Tax Day Approaches

“In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.” Thank you Mr. Benjamin Franklin for clearing that up.

Yes, April 15th, Tax Day is looming. Are you prepared? Close to 50 percent of us have either not prepared or filed our taxes. Look out United States Postal Service.

Complex tax laws give us regular guys headaches. Imagine if you were a professional athlete and traveled from state to state playing games. Wherever and whenever you played you owed that state income tax for your earnings while in their state. This tax is known as the “Jock Tax,” but it applies to any of us who live in Georgia and work in another state temporarily.

You may to go Alabama with a banjo on your knee, but don’t leave your playing cards at home. Alabama is the only state in the union that charges a tax on playing cards, 10 cents per pack.

You’ve heard of Junkyard Dawgs, but what about Junkyard Cats? The IRS allowed a deduction that a junkyard owner took for feeding cats that roamed his yard taking care of unwelcome guests, rats and snakes.

The winner for tax double talk this year is the 2013 IRS form for Section 30D which was originally enacted in the Energy Improvement and Extension Act of 2008, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 which amended the 2008 act to cover electric vehicles acquired after December 31, 2009 and amended again in the American Taxpayer Relief Act 2013 for certain 2 and 3 wheeled vehicles acquired after December 31, 2011 and before January 1, 2014. Whew!