Media and Blog Articles Open for Comments – Part 3 of 11 (Year 2016)

2,818 thoughts on “Media and Blog Articles Open for Comments – Part 3 of 11 (Year 2016)”

1. Column: America’s overseas voters are not impressed

   http://www.salemnews.com/opinion/column-america-s-overseas-voters-are-not-impressed/article_e80e7241-117e-5bec-9b34-b653bbb06e59.html

2. Thanks for the link, Tom Alciere. From the article:

   Republicans overseas don’t have that option; they would have to vote in their state’s primary back home or watch from the sidelines. (Republicans Overseas did poll voters about their preferences: Marco Rubio led Donald Trump.) Instead, some are setting up political action committees (Hilliard is launching one this week) to give overseas voters another way to get their messages across.

   For both parties, the main value of Expat Man is his wallet. Outside of North America, the U.K., with around 224,000 Americans according to a State Department estimate that is probably too low, has the largest number of American expats, and probably the most generous. As the steady parade of candidates and their surrogates testifies, London is on the fundraising map along with New York and Los Angeles.

   The Rothermere Institute paper cites figures showing that expat Americans donated around $6 million to presidential candidates in the 2008 election cycle, a particularly active election for fundraising. Expat donors are hard work, however. “You have to court these donors more than you do at home because they really have to buy into the candidate as well as the policy; and that’s something I’ve seen candidates misjudge time and again,” says Hilliard.

   All the impassioned pleas to the party faithful, the stump speeches and attack ads back home can leave Expat Man feeling a bit flat. Like Bill Clinton of old, they may be “mad as hell,” but today’s overseas Americans are looking for more than just a ballot; they want a say.

   As suggested by James Jatras as part of his excellent video: http://isaacbrocksociety.ca/2016/02/11/listen-up-canadian-liberal-government-the-truth-about-fatca-jim-jatras/comment-page-1/#comment-7194720

   The PAC suggestion is different, though a PAC could also start the ball rolling on the media and lobbying effort noted above. It’s unlikely it could succeed of itself in killing FATCA. (I don’t rule it out, just that education of the political class in DC takes some serious resources, and it helps if the “who” behind lobbying is institutional. One of the first questions I was asked when I started to make Hill contacts on FATCA was “What does industry think?’, referring to the US financial industry. Answer: AWOL. Or in the case of the foreign financial industry like CBA, Quislings. That doesn’t help. OTOH, seven million Americans abroad, or some subset thereof, ain’t chicken feed.) The importance of a PAC is that it’s one thing for a Congresscritter or his/her staff listen to you nicely about how unfair FATCA is, look at record renunciations, CBT is so much better, etc. etc. It’s quite another for someone representing “ExPAC” (like that?) to waltz into a fundraiser and drop a check into his/her campaign warchest. Then, they care. Such a PAC is nowhere near as expensive as a full-blown lobbying and PR effort. Maybe $50K to start it and run it for a year, thereafter the level of influence is commensurate to the money put into it. Money is the lifeblood of American politics. (I’m shocked! Shocked! Get the smelling salts!) You have to pay to play. Also note that ExPAC would not have to be limited to FATCA but could address other issues like CBT, passport revocation, etc.

3. From Republicans Abroad

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   Jak Dac
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   February 25, 2016
   To the President, Secretary of State and members of Congress of the United States of America,

   Being a U.S. citizen should be a privilege. Citizens should expect the US to be a country that values the idea of its citizens living all over the world and acting as ambassadors for a country that protects its citizens abroad as opposed to complicating their lives.

   However, being an American has become a handicap if living abroad. The U.S.’ actions when it comes to requiring financial reporting on worldwide income and taxing Americans abroad even when the only connection they have to the country is a passport are simply wrong. The U.S.’ double taxation policy aims to make Americans pay the same amount of tax as if they were living in the U.S. and speaks to an embarrassing problem: the U.S. government’s indifference to Americans living abroad. It speaks to an injustice that can no longer be left undiscussed and that has resulted in Americans renouncing their citizenships all over the world in record numbers.

   Dealing with U.S. tax returns is such a complicated task that people need to hire expensive consultants for help, when they are already filing tax returns in their country of residence. In addition many foreign banks simply will not open accounts for U.S. citizens and strict limits are placed on the securities that Americans can invest in from abroad. Keeping such tabs on citizens living abroad and placing such limits on what they may do with their own capital seems like the height of hypocrisy coming from the country that claims to be the champion of freedom and capitalism.

