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.: Glossary
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Glossary
Terms in glossary: 113.
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IRS
The Internal Revenue Service.
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lobbyist
A person who represents the concerns or special interests of a particular group or organization in meetings with lawmakers. Lobbyists work to persuade lawmakers to change laws in the group's favor.
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luxury tax
A tax paid on expensive goods and services considered by the government to be nonessential.
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market economy
An economic system based on private enterprise that rests upon three basic freedoms: freedom of the consumer to choose among competing products and services, freedom of the producer to start or expand a business, and freedom of the worker to choose a job and employer.
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Married Filing Joint
You are married and both you and your spouse agree to file a joint return. (On a joint return, you report your combined income and deduct your combined allowable expenses.)
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Married Filing Separate
You must be married. This method may benefit you if you want to be responsible only for your own tax or if this method results in less tax than a joint return. If you and your spouse do not agree to file a joint return, you may have to use this filing status.
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mass tax
A broad tax that affects a majority of taxpayers.
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Medicare tax
Used to provide medical benefits for certain individuals when they reach age 65. Workers, retired workers, and the spouses of workers and retired workers are eligible to receive Medicare benefits upon reaching age 65.
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nullification
A state's refusal to recognize or obey a federal law.
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payroll taxes
Include Social Security and Medicare taxes.
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personal exemption
Can be claimed for the taxpayer and spouse. Each personal exemption reduces the income subject to tax by the exemption amount.
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Personal Identification Number
Allow taxpayers to "sign" their tax returns electronically. The PIN, a five-digit self-selected number, ensures that electronically submitted tax returns are authentic. Most taxpayers can qualify to use a PIN.
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progressive tax
A tax that takes a larger percentage of income from high-income groups than from low-income groups.
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property taxes
Taxes on property, especially real estate, but also can be on boats, automobiles (often paid along with license fees), recreational vehicles, and business inventories.
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proportional tax
A tax that takes the same percentage of income from all income groups.
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protective tariff
A tax levied on imported goods with the purpose of reducing domestic consumption of foreign-produced goods.
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public goods and services
Benefits that cannot be withheld from those who don't pay for them, and benefits that may be "consumed" by one person without reducing the amount of the product available for others. Examples include national defense, streetlights, and roads and highways. Public services include welfare programs, law enforcement, and monitoring and regulating trade and the economy.
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qualifying child
A qualifying child for the earned income credit meets the relationship, age, and residency tests. A taxpayer who claims the earned income credit cannot be the qualifying child of another person. A person can be claimed as a qualifying child on one tax return only.
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qualifying person
For the tax credit for child and dependent care expenses, a qualifying person is a child, dependent, or spouse who meets specific requirements. The taxpayer must furnish more than half the cost of maintaining a home that is also the home of the qualifying person. A qualifying child must be under age 13; the taxpayer must claim a dependency exemption for the child. (There is an exception for children of divorced or separated parents.) A qualifying dependent, or a person who could be claimed as a dependent if his or her gross income was less than the exemption amount, must be physically or mentally incapable of self-care. A qualifying spouse must be physically or mentally incapable of self-care.
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Qualifying Widow(er)
If your spouse died in 2001, you can use married filing jointly as your filing status for 2001 if you otherwise qualify to use that status. The year of death is the last year for which you can file jointly with your described spouse. You may be eligible to use qualifying widow(er) with dependent child as your filing status for two years following the year of death of your spouse. For example, if your spouse died in 2000, and you have not remarried, you may be able to use this filing status for 2001 and 2002. This filing status entitles you to use joint return tax rates and the highest standard deduction amount (if you do not itemize deductions). This status does not entitle you to file a joint return.
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refund
Money owed to taxpayers when their total tax payments are greater than the total tax. Refunds are received from the government.
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regressive tax
A tax that takes a larger percentage of income from low-income groups than from high-income groups.
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resources
Factors needed to produce goods and services (natural, human, and capital goods).
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revenue
The income the nation collects from taxes.
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revenue tariff
A tax on imported goods levied primarily to generate revenue for the federal government.
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