As a small business owner, I am very concerned with Sen. Carper’s support of an IRS-owned e-file system for our taxes.
In the senator’s press release and tweets supporting the e-file pilot program, he states, “we need to find what works and do more of that.” Well, let me say this, the IRS is not working for people of color. Just this week, the agency admitted Black people are more likely to be audited, backing up a Stanford University study illustrating that the federal government is disproportionately auditing Blacks at a rate of five times the average taxpayer.
If we are to create an e-file system directly owned by the federal government, my only conclusion is that Blacks will once again face a glaring racial bias.
If Sen. Carper and others want to better serve taxpayers, they should instead use the funding earmarked for this online system to expand the current volunteer income tax preparation program found at community centers, senior centers and libraries. Or, provide a tax credit to folks under a certain income that equals the average amount paid to file simple tax returns with tax prep companies or bookkeepers.
It’s hard enough to be a minority owning a business who employs other minorities. We don’t need the IRS making it harder. Until we can further investigate why this racial bias exists, we must pause the concept of a tax filing system owned by the federal government.
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to newsroom@capegazette.com. Letters must be signed and include a telephone number and address for verification. Please keep letters to 500 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content and length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days. Letters restating information and opinions already offered by the same author will not be used. Letters must focus on issues of general, local concern, not personalities or specific businesses.