   Our understanding is that the U.S. was largely built on doing what is right and on fighting injustice – the Boston Tea Party illustrates this point well. In renouncing citizenship, former Americans are not being anti-American, they are protesting an injustice. That, in our opinion, is the most American action a person can take. The reason the author of this letter renounced his citizenship is exactly that.

   A strong interest in U.S. politics and foreign policy has shown us that the U.S. is capable of doing many great things but often fails to question its own actions. Americans who renounce their citizenship are not anti-American and deserve no criticism for taking this action. The U.S. government is to blame for requiring mountains of information from its citizens abroad, for taking their money even though they derive no benefit from the services that taxes are directed towards and for having an incomperehensible tax code.

   We understand that reporting worldwide income is aimed at preventing American citizens in the country from hiding large amounts of assets abroad but American citizens who reside abroad and are only connected to the U.S. by their passport have become casualities of this policy.

   Ladies and Gentlemen, we respectfully write this letter to say that it is time to right a wrong. It is time for American citizens living abroad to be treated fairly. Finally, it is time for the U.S. to hear the protests of renunciants and to repeal an unfair policy that no other country in the world has – apart from Eritrea.

   We urge you to offer your support and protection to Americans who do not live in the United States. They deserve to be treated fairly and not to be put in a situation that makes them want to renounce the citizenship of a country that has achieved so many great things.

4. Bad things usually happen when the US pays attention to any other part of the world.

5. Good to see this from Republicans Abroad. Thanks, Jak Dac.

6. America should pay more attention to the world!? They are and not in a good way. Inflicting #FATCA, #CBT , #FBAR on the rest of the world.

   In fact the reverse should be true. The world should be paying less attention to America. It’s like a spoiled child in its behavior.

7. And in other news: WTF?!!! Does anyone see a major problem with this. Currency not backed up by a federal reserve of gold?

   “The US dollar is the more “marketable” money internationally, meaning that most countries will accept it in payment, so China can use its dollars to buy goods from other countries, not solely the US. Such might not be the case with the Canadian dollar, and China would have to hold its Canadian dollars until it found something to buy from Canada.”

   My gut says it’s outside influence to further project the US $ than any other currency as the world reserve currency. This is the key to the US as a world power. And this is why they can inflict #FATCA all over the world and institute #FBAR reporting regulations on every bank in the rest of the world.

   Because the US holds the rest of the world in thrall with it’s trumped up image as the “world’s protector” it can do what it wants regardless of consequence and the world goes along with it like lemmings; like lambs to the slaughter unaware of ill-intent.

   http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/gold-canada-reserves-1.3475818

8. Everything is intertwined, almost like a bad dream from where there is no awakening. It makes me want to knock some world leaders’ heads together and ask them “WTF ARE YOU THINKING?!!!” They are willfully turning their heads away from the financial disaster and going along with this financial extortion.

   The United States is behaving like a mobster and gun raised; is demanding its protection money.

   And things are poised to get much worse with a race between a blowhard and a liar each trying to get their hands on the nuclear launch codes. I don’t know but we Brockers might look for a nice little mine shaft that we can outfit and turn into a bomb shelter. Because I’m not to positive about the future of this world if the USA stays in power.

9. UK born author Neil Gaiman asked why he didn’t become a US citizen:
   https://twitter.com/neilhimself/status/704695614353723392

10. Recent submission to Way and Means why a “residence” vs “territorial” tax system is a better way to tax multinationals – in spite of what those who’d benefit from a territorial system (accountants and lobbying firms) would like you to believe:

    http://poseidon01.ssrn.com/delivery.php?ID=060100116086005030116093081097074076000050041076022024096099092109098087118076066127048021127015040030058020017024001080127110126094082050028023030008004117000123077009082021110002096118083120124107076109004019117100100008122119004084065067023019028009&EXT=pdf

11. @Bublebustin To answer your earlier question. Yes I can open this article. Proposed FBAR change to put the employers in the cross hairs of reporting. Would they be liable to FBAR penalties for not reporting? Sounds career limiting.

    http://bankingjournal.aba.com/2016/03/fincen-proposes-fbar-filing-relief-for-bank-employees/

