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  • It's no wonder Uncle Sam is not very happy here. His vault is empty.
    Don't Mess With Taxes aims to keep him cranky by providing tax and personal finance tips and advice that will put more money in your bank account, not the government treasury.

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Tax Calendar

  • April 15 has come and gone, but millions now have until Oct. 15 to file their 2008 returns. And millions more have 2009 tax planning to do.
  • There are plenty of year-round tax dates to keep track of, as well as lots of tax-saving moves you can make between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31.
    Find them here each month.

    monthly tax moves
  • July 1: You're halfway through the year. Now's the perfect time to make some midyear tax moves that could cut your 2009 IRS bill. If your life has changed significantly since the beginning of the year, adjust your withholding to more accurately reflect your new life, and tax, situation. Just give your employer a new W-4.

    July 4: Happy Independence Day! Celebrate your independence from future tax hassles. Hire a tax professional now to help get your tax life in shape while there's still plenty of time to plan.

    July 10: Does your job include tips? If so and you received $20 in tips in June, use Form 4070 to report them today to your employer.

    July 17: Are your kids at day camp while you work? You might be able to use that expense to claim the child and dependent care credit to cover some of the costs.

    July 21: It's been summer for month. How's your air conditioner holding up? If you need a new one, make sure it's energy efficient; that way on your 2009 tax return you can claim a tax credit for 30 percent of the cost, up to $1,500. Other energy-saving home improvements also qualify. Get the details at EnergyStar.gov.

    July 31: If you kids are older and working summer jobs, make sure they understand their tax responsibilities. You also can help your youngster get a nest egg head start by helping him or her open a Roth IRA with some of those summer earnings.

    Small Business Tax Calendar -- July: Important filing, deposit and record keeping dates your company needs to know.
  • 2010 Tax Countdown Clock

2009 Tax Guide

Carnival of Taxes

  • Where we party like
    it's 1040 ... Form 1040!


  • Check out the latest
    Carnival of Taxes,
    #55: Tax Fireworks

    Want to be a part of the next one on August 3? Just review the Tax Carnival guidelines
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  • Catch up on prevous
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Improve the IRS

Tax Terms

  • Earned income -- It's just like it sounds: Compensation you receive from work, including wages, salaries, commissions, tips and self-employment endeavors. Learn more...
  • Unearned income -- Money that is not gained by work or delivery of a service or product. It's most well-known source is from investments. Learn more...
  • Tax rates/brackets -- The U.S. tax system is a progressive one, in which the greater the earnings, the higher the tax rate. Learn more...
  • See these and other tax terms
    in the perpetually updated
    Tax Glossary.

Cool tax quotes

  • The income tax has made
    more liars out of the American people than golf has.
    -- Will Rogers, humorist
  • I'm proud to pay taxes in the United States; the only thing is,
    I could be just as proud for half the money.     -- Arthur Godfrey, comedian
  • Intaxication: Euphoria at getting a refund from the IRS, which lasts until you realize it was your money to start with. -- Author unknown, from a Washington Post word contest
  • "Internal Revenue Service: The world's most successful mail order business.” -- Bob Goddard, writer
  • "If you are truly serious about preparing your child for the future, don't teach him to subtract. Teach him to deduct." -- Fran Lebowitz, writer
  • "The United States has a system of taxation by confession." -- Hugo Black, Supreme Court Justice

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    The content on Don't Mess With Taxes is my personal opinion based on my study and understanding of tax laws, policies and regulations. It’s provided for your private, noncommercial, educational and informational purposes only. It’s not a recommendation or endorsement of any company or product. I strongly suggest that when it comes to filing your taxes, you get additional, professional, paid-for guidance from your accountant and other financial advisers who are familiar with your individual circumstances. In other words, don't blame me!

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« Update update | Main | Some welcome tax breaks »

Saturday, August 05, 2006

In case you forgot

Solo_shopper_1 Ten states and the District of Columbia are holding sales tax holidays this weekend (D.C.'s actually runs through next Friday).

If you live in one of these states, like I do, you already know this. It's impossible to escape the constant barrage of print, radio and TV ads urging us to save a few bucks at our state treasury's expense.

But in case the aliens just returned you to earth a la The 4400, here are the holiday locales:

A click of the state's name will take you to its official site for details on what is and isn't tax-free during its holiday. This earlier post also contains some more info and shopping tips.

Posted at 01:30 AM in State/Local, Tax holiday |

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Kay - I have one more STH goodie for you that I could not resist. I tried emailing you back, but I got a message saying it didn't go through. I used to be a Tax Counsel and the STHs were my pet. This one was my favorite STH, because it is so obscure. Just in case you are interested, Skagway, Alaska has had local sales tax holidays for the past several years. They are between October and March.
Here is a cite and link to their local code.

Skagway Municipal Code - Exemptions from sales tax §4.08.060(A)(23).

http://www.skagway.org/vertical/Sites/{7820C4E3-63B9-4E67-95BA-7C70FBA51E8F}/uploads/{7ABE8104-F294-447A-AD69-6330EA8B56D1}.PDF

Posted by: Anali | Sunday, August 06, 2006 at 03:15 PM

Very nice blog! You probably are planning this already. But just in case you didn't get to it yet, Massachusetts will be having a sales tax holiday next weekend. Here is the DOR link.

http://www.dor.state.ma.us/Forms/SalesTaxHoliday.htm

Posted by: Anali | Saturday, August 05, 2006 at 09:14 AM

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