Let's Recruit 14 Million Ron Paul Supporters!

Thank you.

Not taxing tips isn't a tax preferential, it's correcting an IRS money grab. Income is an agreement, you do this and I'll give you this. Whereas a tip is only a gift, you did this well so I'm going to give you this. The waiter's tip isn't really income, in reality he can't rely on the tip being a sure thing, and for that reason it shouldn't be taxed.

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http://will86aber.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/in-the-battle-of-...
"Saying Ron Paul hijacked the Republican Party is like saying Paul Revere was a redcoat set on destroying the Republic. The Republican faithful are angry.."

from what I can see with my binoculars....is there another site where I can read it? It looks like something I'd like to spread.........

of the page (Word document format) for this purpose also
http://www.acpohi.ws/The_Tax_Free_Tips_Act

Perhaps a little better understanding of the amendment and what it does (and does not do) is in order.

The 16th Amendment granted Congress "no new power of taxation." [Stanton v. Baltic Mining Co., 240 U.S. 103 (1916); see also Brushaber v. Union Pac. R. Co., 240 U.S. 1 (1916)]

Nor does it authorize a tax on a salary:

"The sixteenth [amendment] does not justify the taxation of persons or things (their property) previously immune . . .it does not extend taxing power to new or excepted citizens…it is intended only to remove all occasions from any apportionment of income taxes among the states. It does not authorize a tax on a salary." Evans v. Gore, 253 US 245 (1920) {emphasis mine}

The IRS cannot declare something to be taxable which is not already taxable by their interpretations of the law and Congress can't tax something that doesn't fit into the definition of "income" from the 16th amendment:

"The Treasury Department cannot, by interpretive regulations, make income out of that which is not income within the meaning of the revenue acts of Congress, nor can Congress, without apportionment, tax as income that which is not income within the meaning of the 16th Amendment." Helvering v. Edison Bros. Stores, 133 F.2D 575

"Income" can only mean what it meant at the time the Amendment was passed, which was the same meaning used in the 1909 Corporate Excise Tax Act because that is what the people understood "income" to be when they ratified the amendment:

"[Income]must be given the same meaning, in all the Income Tax Acts of Congress that it was given in the Corporate Excise Tax Act, and what that meaning is has become definitely settled by the decisions of this court. In determining the definition of the word 'income' thus arrived at, this court has consistently refused to enter into the refinements of lexicographers or economists, and has approved in the definitions quoted, what it believes to be the commonly understood meaning of the term which must have been in the minds of the people when they adopted the Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution." Merchants Loan & Trust v. Smietanka, 255 US 509 (1921)

"Income" in the 1909 Act meant the gain or profit arising from corporate activity:

"As has been repeatedly remarked, the corporation tax act of 1909 was not intended to be and is not, in any proper sense, an income tax law. This court had decided in the Pollock case that the income tax law of 1894 amounted in effect to a direct tax upon property, and was invalid because not apportioned according to populations, as prescribed by the Constitution. The act of 1909 avoided this difficulty by imposing not an income tax [direct], but an excise tax [indirect] upon the conduct of business in a corporate capacity, measuring however, the amount of tax by the income of the corporation". Stratton's Independence, LTD. v. Howbert, 231 US 399, 414 (1913) {emphasis mine}

The Court in Smietanka noted above, gave a list of acceptable defintions of "income" and this is the first one on the list:

"Whatever difficulty there may be about a precise and scientific definition of 'income', it imports, as used here, something entirely distinct from principle or capital either as a subject of taxation or as a measure of the tax; conveying rather the idea of gain or increase arising from corporate activities." Doyle v. Mitchell Brother, Co., 247 US 179 (1918){emphasis mine}

The reason the 16th gave no new powers was that Congress already had the power to tax the exercise of a privilege, in this case "acting in an artificial or corporate capacity." Corporations are permission by government to conduct business without liability beyond loss of investment. Thus, a corporation is a government granted privilege which it can tax. It measures this tax by the amount of gain or profit i.e. "income" arising from the exercise of that privilege.

