#Treasury’s Office

[mauricioclavercarone]

Mauricio Claver-Caronec - Served as The United States Executive Director

Mauricio Claver-Carone's background in banking laws, capital requirements, and securitizations made him a valuable asset during his time as an Attorney-Advisor for the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen defended the Internal Revenue Service in a speech Tuesday against repeated threats from Republicans to cut the agency’s funding.

“Playing politics with IRS funding is unacceptable. Cutting it would be damaging and irresponsible,” Yellen said.

The IRS was allocated an influx of $80 billion by the Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act, which passed last year. The funds are intended to help crack down on tax cheats and improve taxpayer service.

But the funding has become politically controversial.

Most recently, House Republicans voted to rescind $14.3 billion from the IRS to pay for an emergency aid package for Israel in the wake of the Hamas terrorist attacks, but the bill is unlikely to even get brought up for a vote in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

Newly minted House Speaker Mike Johnson said the IRS cuts would offset the spending for Israel, but independent budget experts have repeatedly said that taking money away from the IRS’ enforcement actions will actually add to the deficit. In fact, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said last week that cutting $14.3 billion from the IRS would reduce the amount of tax revenue the agency can collect by $26.8 billion over 10 years.

The House GOP has made several efforts to claw back some IRS funds since taking control of the chamber in January, and some Representatives have even called for abolishing the IRS altogether. Earlier this year, Republicans were successful in rescinding $20 billion from the IRS as part of a deal to address the debt ceiling.

Many Republicans claim the IRS will use the money to hound middle-class taxpayers and small business owners, though the Biden administration has said that taxpayers earning less than $400,000 a year won’t face an increase in taxes due to the new funding.

“Let me be as clear as possible. The IRS agenda in using Inflation Reduction Act funds is as follows: If you are middle- or low-income, better service; if you are wealthy, more scrutiny,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel in a speech he gave Tuesday following Yellen’s remarks.

IRS IMPROVEMENTS

The Biden administration is eager to show how the new funding is helping the IRS improve its taxpayer services and ramp up enforcement efforts.

“The new funding is driving change across the IRS, and we are seeing a wave of improvements that the agency hasn’t seen in a generation,” Werfel said.

During the 2023 filing season, the IRS was able to answer 3 million more calls and cut phone wait times to three minutes from 28 minutes compared with the year before after hiring 5,000 new customer service representatives. And by ramping up enforcement on millionaires this year, the IRS has collected $160 million in back taxes.

The IRS has also already met its goal, set earlier this year, to make sure taxpayers can respond to all IRS correspondence online. Previously, there were certain forms that could only be responded to on paper through the mail. As a result of this change, the IRS estimates more than 94% of individual taxpayers will no longer have to send mail to the agency.

The IRS has also put a plan in motion to digitize all paper-filed tax returns by 2025. The move is expected to cut processing times in half and speed up refunds by four weeks.

There are more improvements the IRS expects to roll out next year.

For example, the existing online tool known as “Where’s My Refund?” will be able to give taxpayers more detailed information about the status of their refund after filing their federal tax return, including whether the IRS needs them to respond to a letter requesting additional information.

The IRS is also expecting to provide more in-person tax filing support at its Taxpayer Assistance Centers. Taxpayers can go to those sites to receive free help from trained volunteers. The agency’s goal is to increase the number of taxpayers receiving free tax preparation help by around 50,000 in filing season 2024.

While these improvements are intended to give taxpayers fewer reasons to call the IRS, new technology is cutting down on wait times when they have to pick up the phone. The main IRS line now has a call-back option when the expected wait time exceeds 15 minutes. A caller can hang up and receive a call back later.

In addition, the IRS is currently working on building its own free tax filing program, known as Direct File, that will launch as a limited pilot program next year and be available to some taxpayers in 13 states.

