August 21, 2016

The Effect of State Taxes on Charitable Giving (From American Legislative Exchange Council - William Freela... by Greg Karnes

September 24, 2015

The Effect of State Taxes on Charitable Giving (From American Legislative Exchange Council - William Freeland, Ben Wilterdink, Jonathan Williams)

A 1 percent increase in the personal income tax burden is associated with 0.35 percent decrease in charitable giving per dollar of state income. Similarly, this State Factor found that an increase in personal income tax burden of roughly 1 percentage point of total state income results in a roughly 0.10 percentage point decrease in the level of measured charitable donations as a percent of income. When all state taxes are considered, a 1 percentage point increase in the total tax burden is associated with a 1.16 percent drop in charitable giving per dollar of state income. Similarly, an increase in total tax burden of roughly 1 percentage point of total state income results in a roughly 0.09 percentage point decrease in the level measured charitable donations as a percent of income.

The Work Versus Welfare Trade-Off – Lazy Europeans (From Cato Institute - Michael D. Tanner, Charles Hughes... by Greg Karnes

August 24, 2015

 

The Work Versus Welfare Trade-Off – Lazy Europeans (From Cato Institute - Michael D. Tanner, Charles Hughes)

 

Welfare benefits in European Union (EU) countries vary widely, but in many of them, benefits are high relative to what an individual could expect to earn from a low-wage or entry-level job. Benefits in the United States fit comfortably into the mainstream of welfare states. Excluding Medicaid, the United States would rank 10th among the EU nations analyzed, more generous than France and slightly less generous than Sweden. Countries that are serious about reducing welfare dependency and rewarding work should consider strengthening work requirements, establishing time limits for participation, and tightening eligibility. Perhaps more important, countries should examine the level of benefits available and the effective marginal tax rates their welfare systems create, with an eye toward reducing disincentives and encouraging work.

The Pros and Cons of a Guaranteed National Income (From CATO Institute - Michael Tanner) by Greg Karnes

May 12, 2015

 

The Pros and Cons of a Guaranteed National Income

 

Conceptually the idea of a guaranteed national income has a great deal to recommend it—especially when compared to our current complex, expensive, and ineffective welfare system. It promises an anti-poverty effort that is simple and transparent, that treats recipients like adults, and that has a better set of incentives when it comes to work, marriage, and savings. In theory, such an income could be set high enough so that no American would live in poverty. But what sounds good in theory tends to break down when one looks at questions of implementation. There are serious trade-offs among cost, simplicity, and incentive structure. Attempts to solve problems in one area would raise questions in others.

January 30, 2015

Family Breakdown and Poverty

The facts about the collapse of the family among America’s poor are uncomfortable for the Left because liberals don’t want to acknowledge what they show us about the importance of the family structure and about the need to reinforce it. And they are uncomfortable for the Right because conservatives don’t want to acknowledge what they show us about the destructive effects of persistent poverty. The promise of America is unreachable in the absence of strong and stable families. That call should now be generalized into a case for making the strength of the family a key national priority. The lessons of the past half century, and especially of the Great Society’s mostly failed experiments, can help us think more clearly about the means by which this end could be pursued. The end should be the reinforcement and recovery of the core institution of our society, and every society.

Family Breakdown and Poverty.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [3.1 MB]

January 14, 2015

Welfare in America, 1998-2013

After accounting for inflation and changes in the poverty level, the federal government now spends $1.3 trillion more on welfare than it did in 1998.The current system spends substantial sums but nevertheless leaves many millions of Americans trapped in poverty. New solutions, not more funding, are the answer. Promising reforms—such as Opportunity Grants—acknowledge this reality and seek, instead, to tap into America’s 50 state “laboratories of democracy.” Under such proposals, conservative states will have the power to implement work requirements for the able-bodied without sacrificing the level of aid received by recipients. Liberal states, for their part, can experiment with different distribution methods without sacrificing accountability. The goal: empower states to choose welfare policies that best serve their most vulnerable families, as well as those that best fit their political demands.

Welfare In America.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [704.7 KB]

December 12, 2014

Was Moynihan Right?: What Happens to the Children of Unmarried Mothers

Unmarried parents are not that different from married parents in their behavior. Both groups value marriage, spend a long time searching for a suitable marriage partner, and engage in premarital sex and cohabitation. The key difference is that one group often has children while they are searching for a suitable partner, whereas the other group more often has children only after they marry. Changing this dynamic would require two things. First, we would need to give less-educated women a good reason to postpone motherhood. The women who are currently postponing motherhood are typically investing in education and careers. These women use contraceptive methods that are more reliable, and they use these methods more consistently. Postponing fertility in these ways would also have benefits for women who currently do not do so. They would be more mature when they became mothers, and they would probably do a better job of selecting suitable partners.

Was Moynihan Right.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [4.0 MB]

October 23, 2014

The War on Poverty Turns 50: Are We Winning Yet?

Fifty years into the War on Poverty, if we have not lost the war, we are at best barely battling to a draw. Looked at objectively, continuing the War on Poverty is unlikely to further reduce poverty, increase self-sufficiency, or expand economic mobility. More anti-poverty programs and more welfare spending are not the answer to continued poverty. Fifty years of failure is enough.

