Most Americans are in the dark about their tax bill, but think Trump's plan won't help

[applegrove]

by Eric Chemi at CNBC

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/05/most-americans-dont-know-their-tax-bill-but-think-trump-plan-wont-help.html

SNIP............


Most Americans don't know much about President Donald Trump's new tax proposal but don't think it will be in their favor. That's the conclusion of polls run by CNBC since the GOP unveiled the framework for a tax reform bill in late September.

Responses to this week's CNBC All-America Economic Survey suggested that voters lean slightly toward the belief that their taxes will go up under the new plan. CNBC ran two additional surveys that confirmed that belief but found more details and nuance in Americans' understanding of taxes and the framework's effects.

Most people don't even know what they're paying in taxes in the first place. And if you ask them to guess their tax bracket, their answer doesn't match up with reality. Even more strange, our polls found that a lot of people say they haven't heard of the new tax plan or its details but assume it will hurt them anyway.

CNBC commissioned two different firms to run this analysis: Reconnect Research, which conducted a phone survey, and marketing company Fluent, which conducted an online poll. Each company asked slightly different questions, but the overall results matched up.

............SNIP

[Adsos Letter]

1. Being a California resident I can only hope the bill goes down in flames.

Losing the deduction for state and local taxes would be a big slap in the face.

[applegrove]

2. I thought the GOP were dropping that because it is so unpopular. At least

I read it somewhere yesterday.

[Adsos Letter]

3. Man I hope so.

From a purely selfish point of view it wouldn't hurt us to lose the mortgage interest deduction they've proposed; we only owe about 3 more years on our home, and our interest portion of the payment is very small at this point. But it will certainly impact younger people negatively, especially those just getting into the housing market.

My wife and I pay a lot in state taxes, and we would certainly feel it if they eliminate that deduction.

The Ship of State is adrift and headed toward the rocks, if something doesn't turn things around.

[applegrove]

4. Vibes to you.

[Adsos Letter]

5. Vibes to all of us.

[customerserviceguy]

6. I wouldn't worry about it

The so-called "pay fors" that the proposed legislation calls for to offset the tax cuts for the rich all have established lobbyist organizations that have bought enough congresscritters to keep this from passing in its present form, and I personally believe that it would be impossible to cobble together a majority in both houses of Congress that would change anything.

We will have stalemated government until at least January 2013, probably longer.