could join the Daughters of the American Revolution. In the 21st century, however, Americans are no longer free to live and work where they please if they choose to live outside of the United States. In 2016, my husband and I felt we were forced to renounce our American citizenship – for the very reason that my ancestors fought in the American Revolution. The American practice of taxing citizens, regardless of where they live, seriously disadvantages American expats. Congress must act as soon as possible to change to residence based taxation.

   As Australian residents and dual citizens, we were unable to save for retirement under the same rules as our neighbors. As dual Australia-New Zealand citizens, our neighbors were able to take full advantage of the tax incentives available for retirement savings in Australia. We, however, were taxed by the United States on our Australian superannuation contributions. Any savings we placed in Australian mutual funds were subject to the confiscatory Passive Foreign Investment Company (PFIC) rules on our American tax returns. Investment in American mutual funds, which subject us to unwanted foreign exchange risk, have become more difficult for American taxpayers living outside the United States, leaving American expats with few options for long-term savings.

   When American expats are unable to invest, or start businesses on a level playing field, this disadvantages the America as a whole. American businesses will be forced to hire non-Americans for overseas assignments, reducing the number of Americans with the international experience necessary to compete in a global economy. American small businesses are severely disadvantaged when expanding internationally due to both FATCA and the American practice of citizenship based taxation. For these reasons, I urge you to support changing to a system of residence based taxation, which is used by every country on the planet other than Eritrea and the United States.

   Sincerely,
   Karen
   fixthetaxtreaty.org “

3. Thanks Pacifica777 for the post, Karen for bringing it to Brock’s attention and Shadow Raider for bringing it to everyone’s attention.

4. Wonderful, let’s hope that Holding proposes genuine RBT rather than the Charles Bruce/ACA “throw all accidentals under the bus to save ‘compliant’ expats” plan, and that he stands firm against attacks from Grassley and his ilk.

5. Thanks to everyone (both here and on FB) who has written.

   @Bubblebustin – I think Barbara was the one who first posted about this on Brock — Thanks Barbara!

   @Eric – I’ve commented in the other thread about the inadequacy of the ACA RBT proposal – it’s a total disgrace!

6. Thanks for the correction, Karen. Sorry, Barbara – and thanks!

7. Please do write everyone. I wrote to Mr. Holding’s assistant, Matt. He wrote back a very nice response within 30 minutes stating that not only is residence based taxation on the menu but the ridding of FACTA. What do we have to lose?

8. @Will and @All:
   As Will says, write. Everybody write.
   “Please do write everyone.
   I wrote to Mr. Holding’s assistant, Matt. He wrote back a very nice response within 30 minutes stating that not only is residence based taxation on the menu but the ridding of FACTA. What do we have to lose?”

   Meantime:

   To All: With Fear and Loathing of all things FATCA.
   REAL relief and support is on the way: Read On.

   From the Official Republican Party Platform:
   https://prod-cdn-static.gop.com/media/documents/DRAFT_12_FINAL1-ben_1468872234.pdf

   “The Fourth Amendment:
   Liberty and Privacy
   Affirming the Fourth Amendment “right of
   the people to be secure in their houses, papers,
   and effects, against unreasonable searches and
   seizures,” we call for strict limitations on the use of
   aerial surveillance on U.S. soil, with the exception of
   patrolling our national borders for illegal entry and
   activity. We oppose any attempts by government
   to require surveillance devices in our daily lives,
   including tracking devices in motor vehicles.
   In recent years, technology companies have
   responded to market demand for products and
   services that protect the privacy of customers
   through increasingly sophisticated encryption
   technology. These increased privacy protections
   have become crucial to the digital economy. At the
   same time, however, such innovations have brought
   new dangers, especially from criminals and terrorists
   who seek to use encryption technology to harm us.
   No matter the medium, citizens must retain the
   right to communicate with one another free from
   unlawful government intrusion. It will not be easy
   to balance privacy rights with the government’s
   legitimate need to access encrypted information.
   This issue is too important to be left to the courts.
   A Republican president and a Republican Congress
   must listen to the American people and forge a
   consensus solution.
   The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act
   (FATCA) and the Foreign Bank and Asset Reporting
   Requirements result in government’s warrantless
   seizure of personal financial information without
   reasonable suspicion or probable cause. Americans
   overseas should enjoy the same rights as Americans
   residing in the United States, whose private
   financial information is not subject to disclosure
   to the government except as to interest earned.
   The requirement for all banks around the world
   to provide detailed information to the IRS about
   American account holders outside the United States
   has resulted in banks refusing service to them. Thus,
   FATCA not only allows “unreasonable search and
   seizures” but also threatens the ability of overseas
   Americans to lead normal lives. We call for its repeal
   and for a change to residency-based taxation for
   U.S. citizens overseas.”

