Paying taxes is rarely satisfying or something you look
forward to. Besides, it is almost an article of faith that it is perfectly
legal--and just plain smart--to arrange your affairs so you pay as little as
possible. But if you think that paying taxes can't get any worse, you would be
wrong. The least satisfying of all taxes would be paying taxes that are not
even yours. It is as if no one is going to give you any credit, and you are
only stuck with someone's else's taxes because you were at the wrong place at
the wrong time. That might be how some people view some 'responsible persons'
who are stuck paying their employer's taxes. Let's start with the basics.
Robert N. Bertrand, CFO of the Soupman, Inc. chain made
famous with Seinfeld’s Soup Nazi character, has been indicted for tax crimes.
The indictment alleges 20 counts of failure to pay Medicare, Social Security,
and federal income taxes. Soupman, Inc. is based in Staten Island, and licenses
the name and recipes of Al Yeganeh, the “Soup Nazi” character from Seinfeld. No
crime has yet been proven, but the charges are quite serious.
A new bill
passed by the U.S. House of Representatives would allow employers to offer
hourly employees paid time off instead of overtime pay, when they reach over 40
hours in a workweek. So, for example, a worker who put in 45 hours one week,
could be given seven and one-half hours off the next week (1.5 hours comp time
for each hour of overtime), and paid for doing for working 40 hours but only
having worked 32.5 hours.
As it is shaping up, President Trump's new tax plan
sounds a lot like his old one. A Trump administration official told CNN on
Tuesday that Trump may propose a major tax cut for so-called "pass-through
businesses" from 39.6% to 15%. That comes on the heels of news that Trump
is also considering a big reduction in the top rate for corporations from 35%
to 15%. The Trump administration is planning to announce a tax plan on
Wednesday, though it is expected to be more of an outline and not rich in
detail.