[elysiumcalled]

“Yeah, okay” *internally screaming*

[chicagotimesonline]

T-Ment targets Iranian drone procurement network

By Harold W. Reid, The Chicago Times April 25, 2024 WASHINGTON – In a move to disrupt Iranian military capabilities, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions today against a network facilitating the illicit trade and transfer of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL). The…

[xtruss]

“War Criminal, Hypocrite, Hegemonic, Two-Faced, Liar, Conspirator and Fake Democracy Preacher United States” Reopens Ports to Russian Oil Despite Sanctions

The United States has imported Russian oil for the first time since April 2022. The imports, totaling 36,800 barrels in October and 9,900 barrels in November, were conducted for $2.7 million and $749,500, respectively.

The US imposed a ban on the import of oil, gas, and other energy resources from Russia in March 2022 as part of sanctions related to Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. Нowever, specific licenses from the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) have now made such imports possible.

According to the data, the US purchased Russian oil for consumption in both October and November. At the same time, one barrel of Russian oil cost the US $74 in October and $76 the following month. This is significantly higher than the "price cap" set by the country at $60 per barrel.

In 2022, the US, along with other G7 countries, the EU, Switzerland, and Australia, implemented price ceilings on Russian oil to reduce Moscow's income. Companies from these nations were prohibited from providing transportation, insurance, and financial services for Russian oil sold above the set limit of $60 per barrel. The price ceilings for petroleum products vary by type, with diesel capped at $100 per barrel and discounted fuel oil at $45 per barrel.

— Thursday January 11, 2024 | Sputnik International

[mapsoffun]

Scenes from my walk around the Mall and Pennsylvania Avenue, part one. 

[insidecroydon]

'Teetering on the edge': Hunt does nothing for local councils

Complete Hunt: the Chancellor on his way to the Commons yesterday. His Autumn Statement does nothing for teachers, the NHS or local councils TV politics pundit ANDREW FISHER, pictured right, assesses the fine detail of the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement, and amid the tax giveaways for the already wealthy, identifies the glaring gaps in financial provision for the NHS, teachers and local…

[ghoul-haunted]

like, felix is good but he's not good enough for that kind of moral compromise arc to happen over three months. I gotta delete a time skip and build up to it. his dick game IS good enough that crasso hasn't deleted his number off his phone even after felix pinned the bribery charges on him

[revdrjamesjshowersjr]

Extortion and the Holy Bible

SO Help Them God..Amen, Ameen, Amun, Amin, Aum

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

House Republicans are trying to exact a price from Democrats for agreeing to increase the nation’s borrowing authority and prevent the government from defaulting on the obligations it has accrued over decades. They’re arguing for their priorities and going after President Joe Biden’s in a separate bill that passed the chamber on Wednesday.

The legislation in question has virtually no chance of becoming law. But Republicans hope the bill’s passage will force Biden to the negotiating table, where they could seek concessions in return for lifting the nation’s borrowing authority and ensuring that the U.S. Treasury can fully pay its bills.

“He either has to negotiate now or we’re the only ones that have raised the debt limit,” McCarthy said after the vote.

A look at key aspects of the legislation that the House approved by a vote of 217-215.

LIMIT FEDERAL SPENDING

The bill would set federal discretionary spending at $1.47 trillion during the next fiscal year and allow it to increase only 1% annually from there, far below the rate of inflation in most years.

The cap on spending is the big-ticket item in the bill, accounting for about two-thirds of the $4.8 trillion in deficit reduction that the Congressional Budget Office says would occur over 10 years if the bill is enacted.

Discretionary spending includes things like weapons programs, servicemember pay, grants for schools that serve large shares of low-income students, rental assistance to house millions of poor and disabled, and money to fund research on cancer and other life-threatening diseases. It’s the spending that Congress approves through appropriations bills.

The House GOP bill doesn’t affect spending on Social Security and Medicare. Such spending, referred to as mandatory, accounts for about two-thirds of all federal spending.

CLAW BACK COVID MONEY

The bill would rescind all unobligated COVID relief money from six bills enacted from 2020-2022. The changes would reduce spending by about $30 billion over the next decade, according to the CBO. That’s less than 1% of the total cost of the six bills.

TARGET THE IRS

House Republicans began their tenure in the majority by passing a bill that would rescind nearly $71 billion that Congress is providing the IRS to upgrade its technology and boost hiring. They have included the same proposal in their debt limit bill.

