Tax resistance gains attention amid ICE protests, Iran war -- and IRS penalties could follow

[MichMan]

Amid the Iran war, some “tax protesters” are planning to withhold some or all of their federal income taxes owed.

However, the IRS has said repeatedly that moral or religious beliefs don’t exempt filers from their tax responsibility.

What’s more, failing to file returns or underpaying taxes can trigger hefty IRS penalties and other consequences, experts say.

Chicago attorney Rachel Cohen owes more than $8,000 in federal income taxes — but has intentionally left that balance unpaid. "I'm not paying my federal income tax this year," Cohen said in a widely viewed TikTok video from March 2 about her decision.

The 31-year-old community organizer filed her federal tax return, which shows a balance due of $8,830, according to a tax document reviewed by CNBC. But Cohen said she deliberately chose to withhold payment of that bill as a protest against immigration detention, including ICE facilities, and U.S. strikes on Iran launched without congressional approval.

While voicing resistance to taxes is legal, refusing to pay taxes owed can violate federal law and lead to serious penalties. "It's completely OK to be unhappy and be dissatisfied with our government," said Josh Youngblood, owner of The Youngblood Group, a Dallas-based tax firm. "But not paying taxes, or engaging in tax fraud or evasion, is not the answer."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/taxes/tax-resistance-gains-attention-amid-ice-protests-iran-war-and-irs-penalties-could-follow/ar-AA1Z7pji?ocid=msedgntp&pc=LCTS&cvid=69bf14f767664f409c0a34243285140c&ei=66

[Takket]

1. yeah that's a fight you do not want to get into....... GOTV if you aren't happy with where your taxes go

[SSJVegeta]

2. Thing is. If we dont pay taxes, how would they be able to enforce the law without the taxes that fund the enforcement?

You cant punish 350 million people for failing to pay taxes without the funding that is needed to punish them.

And ultimately there becomes some level of legitimacy if the government is deliberately using our tax dollars to violate court orders regularly or openly violate the constitution and kill people in broad daylight.

[OC375]

3. Social contract went bye bye long ago

Somewhere it turned into a major bait and switch, if it was ever a good faith deal to begin with - certainly wasn't for everyone...

Study, work hard, eat some shit, arrive early, stay late, chant the chant, and in exchange you'll eventually go to the places that you want to go to, and likely have time at the end to rest before you die... that was the deal. Looking back, it's so obviously not how life works in practice but for the very few, and only for a short time in history.

Personally, and this is a new one for me, I'm done following rules and conventions no one else follows anymore. I think a lot of people are at some point going to walk away from the grind and reinvent, disconnect and rediscover whatever they lost along the way. Hurt people hurt, and everyone is hurting right now. But, they can heal too.

I'll pay my taxes, but we're really looking at how much we want to be a part of what's goin on in general, from social media, to finance (looking at you DOW), to what we buy and how we spend our time at work and at play. So much of it isn't what we ever really wanted, and so much money needed to keep going.

Juice ain't worth the squeeze.

[JBTaurus83]

4. I work for the city I live in

And assist in the adjudication of past due water tax bills. I had to assist in a case recently where the tax payer refused to pay his bill because “the Bible doesn’t mention anything about water as a tax”. You can probably guess how that ended.

[D_Master81]

5. Yeah good luck with that

Tell everyone on your Tik Tok in a couple years how it goes. These idiots are leading other people right off a financial cliff. You think you can just not pay and they’re cool with it? First they will charge you penalty and interest for not paying and after long enough they will come after you. Any future year refund you won’t get, they will withhold it to pay your debt, eventually they can garnish your wages. Never listen to idiots like this. How the hell did she become a lawyer???

[TommyT139]

6. "No taxation without representation"

...sounds applicable right about now.

[MichMan]

7. That is a myth

I paid non resident city income taxes for years because I worked in a city, even though I didn't reside there. Still wasn't allowed to vote in their elections.

[TommyT139]

8. It's an allusion

...to one of the reasons for the American Revolution.

And given that Congress is responsible for making sure taxes are appropriate and used for the reasons they were passed into law, the abdication of their duties by one party opens up some important conversations, I'd think.