Saving Private Ryan's Tax Refund

American Bar Association - Section of Taxation News Quarterly, Vol. 29, No. 1, Fall 2009

3 Pages Posted: 29 Oct 2009 Last revised: 2 Nov 2009

See all articles by Francine J. Lipman

Francine J. Lipman

University of Nevada, Las Vegas - William S. Boyd School of Law

Date Written: November 1, 2009

Abstract

Sergeant Horvath: This time the mission IS a man. Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Almost two million men and women serve the United States as enlisted personnel in the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force. This essay will examine certain tax provisions unique to members of the armed forces and suggest a sweeping procedural change to save Private Ryan's tax refund. The proposed change is structured to better serve the unique demographics of the targeted taxpayers. A threshold issue when designing a tax benefit should be "Who is the targeted taxpayer?" Thus, the essay begins with a review of the demographics of this population to ascertain Private Ryan's typical tax profile. The essay concludes with a proposal to better serve those that serve.

Keywords: members of the armed services, military, enlisted soldiers, tax policy, taxation, earned income tax credit, working poor taxpayers, tax compliance, tax systems, simple returns, ReadyReturn

JEL Classification: H20, H21, H22, H23, H24, H53, H56, I38, K34, L98, N40, Z10, P46, O15

Suggested Citation

Lipman, Francine J., Saving Private Ryan's Tax Refund (November 1, 2009). American Bar Association - Section of Taxation News Quarterly, Vol. 29, No. 1, Fall 2009, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1495972

Francine J. Lipman (Contact Author)

University of Nevada, Las Vegas - William S. Boyd School of Law ( email )

4505 South Maryland Parkway
Box 451003
Las Vegas, NV 89154
United States

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