Bipatisan effort in Congress to ban free tax filing from IRS.

[Alley_Dweller]

Congress Is About to Ban the Government From Offering Free Online Tax Filing. Thank TurboTax.

Last week, the House Ways and Means Committee, led by Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., passed the Taxpayer First Act, a wide-ranging bill making several administrative changes to the IRS that is sponsored by Reps. John Lewis, D-Ga., and Mike Kelly, R-Pa.

In one of its provisions, the bill makes it illegal for the IRS to create its own online system of tax filing.
…
Intuit and H&R Block last year poured a combined $6.6 million into lobbying related to the IRS filing deal and other issues. Neal, who became Ways and Means chair this year after Democrats took control of the House, received $16,000 in contributions from Intuit and H&R Block in the last two election cycles.
…
A companion Senate bill with the same provision has been introduced by Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore.

“Taxpayer First Act” – I chuckle.

Note: Despite what people think, the FreeFillableForms web site is NOT sponsored or maintained by the IRS.

[Richard_Pearse]

That sounds incredibly corrupt.

[hogarth]

There’s an interesting Planet Money podcast on the efforts of tax preparers to make tax filing more difficult.

Episode 760: Tax Hero

[Northern_Piper]

I’m not sure I understand. Do you mean that the law will say that to e-file, you have to have an e-file account with a private company, which is responsible for e-filing it?

Or does it mean that you have to use a private company’s software to prépare the e-return, but then you can e-file that directly with the IRS yourself?

[PastTense]

The first: " to e-file, you have to have an e-file account with a private company, which is responsible for e-filing it".

[Gatopescado]

Stamps are, like Fifty cents, I think.

Goddammit! Still not Free! :smack:

[pohjonen]

Who says there is no bipartisanship.