Internal Revenue Service

Insurers’ ObamaCare escape hatch

By Naomi Lopez Bauman
10/22/2014
Insurers wouldn’t participate in the federal health exchange without an escape clause protecting them from the possibility that IRS subsidies would be ruled illegal, according to industry news. It was a smart move, as that possibility just got more likely in recent weeks. At issue is what the plain text of Section 1401 of the Affordable Care...

Federal court strikes down ObamaCare subsidies

10/01/2014
People who don’t like the lawlessness displayed by the Obama administration in its implementation of the Affordable Care Act have something to celebrate. On Sept. 30, a federal court in Oklahoma ruled that the Affordable Care Act means what it says: ObamaCare insurance subsidies are only available in states that have established their own health-insurance...

D.C. court to rehear Halbig ObamaCare decision

09/04/2014
Good news for the Obama administration: the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has granted the administration’s request to rehear the court’s July 22 decision in Halbig v. Burwell. That decision struck down an Internal Revenue Service rule that made ObamaCare insurance subsidies available in all 50 states, even though the...

Could today’s Halbig decision topple ObamaCare?

By Naomi Lopez Bauman
07/22/2014
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Court has ruled today that the Internal Revenue Service does not have the ability to circumvent the original intent of the Affordable Care Act and provide insurance subsidies or impose individual and employer penalties in a state that has not created its own ObamaCare health-insurance exchange....

TAGS: ACA: Affordable Care Act

Illinois corruption watch, June 2014

By Brian Costin, Anthony Trania
07/09/2014
Unfortunately for taxpayers, June was a groundbreaking month for corruption in Illinois. In June alone, there were reports of 85 corruption-related stories in the state. Some of the record-breaking highlights include the following: For the first time in 33 years, the Illinois Legislative Audit Commission exercised its subpoena powers in the issuance of a subpoena...

Halbig v. Sebelius ruling could be first step in ObamaCare’s undoing

By Naomi Lopez Bauman
06/24/2014
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s imminent decision in Halbig v. Sebelius could be an important step in toppling ObamaCare. The central issue in Halbig v. Sebelius is whether the Internal Revenue Service can provide tax credits to individuals, as well as impose penalties on employers, in states that did not establish...

Hoosier playbook: How Indiana lures Illinoisans with opportunity

By Michael Lucci
06/23/2014
Illinoisans cross the border to become Hoosiers at a stunning rate. Illinois had a net loss of 4,100 people and $76 million of annual income to Indiana in 2010 alone, the most recent year of Internal Revenue Service data. That’s because for every three people who left Indiana for Illinois, four left Illinois for Indiana. Illinois’ losses to Indiana are...

Illinois Corruption Watch, May 2014

By Brian Costin
06/04/2014
In completing our second month of the new “Illinois Corruption Watch” project, we are shocked at the volume of corruption stories being reported across the state. In just two months we have found reports of 101 different corruption-related stories; 45 in April and 56 in May. It’s no wonder Illinois citizens have by far the...

Illinois should repeal the death tax

By Michael Lucci
06/03/2014
Of all Illinois’ taxes, its death tax is the most morbid. Only 15 states in the U.S. levy a tax on death, and Illinois has the second-highest rate. Death taxes include estate and inheritance taxes. They hit certain Illinois families hard. Farmers, investors and business owners often need substantial assets to generate a moderate income....