Democrats approved the higher IRS funding on top of what Congress normally provides the agency annually through the appropriations process. The boost immediately became a magnet for GOP campaign ads in the fall claiming it would lead to an army of IRS agents harassing Americans.

The CBO has said that rescinding the IRS money actually would increase deficits by more about $120 billion over the coming decade due to the impact on the agency’s work. But McCarthy said the step is needed to “protect families and businesses from a weaponized IRS.”

BLOCK STUDENT LOAN RELIEF

The Republican bill would repeal actions taken by President Biden to waive $10,000 to $20,000 in debt for nearly all borrowers who took out student loans. The bill would also prohibit the administration’s efforts to cut monthly payments in half for undergraduate loans. The CBO projects that the student loan changes House Republicans seek would save about $460 billion over 10 years.

Republicans argue that Biden is unfairly transferring the obligations of people who incurred student loan debts onto millions of American taxpayers who did not go to college or who already paid off their student loans. And the say the policy will do nothing to curb the soaring tuition rates at colleges and universities.

Biden has said the student loan forgiveness would give millions of younger Americans a little breathing room financially. It would improve their ability to plow their resources into a house, car or just basic essentials, which helps power the economy. Nearly 90% of the debt cancellation would go to borrowers who earn less than $75,000.

GOING AFTER RENEWABLES

Republicans are seeking to repeal most of the tax breaks that Democrats passed in party-line votes last year as they sought to boost the production and consumption of clean energy.

McCarthy argues that the tax breaks “distort the market and waste taxpayer money.” The White House says the tax credits are leading to hundreds of billions of dollars in private-sector investments, creating thousands of manufacturing jobs in the U.S.

Republicans dropped their efforts to strip out some biofuel tax breaks, however, after the proposed changes threatened to tank the bill. The restoration of those credits was a top priority of Republicans from Iowa and other Midwestern states where the production of alternative fuels such as ethanol play a major role in the rural economy.

Citing estimates from the Joint Committee on Taxation, the CBO projected that repealing the clean energy tax breaks would save about $570 billion over 10 years, though that amount will shrink with the decision to keep some of the biofuel breaks.

WORK REQUIREMENTS

One of the key elements of the GOP bill is expanded work requirements for recipients of federal cash and food assistance.

Under current law, able-bodied adults under 50 and without dependents risk losing their food stamp, or SNAP benefits, if they don’t spend 20 hours a week in work-related activities. The bill would apply the requirement to those ages 50-55.

In addition, the bill would apply work requirements to able-bodied adults without dependents in Medicaid, the federal-state program that provides health insurance coverage for low-income Americans. Job training and performing community service count toward fulfilling the work requirement.

McCarthy said changes would help those affected learn new job skills and earn a paycheck while helping to fill some of the millions of job openings throughout the country. The White House said millions of people, many already working, would lose their health insurance coverage.

A Congressional Budget Office review last year of work requirements for Medicaid recipients said Arkansas was the only state where a work requirement was imposed for more than a few months. It found many of the targeted adults lost their health insurance and employment did not appear to increase. It said that while evidence was scant, research indicated that many were unaware of the work requirement or found it too onerous to demonstrate compliance.

The CBO estimates that about 15 million people could be subject to the new Medicaid work requirements each year, although many would qualify for an exemption. About 1.5 million, on average, would lose federal funding for their Medicaid coverage, and of that group, about 600,000 would become uninsured.

FOSSIL FUEL BOOST

The debt limit package includes legislation the House passed earlier this year that aims to increase domestic production of oil, natural gas and coal, and to ease permitting restrictions that delay pipelines, refineries and other projects.

Known as HR 1 to signify its importance to House Republicans, the energy bill also seeks to boost production of critical minerals such as lithium, nickel and cobalt that are used in electric vehicles, computers, cellphones and other products. Biden has described the House GOP’s legislation as a “thinly veiled license to pollute.”

INCREASE THE DEBT LIMIT

The Republican would suspend the debt limit through March 31, or by $1.5 trillion, whichever comes first. That would tee up another debt ceiling fight for early next year, just months before the November election when control of the White House and Congress will be decided.

