AICPA Updates Total Tax Insights Calculator

The American Institute of CPAs has updated its Total Tax Insights calculator with information from 2013 to help taxpayers gauge the impact of more than 20 different federal, state and local taxes, including a new Medicare surtax that took effect last year, on their own taxes for this year.

“The Total Tax Insights calculator was developed to enable taxpayers to estimate the amount they pay each year for the most common federal, state and local taxes,” said AICPA president and CEO Barry C. Melancon in a statement. “In advance of tax filing season, the calculator has been updated to include the most recent changes in tax law, including changes in federal tax rates and a 3.8 percent Medicare surtax, as well as changes in state and local levies for cable, cell phones, gasoline and groceries, among other expenses.”

The calculator displays a map of the United States and U.S. territories. Users click on the state or jurisdiction where they live. They can then enter the county and/or city where they live, their marital status, federal “adjusted gross income” and number of dependents to see an estimate of their total taxes. For a more detailed calculation, they can also factor in housing-related costs (such as for electricity, natural gas and cable) as well as other expenses, including cell phone, gasoline, cigarettes and alcoholic beverages.

In addition, they can see how their total estimated tax liability compares to other locations around the country. Users have the option of choosing up to two more places of residence for a side-by-side comparison.

The Total Tax Insights calculator is a tax estimator tool only and is not intended to serve as an online tax preparation tool for either a federal or state income tax return, or any other return, the AICPA noted. To protect private financial information, the calculator does not require users to identify themselves in any way and the data is erased once a user leaves the Web site.

The AICPA cautioned that the calculator only provides estimated amounts and a taxpayer’s actual taxes can vary significantly depending on his or her particular situation. For example, income tax calculations do not take into consideration certain tax deductions, credits or other adjustments.

For more information, visit https://www.totaltaxinsights.org/.

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