Bills Seek State Tax Refunds for a Select Few - LA Times

[Starfury]

Peter Ackerman, who worked for "junk bond king" Michael Milken, walked away from the Drexel Burnham Lambert scandal with what financial experts say was hundreds of millions of dollars. Now a lobbyist for Ackerman has crafted a bill in the Legislature that would permit the refund — one of several measures apparently written with a single taxpayer in mind.

Another is a push by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, one of the world's richest people, to restore a tax break that would benefit his company. And a Central Valley container maker is making a bid for millions more in state subsidies for its manufacturing equipment.

Large-scale across-the-board tax breaks may be out of the question as long as California has multibillion-dollar budget shortfalls. But some businesses and wealthy individuals hope that a few million in specific breaks here and there — amounting to "budget dust" in a state that spends more than $100 billion a year — will sneak through.

Some budget experts and advocates for the poor find such moves worrisome.

"This kind of thing breaks down the integrity of the tax system," said Lenny Goldberg, president of the union-backed California Tax Reform Assn. "You have well-connected taxpayers hiring a lobbyist to change the law retroactively. No ordinary taxpayer can do that."

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http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-taxcode9may09,0,7911472.story

:argh:

[davidinalameda]

1. if I'm reading this correctly

Ackerman wants a refund on taxes that he paid on income that he obtained illegally or at least under questionable circumstances

is that right or did I completely misunderstand the article?

[Starfury]

2. Yup, pretty disgusting....

"Ackerman was accused in lawsuits by federal regulators and investment houses of helping set up a fraudulent scheme to move money through dozens of private partnerships. He kept most of his profits — unlike Milken, who spent time in jail and had to part with the bulk of his fortune — but gave back $73 million in a settlement of the lawsuits filed against Milken and his associates.

The $5 million was income taxes that Ackerman paid on the $73 million. His refund request has been rejected by the state tax board and a state court."

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So let's see, he swindled a lot of folks, declared that as income, paid taxes on it, was forced to give back a small part of it, kept most of it, moved out of state, then wants a tax refund on what he settled for.

Go cry me a river, Ackerman!

[w4rma]

3. I bet most buisnesses don't like their competitors getting edges like this

over them.