Bill would require drug test to claim high-dollar tax deduction

[Benton]

(06-17-2016, 04:05 PM)JustWinBaby Wrote: None of those deductions are specific to a tax bracket.  A lot of people I wouldn't consider anything close to rich or "getting charity" have a second home or vacation home (which "yachts" that hardly break the bank can qualify as).

Likewise, many self-employed people who don't make millions make questionable deductions of personal expenses as "business expense".  Again, you don't have to be rich to take advantage of this.

Mortgage interest on a home?  Seriously?  I'm pretty sure millions of Americans that are far from rich take that deduction.  If you can't afford a home then most likely you don't pay federal income tax.

Horse racing I might give you.  Although it's hardly the smoking gun or that significant.  Further, you actually have to make an occasional profit or it's considered a hobby and you can't deduct expenses.  Of course, deductions such as this and the yacht (and Tesla cars!) are more industry subsidies than handouts to the rich. But you still don't have to be rich to own a "yacht" as a second home, or a Tesla, and you get to take the deduction regardless of your tax bracket.

No matter where you put some of that stuff, a lot of it can't be afforded outside of higher earners. As I said, I dont mind deductions if they're available to all. As those examples and others only apply to a small group, they don't. Not in the same way as writing off mortgage interest, which applies whether you owe a dollar on your house or a million. There aren't many dollar yachts.