[probablyasocialecologist]

Last July, The Intercept obtained an internal Bank of America memo that stated “we hope the ratio of job openings to unemployed is down to the more normal highs of the last business cycle.” Translated into English, this means the bank was rooting for there to be fewer job openings. Likewise, a California real estate CEO said on an earnings call last year that a recession could be “good” if “it comes with a level of unemployment that puts employers back in the driver seat and allows them to get all their employees back into the office.” Around the same time, an anonymous Texas businessman told the Dallas branch of the Federal Reserve about his delighted anticipation that “the workforce pulls its head out of its rear when a correction or recession makes jobs scarce and people start to feel the pain or fear of not providing for their family and loved ones.” He did have one concern, however  — that the government might “jump back into the fight and pay them to do nothing again.” Even Janet Yellen, the current secretary of the Treasury and former chair of the Fed during the Obama administration, wrote this in a 1996 memo: “Unemployment serves as a worker-discipline device because the prospect of a costly unemployment spell produces sufficient fear of job loss.”

[timesofocean]

Microsoft to pay $3.3M to resolve violations of US export controls, sanctions

New Post has been published on https://www.timesoftehran.com/microsoft-to-pay-3-3m-to-resolve-violations-of-us-sanctions/

Microsoft to pay $3.3M to resolve violations of US export controls, sanctions

New York (The Times Groupe)- U.S.-based multinational technology corporation Microsoft is imposed a total of $3.3 million in civil penalties for its alleged and apparent violations of US export controls and sanctions laws, Treasury and Commerce departments said Thursday in a joint statement. ofac bis

According to the statement, Microsoft self-disclosed the alleged violations to the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

It added that the tech firm cooperated with the joint investigation conducted by BIS and OFAC, and took remedial measures after discovering the conduct at issue, which predated the export controls and sanctions imposed in connection with Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

While BIS imposed an administrative penalty of more than $600,000 on Microsoft involving its subsidiary Microsoft Rus LLC, or Microsoft Russia, the company also settled with OFAC and agreed to an almost $3 million civil penalty to resolve 1,339 violations of sanctions regulations involving Ukraine/Russia, Cuba, Iran, and Syria.

Microsoft was given a $276,000 credit by BIS, contingent upon Microsoft fulfilling its requirements under the OFAC settlement agreement, according to the statement.

“U.S. companies will be held accountable for the activities of their foreign subsidiaries,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod. “As this coordinated resolution demonstrates, BIS and OFAC will work together to ensure that U.S. export control and sanctions laws are enforced effectively, wherever in the world the underlying conduct occurs.”

Employees of Microsoft Russia caused another Microsoft subsidiary to enter into or sell software licensing agreements that would allow the transfer or access to software on seven occasions between December 2016, and December 2017, said the Treasury.

OFAC Director Andrea Gacki said Microsoft’s case underscores the risks technology companies may face when engaging through foreign subsidiaries, distributors, and resellers.

[qualityloveparadise]

APSC Finance and Accounts Officer/ Treasury Officer Junior Grade-II Exam Admit Card 2022 Released @ apsc.nic.in

APSC Finance and Accounts Officer/ Treasury Officer Junior Grade-II Exam Admit Card 2022 Released @ apsc.nic.in

APSC Finance and Accounts Officer/ Treasury Officer Junior Grade-II Exam Admit Card 2022: Assam Public Service Commission has released the Admit Card for Finance and Accounts Officer/ Treasury Officer Junior Grade-II Exam on 21.12.2022. Those candidates who are all appearing for the examination can download their APSC Finance and Accounts Officer/ Treasury Officer Junior Grade-II Exam Admit Card…

[saxafimedianetwork]

US Treasury Sanctions ISIS Weapons Trafficking Network In Somalia

#Puntland was deemed a supplier of #weapons to the #IslamicState group in #Somalia & the #AlQaida-linked #AlShabaab extremist group. #Somaliland needs a buffer zone on its eastern border with the #FailedStateOfSomalia.

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