Federal workers owe more than $3.5 billion in unpaid taxes
Source: Yahoo News
WASHINGTON (AP) Federal workers and retirees owed more than $3.5 billion in unpaid taxes last year, a $200 million increase over the previous year, the IRS said Tuesday.
Almost 305,000 federal workers and retirees owed back taxes as of Sept. 30. That's down from 318,000 the year before.
The delinquency rate was 3.1 percent for the 9.8 million workers and retirees included in the data. That's down from 3.3 percent the previous year.
The IRS compiles data each year on unpaid taxes by federal workers. The data does not include workers who have enrolled in installment agreements to pay their back taxes.
Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/federal-workers-owe-more-3-5-billion-unpaid-190117925--finance.html
merrily
(45,251 posts)their income?
On the other hand, I am suspicious of compiling this statistic separately.
rpannier
(24,350 posts)Outrageous that public employees don't pay it though
Enrique
(27,461 posts)rpannier
(24,350 posts)And writing as the public employee that I am, it is worse when we don't pay it because our retirement and salary is derived from those taxes
So when a public employee doesn't pay they're basically saying, 'Give me my salary, but I don't want to contribute.'
Enrique
(27,461 posts)if public employees have a greater obligation than the general public, for the reasons you give, why not charge them a higher rate?
rpannier
(24,350 posts)I am advocating it as a moral imperative
If you benefit more directly from something, you have a greater obligation to keep the something functioning properly
Public employees benefit from tax dollars paid. To not pay, what is in effect your livelihood because you don't want to or don't see the need to, is an immoral act
As to charging them a higher rate... public employees, by virtue of a more stable job situation and stable retirement take less money than they would make in the private sector: private attorneys make more than a district attorney, private doctors make more money than a public health doctor, mercenaries... I mean Blackwater employees make more money than U.S. military do.
That's the financial trade-off that is made.
RobinA
(9,903 posts)and I pay my taxes, but I never get this particular outrage when public employees don't pay their taxes. Everybody who doesn't pay their taxes is ripping off the taxpayer. If you drive on a public road to your private employment and don't pay taxes it's no different in my mind. And lets not forget the corporations who benefit mightily from public services and then find every way in the book to not pay taxes.
Igel
(35,387 posts)Private employers have to inform the IRS about taxes--whether they have 25k or 1 employee. Self-employed have to self-report.
Those who are federal employees have the government--the same government that houses the IRS--that should be deducting taxes and doing that sort of thing. Imagine: "FEMA fails to file tax documents with the IRS and is audited for tax compliance."
That's an internal audit. And if FEMA or some other executive branch didn't do what it was supposed to, no legal action need be taken. Their joint "CEO" would just tell one to get its act together.
VMA131Marine
(4,159 posts)Wonder what the rate is for none federal workers.
rpannier
(24,350 posts)But non-federal worker's salaries don't necessarily come from taxes
Federal employees salaries do.
So, they're basically saying, 'pay me, but I don't wanna pay.'
BumRushDaShow
(129,951 posts)False assumption.
I expect that the vast majority, like others across the U.S., fell on hard times - like, um, the economic collapse? Where many federal workers lost 1/2 of their contributions to the TSP due to the stock market crash (Fed equivalent to a 401(K)), received a pay freeze for 3 years, plus were furloughed for 2 weeks thanks to a narrator of "Green Eggs and Ham" (hastening a chain reaction of unpaid bills and defaults before they were reimbursed), and finally got 1% increase for the past year. And God forbid if any were 2-fed households or a spouse had been unemployed.
I know that many on DU parrot RW talking points that are anti-federal government employee, but that's possibly because these employees are continually objectified as some "Evil Empire Storm Trooper" rather than what they are in reality -no different than the majority of U.S. taxpayers. And yes, feds DO pay federal income and state/local taxes too. Imagine that.
You will always have those who want to game the system, but they are a tiny fraction. The biggest dupers are the 1% privateers.
seabeckind
(1,957 posts)And they have to pay for them. That's what taxes are for.
They don't get to be transported to work for free as part of their job. They have to pay taxes to make the roads better.
That F18 protects their home also.
rpannier
(24,350 posts)as is my older brother and my father
I do know how the retirement system works
The question above me was the rate of delinquents by non-federal employees
And I said likely higher.
Meaning that non-federal employees are delinquent at a higher rate (at least that's how I hoped it would be read)
When you are a government employee you have an obligation to pay your taxes because it's those taxes that pay your salary. When you don't, yet still get paid, you are taking money from a system that pays your salary
You are correct, there are differing reasons why people don't pay taxes, including government workers.
