NEWS
April 23, 2009
Protests prompted by excess spending For once we have to congratulate Jay Hancock and The Baltimore Sun for presenting a very good analysis of the recent Tax Day demonstrations we were privileged to participate in last week in Annapolis ("Let's cut spending and raise taxes," April 18). The tea party crowd was made up, for the most part, of earnest citizens whose main complaint was not paying taxes but the profligate spending of our current and former government. Taking on new initiatives at a time of economic malaise is not wise and doesn't address the many issues left on the table now for years, including the inadequate funding for the Social Security and Medicare programs that grow more out of hand every year.
NEWS
By THOMAS F. SCHALLER | April 21, 2009
Compared with the precedent-setting government changes occurring in Washington, this year's Maryland General Assembly regular session in Annapolis was rather sleepy. Don't get me wrong: The state faces serious, structural deficit issues, and whatever funds the Obama administration provides are a useful but ultimately temporary solution. But when speed cameras and driving while texting emerge as two of the more controversial issues of the legislative the session, you wonder if Marylanders are somehow living in a bubble.
NEWS
October 28, 2007
Tomorrow, as state lawmakers convene for a special session to address Maryland's fiscal woes, they will face the complex and controversial multibillion-dollar plan proposed by Gov. Martin O'Malley. In the days that follow, Mr. O'Malley's $2 billion budget-balancing blueprint - as well as a handful of related bills likely to be offered by legislators - will be scrutinized, debated and voted upon. In the end, their success can be measured by only one result: the adoption of a real and long-term solution to the state's growing structural deficit.
NEWS
October 5, 2007
Gov. Martin O'Malley's plan for a special legislative session to address Maryland's projected $1.7 billion budget deficit suffered a major blow with the decision by Senate Republicans not to support a slots bill - at least not before the regular session next January. That's welcome news. As much as a special session offers the most expedient path for Mr. O'Malley's $2 billion deficit reduction package - and prolonging these decisions puts the state budget potentially $500 million deeper in the hole - it's still the wrong choice.
NEWS
October 3, 2007
No reason to rush to special session Gov. Martin O'Malley has taken on the Herculean task of trying to raise $1.7 billion in revenue to balance the state budget. However, calling a special session will not serve the people of Maryland well ("Time to cut bait in Annapolis," Opinion * Commentary, Sept. 30). Such an important topic deserves time for input, discussion and debate. The citizens have a right to be heard and to have their views given fair consideration. This is not an emergency.
NEWS
September 7, 2007
Reforms will make tax code more fair Kudos to state Sens. Lisa Gladden and Paul G. Pinsky for championing combined tax reporting in an effort to make Maryland's tax code more fair ("Make corporations pay fair share," Opinion Commentary, Aug. 30). No one should be able to game the system. Unfortunately, Maryland's current tax code allows multistate corporations to shift their profits out of state, leaving in-state businesses and individuals to foot the bill for transportation, education and public safety.
NEWS
By Michael Hill | May 13, 2007
The fiscal sky is supposed to be falling on the state of Maryland. But to John Willis, it's a case of been there, done that, with no serious damage to the sky or the ground. The former secretary of state in the Parris N. Glendening administration says that the current fiscal crisis -- the so-called structural deficit that might require a special session of the General Assembly -- is nothing more than one of the many financial bumps on the road that the state always faces. "For the last 40 years, all Maryland governors have done what they had to do," says Willis, a historian of Maryland politics who teaches at the University of Baltimore.
NEWS
By Ken Harney | May 4, 2007
For homeowners around the country who are seriously delinquent on their mortgages and hoping for relief, the IRS has bad news: If your lender agrees to modify your loan and forgive any part of your debt, you could owe federal income taxes on the amount forgiven. Think of it as the tax code's "kick-'em-while-they're-down" rule. When personal debts are canceled by a creditor, the amount forgiven is treated as ordinary income under the Internal Revenue Code unless the taxpayer is insolvent or bankrupt.
NEWS
April 6, 2007
With gasoline prices back near the $3 mark, and the threat of air pollution, including excess carbon dioxide, more dire than ever, one would like to think the federal government would be steering commuters toward public transportation. But there is a long-standing quirk in the federal tax code that does exactly the opposite - that gives preference to people who drive over those who ride energy-efficient, lower-polluting buses or trains. Here's how it works: Employers can offer parking as a tax-free benefit of up to $215 per month per worker.
NEWS
April 3, 2007
Editor's note: Every Tuesday through the end of tax season, The Sun will run an edited transcript of Baltimoresun .com's weekly tax advice column featuring three experts from the Hunt Valley accounting firm SC&H Group. A few years ago we bought a time share. We recently sold it, at a loss, to a company that buys up time shares and that said the loss could be written off. My reading of tax information and a call to the IRS indicate that a time share is personal use property and the loss cannot be taken on taxes.