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MY ROAD TO TAX REFORM

April 10, 2008

The TaxProf notes that the House Ways and Means Committee passed two bills yesterday, including a bunch of inane housing assistance provisions.

There is one step the taxwriters could take that would do more to help tax policy than anything else. I propose that all taxwriters - and eventually, all congresscritters - be required to do their own returns via live webcasts. They could use any commercially available software, but the screen with their work would also have to be webcast live.

The webcast would also allow running unmoderated chat commentary on the congresscritters' progress through the forms ("LOL! $100,000 home mortgage interest deduction? What's yr interest rate, anyway, Senator? U can only deduct interest on the first $1 million of acquisition debt. U should refinance, or stop cheating! :-)" ).

I don't believe this provision is in either bill. A pity; it would encourage these people to face the consequences of the tax stupidity they enact for the rest of us.

Tags: tax policy.

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