That does not mean that not paying taxes is an appropriate response.
Their first responsibility should be/is to make arrangements to get them paid. Not wait.
If you are not paying and have made no arrangements to get them paid then you are not helping the system and I would argue, yes, you are being selfish about it.
My salary, my brother's salary, my father's when he was a judge and several other members of my family all come from the federal government. We all pay taxes.
If that seems petty and unfeeling to you then fine have at it.
BumRushDaShow
(129,951 posts)with fed siblings and other relatives. So yes, IMHO, I think you are mis-characterizing feds by your blanket statements as if their circumstances were their fault and they all want to game the system. Again, you miss that you have feds whose spouses may have been unemployed or those who were already in dire straits when they became feds.
To insinuate that the reasoning is "pay me but I don't wanna pay" is just silly nonsense - particularly if you have a fed going into foreclosure or who had medical debt that the FEHB didn't cover (because many of the plans require 20% co-pay and could be in tens or hundreds of thousands for extended medical care - not from the hospital itself that might qualify for catastrophic coverage, but from all the specialist bills).
seabeckind
(1,957 posts)These people are people just every other people.
They are subject to a code of ethics and some PEOPLE don't follow it.
But they are obviously more ethical than the general public. And they are more honest than the common guy.
Just quit with the demonization of people who bear the brunt of every f'n campaign every few years. This is nothing more than bullshit right wing anti-gov't nonsense.
Trying to make the FEE that the people pay to keep the place running seem like a charity.
Half truth pushing an agenda. You bought it.
rpannier
(24,350 posts)It was nasty and incendiary
I will re-iterate, as I AM a federal employee
Work on your reading comprehension skills
seabeckind
(1,957 posts)It was obvious from your post that you bought into that whole public servant bullshit.
Try to picture the gov't worker this way: A gov't worker is more like a nurse working FOR a hospital to provide care to a patient who cannot do that care on their own. They will make independent decisions that they feel are to the best benefit to that patient and they will do it based upon skills and knowledge that the patient does not possess.
They are NOT a maid who is working FOR that patient.
It doesn't matter who you work for -- that has nothing to do with it. It adds nothing to your argument and would be better left unsaid.
How's that for reading comprehension?
Demeter
(85,373 posts)like private employees do.
Are the statistics just about filing tax returns, perhaps?
NutmegYankee
(16,204 posts)CreekDog
(46,192 posts)it seems like you have no idea how taxes work at all.
have you ever done your own taxes?
people who get paychecks have taxes withheld from each check, but the actual tax owed is based on all the income and deductions made during the year.
so the amount withheld is never exactly what people end up owing. sometimes they overpay and get a refund, sometimes they've underpaid and have to pay when they file.
delinquent just means they haven't paid on time, they haven't paid when they filed.
deancr
(150 posts)Why isn't the headline, "Federal workers default on their taxes less often than the general public"? The headline states the message as the writer or editor wishes it conveyed. More right wing, anti-government propaganda by a corporate media. Nothing to see here but a violation of journalistic ethics or the ethics that used to be.
on the headline itself. The same line was used in 2013 and 2014 while the gist goes back some years further. It's almost like reporting has become creating the news. Almost, just like.
Roland99
(53,342 posts)eringer
(460 posts)According to the actual report (which was tough as hell to find on the internet), more than half the $3.5 Billion is military and military retirees debt. Here are the actual numbers (read them yourself):
http://www.scribd.com/doc/259844813/2014-Tax-Delinquency-Report
Let's hope the United States of Republicania goes after the "Federal worker" and someone calls them out on this.
BTW, the report makes no distinction regarding when the back taxes were incurred (e.g., how much was brought in by the person prior to government employment) or how much was incurred by a spouse. With respect to the military, I saw a report on the Pentagon channel that the military guys were getting free help with their taxes from other military guys. This report should ring an alarm bell that maybe the quality of this "free" service is questionable.
groundloop
(11,532 posts)This story can appear to tell different things depending on how you spin it. It is my opinion that the story in the OP had a certain agenda in only telling part of the story. It also doesn't mention what the delinquency rate is among non-federal workers, and in fact I haven't been able to find that yet (but I bet that it's about the same).
Doctor_J
(36,392 posts)Every news source has turned into Fox
Cryptoad
(8,254 posts)unless you can produce data on how non Federal worker taxpayers with the same income grouping owe back taxes.......