Roskam Introduces Bill to Make IRS Free File Program Permanent

Congressmen Peter Roskam (IL-06) and Ron Kind (D-WI) introduce bill to make IRS Free File program permanent for eligible lower- and middle- income taxpayers.

Congressman Peter Roskam (IL-06) on Tuesday introduced legislation to make the IRS Free File program permanent with Congressman Ron Kind (D-WI). Launched in 2003 as a partnership between the IRS and the Free File Alliance, the Free File program provides approximately 98 million eligible taxpayers with free online individual income tax preparation and electronic tax filing services, according to a press release from Roskam's office. “The Free File program is a win-win,” Roskam said in a statement. “Not only do middle income families save money on tax preparation each year, but there is no cost to the federal government, and the program has actually saved the IRS hundreds of millions of dollars. This is a common sense solution that helps …

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Gregg Slapak

11:56 am on Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Congressman Kind is an old Wisconsin friend who became Congressman to Wisconsin' 3d District following a 16yr tenure by my very fine friend US Rep Steve Gunderson for whom I served in his DC office for a number of years as his Legislative Director and in 1980 has his director of field operations for his very first run for congress. We defeated a three-term incumbent by .05% of the vote and off to…   more ›

When Can I File My 2012 Tax Return?

The IRS has announced a delayed start to the 2012 tax filing season. Here's the date of when you can file, plus some locations Algonquin and Lake in the Hills to get help on your taxes.

You'll have to wait if you are used to filing your annual tax return at the earliest possible date. The Internal Revenue Service has revised its opening date for tax season — pushing it back eight days to January 30, 2013. The tax filing deadline is Monday, April 15, 2013. The IRS will begin accepting tax returns on Jan. 30, 2013. Most taxpayers should be able to file on that date,  though some revised forms may not be immediately available. You can blame the delay on the federal "fiscal cliff" crisis and the new tax bill Congress passed just after Dec. 31. You can find more information in this Forbes article. Electronic filing season was originally set to start on Jan. 22 this year. As a result of the delay, nobody will get a refund in …

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Roskam: President's Tax Hike Will Not Make Fiscal Problems Go Away

Roskam talks about House Republican proposal to aver the fiscal cliff.

U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam (IL-06( Sunday appeared on Bloomberg's Capital Gains to discuss the House Republican proposal to avert the fiscal cliff.  Tax Increases Do Not Solve the Debt Problem  There is an expectation that the president has created that simply letting the top two percent tax rates go up will make the problem go away, Roskam said. The president's own architecture on this was a three-one ratio [of cuts to revenue], and up until now he insisted on new spending.  For three weeks there was a focus from the White House to talk about only twenty five percent of this deal.  "But what has largely been absent? Where are the spending cuts? Where are the savings?"   "My sense is that the polling changes very, very quickly if they …

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Proposed 2012 Tax Levy 'Relatively the Same' as 2011 Levy

City Council reviews proposed tax levy for 2012, and an abatement ordinance reducing the city's debt service levy.

Wheaton City Council Monday had its first reading of the proposed 2012 tax levy of about $23 million.  The passing of a tax levy abatement ordinance would reduce the overall levy to about $18.7 million, down about .1 percent from last year's levy, costing taxpayers 98 cents per $100 of equalized assessed valuation (EAV). The amount due for a resident with a $400,000 house would be $1,307, the amount due for a resident with a $300,000 would be $980 and the amount due for a resident with a $200,000 house would be $653. About $15.3 million is levied for general purposes and $7.7 million for debt services. The proposed ordinance would abate $4.2 million of the debt service levy, reducing the debt service levy from $7.7 million to $3.4 million…

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City Proposes Reduced Property Tax Levy

Council reviews the proposed levy Monday before Dec. 19 vote.

Wheaton City Council will have its first reading of the 2011 property tax levy Monday, Dec. 5. The proposed levy of $18,581,736 is almost $133,000—or .7 percent—less than the 2010 levy. City staff and Council in a planning session Monday reviewed the levy, which includes levies for general purposes and the city’s debt service. The general purpose levy of $15,092136 includes: The debt service levy is for $3,489,600, a 2.4 percent decrease from last year. City Manager Don Rose said the proposed levy is similar to last year’s, as staff assumes the city’s budget contains no new programming or activities beyond what the city currently provides. “I think this number fits in well with our other revenue sources to basically continue our current …

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President Says Without SSA, DWA Could Cease to Exist

Organization is marshaling forces to speak on behalf of the proposed Special Service Area at tonight's public hearing.

The establishment of a new Special Service Area in downtown Wheaton is a matter of life and death for the Downtown Wheaton Association, DWA Board President Keven Graham said. “That’s what will ensure, carry on what the Downtown Wheaton Association does as far as helping to promote downtown businesses, create foot traffic and other things we do. If it’s not approved, then all the events you see happening in downtown Wheaton will not happen,” he said Monday. In September Wheaton Mayor Mike Gresk touted the organization as an asset to the community and said without the organization, Wheaton would be a “lesser place” due to lower downtown property values. He echoed Graham's comments Monday that without funds from the SSA, the DWA would need to…

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Citizen Urges End to SSA in Wheaton

Joe Jozaitis calls upon council to reject a proposed tax plan he calls confusing and unfair.

Wheaton resident Joe Jozaitis urged city council oppose the creation of a new Special Service Area in downtown, which would in part, financially support the Downtown Wheaton Association. During his address to council Monday night Jozaitis, a certified public accountant, criticized the legalities governing Special Service Areas. He called it convoluted and confusing to most people in and out of government. Additionally, Jozaitis criticized the fact that a failure to purge former downtown occupants who are no longer on any city taxing rolls can unfairly weigh the votes in favor of the new SSA due to the language in the law. Joszaitis added any businesses or citizens who are directly or indirectly receiving funds from the taxing district …

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City Council Tables Downtown Special Service Area Request

City officials will review Downtown Wheaton Association financial statements from the end of the fiscal year before creating a new Special Service Area in downtown Wheaton.

The City Council will revisit a proposal to commence the process of creating a new Special Service Area (SSA) in downtown Wheaton after a review of the Downtown Wheaton Association’s (DWA) financial statements from the last fiscal year. City officials discussed the DWA’s request to establish a new SSA in its meeting Monday after the DWA made its formal request to start the process and set a public hearing regarding the SSA on Aug. 31. In its request the DWA proposed a tax rate of $.45 per $100 of assessed value in its new SSA, down from the current rate of $.95 per $100. Further, the DWA suggested that the city provide SSA funds that are captured as TIF funds to help offset losses with the lowered tax rate, according to a city staff …

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The District 200 Chalkboard

Tax Increase Not Enough to Restore the Budget

Without spending reform, no tax increase will ever be enough to dig Illinois out of its financial hole of trouble.

Your next paycheck will be lighter after the recent last minute Illinois income tax increase. Unfortunately, there’s no guarantee that the money will flow to District 200 for the amounts the State has already promised. But while the State’s unpaid obligations to District 200 keep piling up, so do the unpaid obligations of school districts to the State—in the form of pension liability. Without spending reform—including an end to school districts’ unfunded mandates TO the State in the form of retirement salary bumps—no tax increase will ever be enough to dig Illinois out of our budget hole.  Illinois State Superintendent of Education Christopher Koch, in a January 18 statement, said “while it is likely that some additional funding will be …

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