   Recommendations from Congressman Mark Meadows and Senator Rand Paul , both House and Senate now take up Repeal FATCA, with several co sponsors.

   Even MORE important and anticipated :
   IN ADDITION, action President Trump will take in first 100 days :

   https://meadows.house.gov/first-100-days
   Scroll down to:
   234 Internal Revenue Service:

   Information Reporting by Foreign
   Financial Institutions and
   Withholding on Certain Payments
   to Foreign Financial Institutions
   and Other Foreign Entities
   26 CFR Parts
   1 and 301
   1/28/2013 Implementation
   Costs
   U.S. citizens living abroad and
   Senator Rand Paul, argue that IGAs
   and certain FATCA provisions are
   unconstitutional.
   https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=IRS-2012-0009-0267

   For those worried about the SCE and Treasury pronouncements , look for real action and real relief within the next 100 days of President Trump’s Administration.
   The link goes to the FATCA regulations and deals with the IGAs.
   The Trump Administration intends to do away with CBT , IGAs and all of FATCA that is Unconstitutional. And much of it, if not all of it is Unconstitutional.

9. @Will

   I got an letter back from Holden’s office too. Not a surprise, really, as it’s already mentioned that he is against FATCA and CBT, but encouraging nonetheless.

   I responded by thanking his assistant Matt for the response and among other things asked what I can do to get through to the other committee members to make it their priority too…

10. I got the same response from Holden’s office. I followed up with a reply, offering to send him a collection of reports and other documents, gathered from the IBS site and elsewhere.

11. My letter is written and on the way. I really believe we are on the home stretch!

12. @Muzzled, I am sending off letters again too.Yes, this is indeed the endgame now.

    I partly think that the ADCS litigation will be made moot one way or another.

    IF/WHEN we win in Washington the IGAs will come down like dominos. I am inspired by the MPs in Trinidad and Tobago who are insisting that Trump needs to be asked if these agreements will have any force. Seriously that MP in a small island in the Caribbean may have provided the most powerful weapon in our fight. We DO need to ask Trump and the GOP leaders if they will honour their commitment in the manifesto.

    Anyways if we were to lose in Washington then even if ADCS wins, Trudeau the perfumed prince would do a Charter overide.

    BUT again I am in the best spirits since my moment of fear having already left and relinquished.

    Freedom or Bust

13. I posed this question to Matt Stross, assistant to Congressman Harding in response to his response to my letter:

    “Would you be so kind as to give me your perspective on how I can get the other tax reform committee members to better understand our problems so that they might feel compelled enough to do something about them?”

    He wrote back,

    “As you know, with comprehensive tax reform on the table, members of the Committee are being pulled in many different directions. In addition to arguments based on the fairness of RBT, sometimes I think it is helpful to frame the discussion in terms of the economic benefits associated with a change (and consequently the economic disadvantages that come along with CBT). The republican tax plan is built around increasing jobs and growing the economy – and highlighting how a change to RBT would increase opportunities for Americans or how CBT hampers opportunity can often resonate with certain Members.”

    You’ve heard it. We must focus on the economic benefits of RBT.

14. “You’ve heard it. We must focus on the economic benefits of RBT.”

    Meagre as this one is, here it is: Lawful amounts of withholding from US-sourced interest and dividends paid to non-resident citizens will no longer be refundable, the same as for non-resident aliens.

    The US lawfully profits from me in this manner, unless IRS employees are still embezzling withholding, which I think they are.

15. Congressman Holding’s assistant is now in possession of around 300 letters and reports that were submitted to the Senate Finance Committee. He enthusiastically requested them after I offered. Now, if only any of those other geezers on the list would respond.

16. Barbara: A link to all those letters was included with my letter as well. I’m glad we’re reminding them of all the cries for justice they have already heard from us which they ignored before. They can’t ignore us this time. The party now in power ran on a clear promise to get this dealt with. They canNOT shove this under the carpet this time.

17. Here’s some more info on Matt Stross, assistant and legislative council for Congressman Harding:

    http://congressional-staff.insidegov.com/l/47226/Matthew-S-Stross

18. Democrat members of House Ways & Means subcommittees, including tax (and including Rep. DelBene of Washington, who is not on the e-mail list we have)

    https://democrats-waysandmeans.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/neal-announces-ways-and-means-democratic-subcommittee-assignments-115th