Congress has since passed additional taxes on the privilege of working in the United States if you are not a citizen here. It has also imposed taxes on the privilege of receiving money from the federal treasury in the form of public employment (elected, appointed or hired), working for government corporations, and working for corporations which are doing business under contract with the federal government.

expected tips and replace it with a profit sharing mechanism. I don't have the capital to start the joint yet however, and I've since gone on to other things in life. Perhaps I will take it up again down the road.

However, be advised that even today, any business, which does not pay their servers, bartenders, and hosts in CASH is not allowed to pay less than the full minimum wage. The purpose of the "tip credit" provision against the minimum wage was designed to reduce the burden of the minimum wage law upon restaurants and other businesses which operated their payrolls on a CASH basis. (some do, none of them are corporate chains to my knowledge)

It was NEVER intended for a restaurant which pays its servers etc. by weekly, biweekly etc. in the form of a CHECK to take this credit. To my knowledge this has not been tested in court.

The language of the law is clear that this credit shall apply to CASH wages. If "cash" means and includes "checks" or "bank drafts" than EVERYONE gets paid cash wages in any business, and thus every business could avoid the minimum wage laws by paying $2.13 an hour and changing their business to their employees being expected to receive tips. That is clearly absurd. Businesses which pay employees by CHECK and also take the tip credit down to $2.13 are in violation of the law.

It is easy to tell someone who is unemployed that they should not accept a job for idealistic reasons. Would you prefer that they refuse to work at all and go on welfare, in which case the American public would bear ALL of their living expenses?

I can't help but be a little upset my your remarks. I really hope you don't generalize this for all servers, not all of us are what you make us out to be!

I'm a single mom, and I work 2 jobs. I work very hard at everything I do, especially when I serve. I am very thankful when I receive ANY amount of tip from my customers, and I work very hard so that they have an enjoyable meal. We all have our bad days, sometimes the kitchen is running behind, we're slammed and other things can happen that can get in the way. What I'm trying to say, is I don't expect a huge tip with every table, and when I don't get tipped, I know it could be because I did something wrong, and I probably deserve it. Or maybe it's not me at all, maybe they were just out for dinner for a special treat, and can't afford much else, it doesn't matter to me. I do not hold a grudge! I'm very thankful for everything/anything I receive, and do not go around expecting a handout. I've had tables write me notes with a small tip (positive notes!), and sometimes they're even better than any dollar amount I could have received! I just want you to know that yes there are some horrible servers, but there are some good ones too who truely do enjoy providing you with a good meal, and are just thankful for the fact that they do have a job where they can make a little money.

It makes me upset that you sound so upset with most servers, and I truely hope your next night out goes well, and maybe you'll even get stuck with me as a server! I can be very entertaining when the mood strikes.

Now....about Dunkin Donuts, I am right there with you. At my restaurant job, we sometimes have to work 'to go' shifts. You ring in the order, greet the customer when they arrive and bag up their food. Most other servers will put a tip cup out to get some tips...I do not, I do get minimum wage working that job, and I do not expect anything! I do not believe it is deservered.

But basically I just want you to know there are some bad ones, but don't forget about us few (though it may be a handful) that don't expect a handout, just a thank you for when we do a good job. You need to focus on the good in this world! Worrying about all the bad apples will just drag you down, you need to be thankful and happy about the things that are right in this world!

I don't want to go there!

I love it that people are pretty much all friendly where I live - and I always tip large - but i drove a taxi for a few years, so I feel for them (and I always opened doors with a smile)...If it hadn't been for gov regulation forcing business out of the country - alot of people taking service industry jobs wouldnt be where they are today.

If your server is bad, then make the tip reflect it. Some service may warrant a small tip, some an average tip, and some a large one. Some may warrant no tip at all.

