My mom just told me she heard that Dec. 14 and 15 are going to be “Tax Free” days in America, to help boost the economy.
I did a search on Google and Snopes and here, but found no reference to it.
I’m assuming it’s not true, but has anyone else heard of this? Basically, I’m just wondering where this rumor may be coming from (other than her office water cooler).
I’ve heard that there were actually going to be 10 days, but I’d also like to see documentation.
Some states have one or two days per year where there are no sales tax, to help boost the economy during otherwise slow shopping seasons. There’s no federal sales tax, so I don’t know what the federal government could possibly do that would constitute a “tax free” day.
(Unless it means that if you file your income taxes that day, you don’t have to pay. Heheheheh. 
)
There are proposals for a ten day sales tax-free period as a part of the economic stimulus package currently being debated. The feds would reimburse the states for sales taxes lost during this period.
Frankly, this is an asinine proposal for several reasons. What about the states that don’t have a sales tax? How do we know how much revenue is lost, and how do we get it to the states? What about those states that apply the general sales tax for vehicle sales, as opposed to a motor vehicle excise tax?
A much more reasonable response would be to suspend the payroll tax for the month of December, or the last two weeks, or something like that. Consumers have an extra 7.65% to spend, businesses save 7.65% of payroll, and the relatively well-off don’t get a dime because they’ve paid their full complement of social security taxes (for those to whom that’s an important consideration).
Shame, shame. Social Security’s not a tax; it’s an insurance premium.
But you run into the same problem as states that don’t have sales tax. Not everbody pays Social Security the last month or weeks of the year. Most of the people at my work have “paid off Hillary” by October – they already have their 7+% raise.
Now if you want to talk easing the income tax…
I meant to add that those who’ve already paid it off aren’t rich. I’m talking blue-collar auto workers who’ve pretty much earned this break by having worked overtime all year. Actually, these are the people who have money to spend, and that we want to spend money. Joe Schlub $20,000 a year can’t impact the economy with his extra $50 purchase as much as Joe Syndicate can with his extra $2000 purchase.
We have forums dedicated to debates (great ones, even) over whether this proposal is a good one or whether FICA withholding constitutes a tax.
Please choose one of them and continue your conversation there. The OP asked a legit General Question and deserves a General Answer.
Thank you.
There’s your general answer.
I won’t debate Balthisar on whether SS is an insurance premium or a tax (mostly because the answer’s abundantly clear), or whether the spending of 250 million middle-class and poor people has more of an impact on the economy than the spending of 50 million moderately well-off, well-off and super rich does. I suppose I’m off to sort-of GD.
Let me rephrase that last statement to say “There’s your general answer. Sorry for the hijack.”
And here’s some more information [sub]including why it’s a bad idea[/sub].
manhattan and johnson, I wasn’t trying at all to debate whether social security was a tax or an insurance premium. I said “shame, shame” in a way I thought was “snide,” but forgot the to let you know I was being faceitous!
As for the rest, I won’t get into a debate. I will say, though, that this country’s in a hell of a lot of trouble if only 1/6 of us are “moderately well off”!
Now, as to the OP – there were several states that were trying to form their own little “tax free” day. No cite – try foxnews.com searching.