Addendum To: Taxes -- Down The Stretch I Go

I did another run-through of my tax forms last night.  And I forgot that the extra pandemic bonus I got from the state, which means I need to correct my federal form, spits out new numbers that I hadn't updated on my state form.  I don't remember that whenever there is a change in dollar amount on one line item on one tax form, that causes ripple effects on other line items on other tax forms.  That makes me there's a possibility and maybe even a probability that there will be other tweaks in the numbers that I simply won't catch before I file them.  Yeah, sometimes I think I should hire someone to do my taxes for me.

But, assuming that I have now done my taxes right (and I think I have the fortitude and patience for one more check tomorrow at the library, where I need to print a few forms [two for which I need to redo because of these updates and one for which I now realize I need to fill out] and then make copies of all the ones I fill out), I am a bit amazed at how small the amounts are.  It looks as though I owe about $90 federally -- no big deal; I have paid a lot more and have gotten in years past.  But the state amount is a trip.  Again, assuming I did it right, I will get a refund of, get this, one dollar.  And that's a rounding error.  

You see, the state of Minnesota does not want us to send in W-2's.  Instead, there is a state tax form to fill out where, in line by line, you put in the state tax withheld for every company you worked for the previous year.  However, Minnesota does not care for cents; I am supposed to round to the nearest dollar (.50 goes up to the next dollar) for each W-2.  If I added the real numbers for state tax withheld  for each company I worked for and then rounded the total, I would have come up with the same amount of taxes I supposedly own.  It would be a complete wash, a zero out.  But, by rounding each W-2 individually and then summing them, I eke out a buck.  I think the state will "refund" me that buck.

I'm good with a net loss of about $90.  They actually say that owing taxes is a good thing because that essentially means that you have money that "belongs" to the federal and/or state governments.  If one were savvy enough, they would take that money and invest it; the interest is then theirs to keep, unconditionally.  Conversely, getting a huge refund means that the "government" has money that really belong to you, so why are you allowing "them" to handle it for an entire year?

A few years ago I tweaked my allowances to cut down on getting money around Tax Day, and since then my refunds and/or debts have shrunk to a not-eye-popping level.  While I guess it's advantageous to pay money this time of year, having an insignificant amount to either pay or get back is better because I don't have to deal with the anxiety of either parting with another huge chunk of cash or anticipating, forgetting, and then remembering that I have a huge chunk of cash coming my way.  This not being a big deal every year is something I probably want.