But be sure that in every case, you do NOT refuse to tip or tip less than average on account you don't like the food or atmosphere of the place. Base your tip on the service provided to you BY THE SERVER. For that is the only thing they have control over. You are not communicating ANYTHING to the manager or owner by stiffing a server because your steak wasn't quite right, or you didn't care for the decor or the music being played. (yes, people do refuse to tip on these issues)

If you have a problem with ANYTHING, especially the level of service, TELL THE MANAGER. Let them know you tipped less than the average or nothing at all, and explain why. That is the only way something will get fixed. Managers can't fix the problem if you don't tell them. I could go round and round with you all day on how to run a restaurant, but if you don't speak up don't expect your opinion to matter.

You will go much further in having an enjoyable dining experience, if when something is wrong, you alert the right people to it. Then give them a chance to make it right, either that visit or on another. (of course, if they still can't fix it, then go elsewhere)

I completely agree with this comment. However, in the meantime, anything that chips away at IRS influence will ultimately accelerate its demise. I am certain that this is the reason Ron Paul has introduced so many bills over the years to provide income tax cuts/exemptions/credits for various segments of the American public.

For example, the following current bills introduced by Congressman Paul may appear individually to affect only a specific group of citizens, but consider the total impact on the IRS (and the liberty of every American citizen) if ALL of them were to become law:

1) H.J.Res.48 - Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the
United States relative to abolishing personal income, estate, and gift
taxes and prohibiting the United States Government from engaging in
business in competition with its citizens.
2) H.R.161 - Social Security Beneficiary Tax Reduction Act
3) H.R.162 - Senior Citizens Tax Elimination Act
4) H.R.779 - Tax Free Tips Act of 2009
5) H.R.1097 - Tax Relief for Transportation Workers Act of 2009
6) H.R.1311 - Unemployment Assistance Act of 2009
7) H.R.1312 - Unemployed Tax Relief Act of 2009
8) H.R.1495 - Comprehensive Health Care Reform Act of 2009
9) H.R.1496 - Child Health Care Affordability Act
10) H.R.1497 - Treat Physicians Fairly Act of 2009
11) H.R.1498 - Freedom From Unnecessary Litigation Act of 2009
12) H.R.1654 - Cures Can Be Found Act of 2009
13) H.R.1767 - Fair Housing Tax Credit Extension Act of 2009
14) H.R.1768 - Energy Efficient and Environmentally Friendly Automobile Tax Credit Act of 2009
15) H.R.1949 - Teacher Tax Cut Act of 2009
16) H.R.1950 - Professional Educators Tax Relief Act of 2009
17) H.R.1951 - Family Education Freedom Act of 2009
18) H.R.1952 - Education Improvement Tax Cut Act
19) H.R.1953 - Hope Plus Scholarship Act of 2009
20) H.R.1954 - Make College Affordable Act of 2009
21) H.R.1955 - Agriculture Education Freedom Act
22) H.R.2445 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exclude from gross income discharges of personal indebtedness outside of bankruptcy.
23) H.R.2953 - Evacuees Tax Relief Act of 2009
24) H.R.3213 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to expand and make permanent the standard deduction for real property taxes.

Website source -
http://www.opencongress.org/people/bills/400311_Ronald_Paul?...

There is one exception. If he signed an agreement with the IRS known as TRAC or TRAC II. In these cases, he would have been required to inform you that while you are always required to report all of your tips, you would automatically have reported for you a certain percentage of your sales regardless of if you actually made that amount. (usually 8%)

While this seems unfair and likewise illegal (I don't know of any TRAC agreements that were taken to court) if you can't make 8% as a server, then you need to find a new line of work.

But yes, your employer broke the law.

I can't think of a single person I've ever known that claimed all their tips. EVER.

***
Freedom is not: doing everything you want to.
Freedom is: not having to do what you don't want to do.
~ Joyce Meyer

"Doing nothing is almost always an option and is very often the best option." Daniel Hannan

This is a really good one, but we need to be better at getting the word around this time.

We have to hammer Voter Fraud.

We have to RUN to WIN.