    FinCEN Proposes FBAR Filing Relief for Bank Employees
    March 2, 2016

    The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network yesterday issued a proposal clarifying who is exempt from filing Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, or FBAR, under the Bank Secrecy Act.
    Under the proposal, financial institution officers and employees who, due to their jobs, have signature authority but no financial interest in foreign accounts, would no longer be required to file FBARs, provided their employer files them. Instead, institutions would be required to maintain lists of officers and employees with signature authority and provide them to FinCEN upon request.
    The proposal would also remove provisions limiting the information a filer must report when filing an FBAR for 25 or more foreign accounts. It also adjusts the FBAR filing deadline for tax year 2016 to April 15 of the following year; FBARs for tax year 2015 remain due on June 30. Comments on the proposal are due 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register. For more information, contact ABA’s Phoebe

12. JC: “Under the proposal, financial institution officers and employees who, due to their jobs, have signature authority but no financial interest in foreign accounts, would no longer be required to file FBARs, provided their employer files them. Instead, institutions would be required to maintain lists of officers and employees with signature authority and provide them to FinCEN upon request.”

    This is freaking unbelievable! Am I not understanding this? Does this actually say that if a “US Person” is a bank employee and has signature authority over foreign accounts that they will be absolved of filing an FBAR for those accounts if their employer does it for them? How long is this employee likely to remain one?! Sounds pretty “career limiting” to me too! The folks at FinCEN must be playing us all for fools if they think this is “filing relief for bank employees”.

    The US government should spend the time it takes to come up with insane bandaid non-solutions like this to, instead, get down to the business of repealing CBT. The death of CBT would remove any requirement for an expat American to file any FBARs at all and we could all get back to doing our jobs without fear of being fired for who we are.

13. @JC. Thank you. I’m now able to open the link. From what I’m able to decipher, a “foreign entity” would be exempt from this proposal (how generous) as well as its US person employees – who of course would still be expected to report. From the linked proposal:

    “This exemption would be available to all U.S. persons that currently have a
    reporting obligation solely due to their signature or other authority over the foreign financial accounts of their employers or any other entities within the same corporate or other business structure as their employers, except in those instances in which the entity that has a financial interest in the foreign financial account over which the officer, employee, or agent has signature authority does not have an obligation to report to FinCEN its financial interest in such accounts. This may be the case in instances in which a U.S. person is employed by a foreign entity and has signature authority over the foreign financial accounts of the foreign entity in which case the foreign entity/employer has no obligation to report its financial interest to FinCEN under the FBAR regulations. If the officer, employee, or agent is eligible for this signature authority exemption, the employer that is required to report the account details of the foreign financial account on an FBAR due to its financial interest in the account would be required to maintain information identifying those officers, employees, or agents with signature or other authority over such account, which would be made available to FinCEN upon request. Such records would be required to be retained for a period of 5 years.29”

14. http://m.learningenglish.voanews.com/a/record-number-americans-giving-up-us-citizenship/3219840.html

15. FATCA Compliant Bank???

    http://youtu.be/nftEnMycy8g

16. Please tweet about FATCA in Canada here;
    using #ANewAgenda AND #FATCA AND Canada
    http://www.politico.com/events/2016/03/a-new-agenda-canada-and-the-us-in-the-world-219209

    And also retweet this clip, in which past Canadian Prime Minister Chretien tells the CABC that he has the rights of US citizenship (to enter the US, to run for President) because his father was born in the US and live in Manchester New Hamshire for at least 10 years;
    https://twitter.com/JasonPedley/status/676421444264398849

    Full Chretien clip here;
    https://youtu.be/UlduvpvAPn4
    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlduvpvAPn4&w=560&h=315%5D

17. Could a tweeter tweet via Twitter about Chretien, FATCA, the ADCS lawsuit and the Charter? I am not a Twitter user.

    Chretien’s role in the Charter, (which the FATCA IGA grieviously offends);
    “…The hard work of negotiating and crafting the Charter fell to Trudeau’s justice minister Jean Chretien (later prime minister), who was helped in this task by two provincial attorneys-general, Roy Romanow of Saskatchewan (later premier) and Roy McMurtry of Ontario. Ontario Premier Bill Davis was also instrumental in bringing the Charter to life..”…
    http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canadian-charter-of-rights-and-freedoms/

18. @MuzzledNoMore and all,
    Here is another explanation of the proposed changes to the FBAR;
    http://blogs.angloinfo.com/us-tax/2016/03/04/new-fbar-filing-rules-on-the-way-maybe/

