MoneyCafe.com

Next years federal budget (FY 2010) was proposed by the President today.  Spending is budgeted at $3,552,000,000 on top of this years (FY 2009) estimated spending of $3,938,000,000.  So basically, as a country we are going to spend $4 trillion this year and $3.5 trillion next year.   What does that mean to you if you are a taxpayer?  There are a number ways to look at this.  I have just a quick take for now. 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in 2008, the United States had 120 million full-time employees.  With unemployment rising this number is going down.  I estimate this full-time employed group accounts for more than 90% of taxes paid.  (Corporate taxes are about 8% of federal receipts right now and should be 9% next year.  Workers making under $20,000 (a generous proxy for part time employees) pay less than 2% of the federal budget through their payroll and income taxes.)  

Using these numbers, the average full-time employee is responsible for federal taxes this year in the amount of $29,534 and next year in the amount of $26,640.   

See:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/Summary_Tables2.pdf
ftp://ftp.bls.gov/pub/special.requests/lf/aat12.txt
http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/indtaxstats/article/0,,id=133521,00.html

American Express came up with a unique way to get rid of certain customers they no longer want - pay them to go away.  According to the company, select customers can get up to $300 to close their accounts. 

We are guessing it’s for delinquent accounts.  But maybe they are preemptively going after certain credit profiles that aren’t yet delinquent.  If you have received the offer, let us know your situation by posting a comment.  Feel free to post anonymously. 

See:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/banking/2009-02-23-amex-close-accounts_N.htm

With unemployment getting higher, there are now about twice as many people looking for jobs as usual.  Here are a couple of websites full of great information to help you pursue new employment and make informed decisions about current employment.

First, GlassDoor.com is a great resource for information about employers.  It provides reviews of employers, company ratings and salary data.  This is a very worthwhile site for anyone, whether you are looking for a job or not; whether you are happy with your employer or not.  They claim to have all the information available to manage your career.  The information on the site is free.  They just ask that you share information first – calling it the “give to get” model.

Career Builder is another great resource with a wealth of information and new job postings all the time.  Our Career Center is powered by Career Builder.  Check it out.  They offer job searches, a job seeker toolkit, career advice and much more. 

Times are very tough for those without employment as we live through this uniquely severe economic period.  But on the bright side, we live in a unique time with all the vast and growing resources of the Internet.  These resources with the instant availability of useful, timely and free information will certainly make our economy much more resilient than in the past.  Now, if we can only get our government out of the way, or at least paddling in the right direction…..

See:
http://www.glassdoor.com
http://www.moneycafe.com/careercenter/

The Wall Street Journal has a good article about the opportunities for first time home buyers.  Good homes in good areas are affordable again for regular working people.  That is definitely a silver lining in the crash of home prices.  There is also a new tax credit to help first time home buyers which is further explained in a CNN article.   CNN explains the current program, the proposed program in the Stimulus Bill and some of the limitations. 

See:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123431356988570855.html
http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/29/real_estate/tax_credit_near/

The Federal Reserve is finishing up a two day policy meeting today and will make an announcement at 2:15 pm Eastern.  At the last meeting they decided to lower the Federal Funds Target Rate to a target range of 0.00% to 0.25%.   They also indicated rates would be held low for a while.  That action resulted in the Prime Rate going down to 3.25%.

It’s not clear what to expect today.  They certainly will want to do something to positively impact consumers and business.  But having previously lowered the rate to near zero percent, their options seem limited.  We’ll keep an eye on their decision and report back later regarding the effects this meeting will have on interest rates.

Previously we noted Californian’s who file early may get their refund on time if they file before February 1.  If you haven’t heard yet, California is out of money and can’t pay income tax refunds on time this year. 

Apparently, the door is already shut on currently getting an income tax refund.   See the Sacramento Bee and ABC News stories on this.

It is not known how long Californian’s will have to wait for their refunds.   The information could not be found at http://www.sco.ca.gov, the State Controller’s website.