The famous Taoist saying has become a lazy colloquialism: “Those who know don’t say – those who say don’t know.” It’s an accurate one, however, when it comes to the minimum wage argument. Politicians (many of whom have never run a business!) make the case that raising minimum wages (at the expense of those ‘greedy’ [...]
A hostile, anti-business Administration has Corporate America running scared. Fearful of being sued many companies are revamping their retirement plans NOT in the best interests of their employees but, instead, solely to avoid being sued for not focusing on providing “low cost” options. We previously wrote about the Supreme Court decision and foreshadowed the fallout. [...]
“From each according to his ability – to each according to his need.” If the Soviets were still around they’d tell us how poor an economic system this is. Sadly the American public is too busy tweeting about the latest mind numbing “reality” TV show to care. At the start of the 21st century 75% [...]
What makes you a one-percenter? About $385,000/yr. How about a two-percenter? The Orator in Chief is one. Want to see his tax return? What can we learn from it? On the other end of the spectrum you'll find the 43% of Americans who don't pay income taxes. Media and politicians focus on income disparity. Where's [...]
Medical expenses exceeding 10% of Adjusted Gross Income are deductible on Schedule A of Form 1040. Like other income tax deductions (e.g. mortgage interest, real estate taxes) there’s a public policy basis for inclusion in the Internal Revenue Code. But what happens when federal and state laws conflict? More and more states are legalizing marijuana [...]
The average U.S. adult pays about $4,900/yr in taxes. Connecticut residents pay the highest at about $9,100 whereas Mississippi residents pay the lowest at about $2,600. Relative wealth is partly the driver. When bracket adjusted the average ranges from a high of about 12.5% in Alaska to a low of about 10.4% in Utah. In [...]
Not long ago a prospective client inquired about Apollo’s views of the fixed income markets and, specifically, muni bonds. It was a simple discussion – one we’ve had with our clients a number of times since the ‘market meltdown’ of 2007-2009. We explained that with ‘risk-free’ 10-year Treasuries yielding 2% and the questionable balance sheets [...]
In Tuesday’s State of the Union the Orator in Chief proposed cutting back on the tax break afforded to §529 college savings plans. His reasoning? §529s are used primarily by the ‘wealthy.’ We’ll get to that in a moment. By way of review §529s were established in 1996 as a means for people to save [...]
Do you know how much income tax you pay? Whatever the amount it surely feels like too much, right? And what of this 'fair share' nonsense? Just who is paying America’s tax bill? The latest figures from the IRS (based on data from 2012 tax returns) show that 136 million tax returns were filed. That [...]
In economics we define a transfer payment as a payment made without reciprocity of goods or services. In layman’s terms they’re handouts. The nature of transfer payments is why most Americans abhor programs such as welfare and unemployment. We’re a caring people but we also believe in fairness. We work hard for what we have [...]