    ‘New FBAR Rules on the Way (Maybe)’
    March 4, 2016
    Virginia La Torre Jeker J.D

    “On March 1, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) intended to revise and clarify certain provisions in the rules regarding the filing of Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) under the Bank Secrecy Act. The revisions would mainly apply to financial professionals who file FBARs due to their employment responsibilities and persons having 25 or more foreign financial accounts”

    “The full text of the NPRM is available here; https://www.fincen.gov/statutes_regs/frn/pdf/FBAR_NPRM030116.pdf

    ………. “

19. Will Singapore stand up to the bully?

    http://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/arm-twisting-singapore-over-bank-secrecy-laws-wont-work

20. http://www.inquisitr.com/2850287/president-jimmy-carter-speaks-out-calls-the-u-s-an-oligarchy/

21. http://thewire.in/2016/03/07/fighting-global-tax-evasion-without-harming-indian-companies-24091/

    “The exchange of sensitive commercial data with foreign tax jurisdictions when there is a scant need to do so would heavily jeopardise Indian companies. The draft rule does not set out any conditions that foreign tax authorities have to satisfy before they can request exchange of reports, nor does it stipulate mechanisms to prevent foreign tax authorities from engaging in fishing expeditions to get access to the reports. The draft rule is also silent on how to deal with foreign jurisdictions who publicly disclose information contained in the reports, or otherwise abuse the reports so exchanged.”

22. “IRS Suspends Insecure ‘Get IP PIN’ Feature”
    https://krebsonsecurity.com/2016/03/irs-suspends-insecure-get-ip-pin-feature/

    Citing ongoing security concerns, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has suspended a service offered via its Web site that allowed taxpayers to retrieve so-called IP Protection PINs (IP PINs), codes that the IRS has mailed to some 2.7 million taxpayers to help prevent those individuals from becoming victims of tax refund fraud two years in a row.
    [..]
    The problem … is that IRS allows IP PIN recipients to retrieve their PIN via the agency’s Web site, after supplying the answers to four easy-to-guess questions from consumer credit bureau Equifax. These so-called knowledge-based authentication (KBA) or “out-of-wallet” questions focus on things such as previous address, loan amounts and dates and can be successfully enumerated with random guessing. In many cases, the answers can be found by consulting free online services, such as Zillow and Facebook.

    Can somebody please send the IRS a free copy of IT Security for Dummies?

    In a statement issued Monday evening, the IRS said that as part of its ongoing security review, the agency was temporarily suspending the Identity Protection PIN tool on IRS.gov.

    “The IRS is conducting a further review of the application that allows taxpayers to retrieve their IP PINs online and is looking at further strengthening the security features on the tool,” the agency said.

23. And where did this faulty IP PIN system come from? This secure system that apparently is based confidently on the assumption that no one knows the answer to questions like “what was your mother’s maiden name” except you and the IRS?

    Apparently, the “IP PIN” app was created to address last year’s security disasters – disasters that sprang from the “Get Transcript” app – which, it seems, relied confidently on the assumption that nobody but you and the IRS knows the answer to questions like “what was your mother’s maiden name.”

    From Koskinnen’s spell on the naughty step before the Senate Finance Committee last June:

    Before the [GetTranscript] request is processed, the taxpayer must respond to several “out-of-wallet” questions – a customer authentication method that is standard within the financial services industry. The questions are designed to elicit information that only the taxpayer would normally know, such as the amount of their monthly mortgage or car payment.

    https://www.irs.gov/uac/Written-Testimony-of-Commissioner-Koskinen-on-Unauthorized-Attempts-to-Access-Taxpayer-Data-before-Senate-Finance-Committee

    Talk about failing to learn from past mistakes – this kind of repeated stupidity is totally scandalous. Can’t understand why Congress doesn’t just bite the bullet and close them down. (Oh yes – I remember – it’s because Congresspeople also have tax returns…)

24. Beware: governments are keeping ever closer watch on what you do with your money

    http://moneyweek.com/merryns-blog/beware-governments-are-keeping-ever-closer-watch-on-what-you-do-with-your-money/

25. @Tom Alciere – interesting. I agree about the inherent security risks, but am puzzled by the reference to the EU Savings Directive, which has been repealed. As a financial journalist she must know that. Seems odd.

    She is right about the security risks though.

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