Money in a Minute: Special Tax Edition

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TAX RATE: U.S. taxes among lowest in the world

If you think your taxes are too high, there aren’t many other places you can go. “The burden on U.S. taxpayers is just about the lowest in the developed world,” MSNBC reports. The lowest place for taxes? The United Arab Emirates.

TAX CHEATS: Prosecutions of tax evaders up 25 percent

If you dutifully pay your taxes, here’s some reassuring news: Cheaters are getting caught – especially rich ones. “Criminal tax prosecutions by the federal government hit a 10-year high in 2010, powered in part by a continuing crackdown on offshore tax evasion by wealthy Americans,” USA Today reports.

TAX RETURNS: 45 percent don’t owe U.S. income tax

Then again, here’s some frustrating news: “For tax year 2010, roughly 45 percent of households, or about 69 million, will end up owing nothing in federal income tax,” CNN reports. But many of them are simply too poor to owe.

TAX REVENUES: Thanks for your tax payment – here’s your receipt

So now that you’ve paid your taxes, wondering where the money goes? MSNBC reports on the White House’s new online 2010 Federal Taxpayer Receipt that shows you.

TAX BREAKS: $513 million paid in undeserved homebuyer credits

While the IRS is going after more cheats, it might need to police itself better. “The Internal Revenue Service has paid out more than a half-billion dollars in homebuyer tax credits to people who probably didn’t qualify,” MSNBC reports.

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