The War On Poverty Turns 50.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [526.9 KB]

Trying to limit the burning of fossil fuels can only make energy more scarce and expensive. That has real negative consequences, especially for the poor:

October 02, 2014

Low Pay and the Cost of Living: A Supply-Side Approach

For too long an obsessive focus on the role of government transfers and state-imposed wage rates in alleviating poverty has blinded campaigners and politicians to other policy areas which fundamentally raise living costs and mean wages go less far. It is now vital that we seek to undo some of this damage, rather than doubling down with a more interventionist agenda which would seek to treat the symptoms of problems arising from existing policies.

Low Pay And The Cost Of Living.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [1.2 MB]

September 16, 2014

 

By: Robert Rector

 

Today, the U.S. Census Bureau will release its annual report on poverty. This report is noteworthy because this year marks the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon Johnson’s launch of the War on Poverty. Liberals claim that the War on Poverty has failed because we didn't spend enough money. Their answer is just to spend more. But the facts show otherwise.

The War on Poverty Has Been A Colossal F[...]
Adobe Acrobat document [363.7 KB]

Get in Touch With Me.

Call me at 405 810-8119 with any questions or to schedule an appointment.

 

Greg Karnes CPA

4301 NW 63rd St, Suite 200

Oklahoma City, OK 73116-1504

 

Or you may use my contact form.

 

Competitive Fee Structure

 

… but if you are looking for the cheapest fees, or obsessing about your correct pronouns or global warming/white privilege B.S., or unable to make up your mind as to whether you are a man or a woman, you would be so much happier working with someone else…

… in addition, due to an extremely hectic schedule, only serious inquiries may expect a response …

New tax clients are expected to provide copies of their last 3 years of tax returns and provide permission to contact prior accountant to resolve any issues, if necessary.

 

Regretfully, I am unable to accept new clients who have unfiled prior-year’s tax returns, who are not current with all prior tax obligations, are involved in any marijuana-related business ventures, use marijuana or illegal drugs, have any income from gambling, invest in cryptocurrency, are experiencing extreme financial difficulties, are personal-injury attorneys, in the construction industry or are in the country illegally. Newly formed businesses are frowned upon as well.

 

Though not required, supporters of President Donald J. Trump, Governor Kevin Stitt, the National Rifle Association & clients who are alpha males & females, ethical, hard-working, cheerful, optimistic and NOT easily offended are generally preferred.

 

Absolutely NO LAZY, TREE-HUGGING, CRITICAL RACE THEORY PROMOTING, ECONOMICALLY ILLITERATE,  GODLESS, RIOTING, KNEELING, CENSORING, RACIALLY & GENDER OBSESSED, DR. SEUSS BOOK-BANNING, FIREARM CONFISCATING,  BIG GOVERNMENT SOCIALISTS allowed beyond the front door, however!

Due to the alleged gang activity and drug dealing at the nearby Chelsea Manor Apts. & 7-11 Convenience Store, I would personally recommend "packing some heat" while in this area (and perhaps Penn Square Mall as well). Some believe the OKC Police Dept. has become too constrained and are hesitant to confront these gangbangers and put them behind bars where they rightfully belong. "Talk on the Street" seems to be that this emanates from an extremely weak & naive Mayor who purportedly suffers from a severe case of "Low T," a weak City Manager, a new, effeminate-looking Police Chief, who refuses to enforce our nation's immigration laws & a Ward 6 Council Girl who took her Oath Of Office using a book on Marxism.

Everything that Mayor David “Pajama Boy” Holt & Police Chief “Wily” Wade Gourley need to know to improve law enforcement in OKC is in this book…if only they had some courage...

Calm Guide Sheet by Greg Karnes on Scribd

Make The University of Oklahoma Great Again!

 

(Let us return to the time before the “Loudmouth Communist Snowflakes” and the less than competent financial administrators arrived on campus)

ODELL BECKHAM JR.

NOVEMBER 23, 2014

GREATEST CATCH EVER ??

RUSSELL WESTBROOK

FEBRUARY 16, 2015

NBA ALL STAR GAME MVP

41 POINTS  

3RD MOST EVER SCORED

OU SOONER - SAMAJE PERINE

NOVEMBER 22, 2014

427 RUSHING YARDS

MOST EVER BY A COLLEGE RUNNING BACK

Top 10

Taxpayer Enemies

 

Those Individuals Or Groups Who Seem Most Intent On Penalizing Success & Achievement & Desiring A Return To The Days Of Low Economic Growth During The Jimmy Carter/Barry Obama - "Sleepy Joe" Biden Era

 

(in order, as of today)

The Caracas Caucus

 

(the Top 10 “Americans” who seem most hell-bent on destroying our jobs & economy in order to advance the cause of centralized government control over our lives and private businesses to the point where we are forced to surrender our individual liberties to the state)

The Terrorist Caucus

 

Those Individuals Or Groups Who

Come Across  To Me As Ambivalent Towards Islamic

Terror Activities

The "Soft On Crime"

"Hug-A-Thug" Caucus

 

The Top 10 Individuals Or Groups Who

Come Across  To Me As Coddling The Criminal Element At The Expense Of The Public Safety Of  Law-Abiding Citizens

The “Ugly” Caucus

 

The Top 10 Individuals On The Taxpayer Payroll That Strike Me As Being Just As Unattractive On The Inside As They Are On The Outside.

LOWER TAXES

=

HIGHER GOVERNMENT REVENUE

The United States leads the world in CO2 reductions

Is the individual depicted above the most ill-prepared person Oklahoma has ever had in a General Election for a U.S. Senate seat?