Re:Killing TurboTax
by Thrymr on Wednesday March 03, 2021 @12:31PM
(#26331659)
How useful is the computation code though? The computations themselves for the cells on a 1040 form are not that complicated and well documented in the instructions. The hard part is getting all the right numbers into the source boxes.
[ Parent
| on HN ]
Somehow, the IRS compares the tax return I submit with what they expected. It is that entire machinery that is in the public interest to be visible and audited by the public.
The IRS does have income information, but they do not have deduction information. Deductions are mainly where any form of complexity comes in. Without deductions taxes are super easy.
You can't FOIA the data they use for your taxes. They have your W2 data, and it was sent to you, but they won't give it to you.
Re:Killing TurboTax
by tacostakohashi on Wednesday March 03, 2021 @01:38PM
(#26332568)
Really? You can pretty much always FOIA any records about yourself.
In the case of W-2 data, seems like you can get it as part of a transcript if you want it:
https://www.irs.gov/individuals/transcript-types-and-ways-to...
Of course, you also get a copy of the same W-2 directly, but it doesn't seem true that "they won't give it to you" if you ask them.