Wirt Atmar wrote:
<snip>

> Several people have asked me privately isn't this "advanced payment" the
> definition of a refund. I'm not sure what to call a process where the money
> flows in a tight circle such as this. On one hand, you are simultaneously
> getting an "advanced payment" on your coming refund, while on the other, you
> are purposefully overpaying your payroll deductions, based on current code.
> And the question continues: is this really a loan? The only answer that I can
> give is that you will get some of your 2001 refund now and you will have to
> pay that portion back in the spring in the form of a lessened refund then. In
> effect, that's identical in process to the "anticipation loans" that H&R
> Block offers, but without the interest.
>
> Perhaps the proper phrase is an "anticipated partial refund payment".

I look at the whole tax/refund thing this way. We owe so much tax. Too
much is withheld from my paycheck each month. The IRS is getting an
interest free loan from me without my consent (my understanding is that
if I increase my exemptions any higher, I increase the probability of an
audit). The president's plan will pay off some of that loan sooner
rather than later. Ideally, my withholding would exactly match my tax
liability so that come April 15th, I would not owe the IRS nor would
they owe me. This whole refund thing is just smoke and mirrors. It was
my money to begin with. The IRS got to use (various sized) portions of
it for over a year without paying any interest to me. I'm not looking
for a constant sized refund next April. I want as much of my money back
as soon as possible. I think the people that owe the IRS just a little
each year are the smartest ones. They are getting an interest free loan
instead of providing one.

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