| High court takes on DeKalb's tax battle
For the third time, DeKalb County and its cities are taking a fight over taxes to the Georgia Supreme Court. Tuesday, the high court will hear arguments in an eight-year sales-tax lawsuit in DeKalb about how the county and cities should divvy up money raised by the homestead option sales tax, or HOST. .
TAX-NEWS.COM
The United States Senate on Thursday voted to approve a package of measures providing tax relief for homeowners, homebuyers and builders, in an attempt to soften the blow of a flagging housing market on an already troubled economy. Included in the bill, which passed the Senate by 84 votes to 12, are USD10.9bn in tax provisions authored by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D - Mon.) and Ranking member Chuck Grassley (R - Iowa), which would create an additional standard deduction for property taxes for homeowners who do not itemize their federal taxes, and increase funding for mortgage revenue bonds in order to help homeowners and buyers obtain affordable loans. Also included is a substantial credit for buyers of foreclosed homes that will help stabilize local housing markets and property values, and a provision to allow companies losing money � and facing employee layoffs � to write off current losses and bolster struggling operations.
Some post offices open late for last-minute tax filers
Post offices in Palm Beach and Martin counties are girding for the annual surge of mail Tuesday from last-minute income tax filers. Taxpayers who need a little more time to crunch the numbers will get some relief at several area postal service offices. Those who mail returns must have an April 15, 2008—or earlier—postmark to be considered on time. Post offices with late retail hours include: West Palm Beach main office, 3200 Summit Blvd., midnight. Stuart Branch, 801 Johnson Ave., midnight. Palm Beach Gardens office, 3330 Fairchild Gardens Ave., 7 p.m. Palms West Branch, 10299 Southern Blvd., 6 p.m. Lake Worth Greenacres, 4300 Jog Road, 5:30 p.m. Automated Postal Centers (APCs) in all post offices can weigh the return, calculate and print the correct postage — with the April 15, 2008 postmark — until just before the stroke of midnight.
Tax relief party at the post office
Who says April 15 has to be taxing? Not the downtown Abilene Post Office, which, along with KEAN radio, is hosting the annual tax relief party for residents filing their income taxes at the last minute. The main post office will be open until midnight Tuesday and KEAN will broadcast live beginning at 6 p.m., and handing out pizza and PayDay candy bars, according to a news release. Because of the increased security of U.S. airlines that carry mail, tax returns weighing more than 13 ounces should be brought in person to a post office and entered with a postal clerk, according to Roger Swart, Abilene postal customer relations coordinator. The main post office, 341 Pine St., will open at 8 a.m. and close at midnight. Mail will be accepted from the collection boxes on either side of the main office until midnight as well.
Tax plan up for debate in Alabama House would lower taxes for some, raise them for others
MONTGOMERY - At least 1.5 million households in Alabama would save money and fewer than 700,000 households would lose money under a tax plan scheduled for debate Tuesday in the state House of Representatives, records show. The plan by Rep. John Knight, D-Montgomery, would remove the 4 percent state sales tax from groceries. The Legislative Fiscal Office estimates that would save consumers $320 million a year. It also would cut state income taxes for many lower-income households but raise them on many upper-income households, for a net income-tax increase of $345 million a year. Some middle-income households would pay less income tax and some would pay more. Knight estimated that 80 percent of Alabama households would save money or break even under his tax plan, while 20 percent would pay more in taxes.
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