Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Paying for Global Children


I shake my head over the largesse of the American politician.

For example, it has been determined by the US Supreme Court (Plyler v Doe, 1982) that American schools MUST provide a free public education to any child from anywhere who shows up at the school.  No Social Security card required (unless you happen to be an American).  No papers.  Your parents do not need to be here legally.   And every social benefit must also be provided, such as fee waivers, free lunch and language training.  No charge.

Then there is the concept of anchor baby citizenship, also determined by the Supreme Court.  As the present interpretation goes, anyone born here is automatically a citizen, regardless of the allegiance or even the immigration status of the parents.

And we allow the foreign-born to send money back home while we are providing the safety net for them at taxpayer expense.   Mexicans alone send back around $2 billion a month out of our economy.  The money doesn’t circulate here.  The only people to benefit are the banks, Western Union and Walmart who charge a fee for the transfer.

But wait, there’s more.  What if you lived here illegally but had an ITIN so you could file a tax return?  And what if you had nieces and nephews back in your home country?  And what if you sent money back to them to help out?

Wouldn’t it be great if you could claim a Child Tax Credit on your return for those nieces and nephews?

Well, you can.  Our IRS will hang widows out to dry but they are throwing cash out the window when it comes to the Child Tax Credit.  And the Inspector General has been sounding the alarm about it for years.  Despite our red ink budget, no one is taking care of this loophole.

Take a look at the Inspector General audit report:

…and this TV report:

I spoke to an accountant about it and he says the loophole exists.  And it is happening with citizens, too.  There is no back up required to claim the Child Tax Credit.

What about an audit?  Well, do you think someone living here illegally cares about auditors?  Do you think he’s going to show up?  He has no respect for our laws because even the IRS is making exceptions for known illegal aliens.  That’s what the ITIN is.  People buy houses and cars using the ITIN.

In their eyes the federal government is about as stern as Jello.  Skipping out on an audit is no big deal if you are living a lie to begin with.

So...all that money they are sending back to Mexico…could be tax refunds.  Imagine that.

On May 14th the House passed a bill ending the loophole for ITIN-holders, but the Democrats in the Senate seem to be unwilling to make the change.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) had something to say about closing this loophole: “I just think the child tax credit is working just fine and there’s no need to punish children,” Reid said.

Source link:

It all makes a fellow wonder what’s going on in Washington.  But we need not wonder where the record low approval ratings for Congress come from.

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