Feds Apparently Unaware of Economic Crisis – Continued Hiring, Never Firing

The Washington Examiner:  A new analysis of federal workforce data shows that even in this time of retrenchment and downsizing, the federal government almost never fires or lays off workers.  In fact, in many corners of the federal government, it is virtually impossible for an employee to be fired. “Federal employees’ job security is so great that workers in many agencies are more likely to die of natural causes than get laid off or fired,” writes USA Today, which conducted the survey.

The paper reports the federal government “fired 0.55% of its workers in the budget year that ended September 30.”  For the private sector, the figure is about 3%.  And for some parts of the federal workforce, the firing rate was even lower.  For example, USA Today found that federal workers in the Washington, DC area have 99.74% job security.  Some agencies, like the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission, did not fire or lay off anyone in the last year.

No Right to Pay Taxes

Tax Prof Blog:  Guess?, Inc. co-founder Georges Marciano has lost his bid in Washington federal court for an order forcing the IRS to investigate his tax returns and liabilities.

Marciano had argued that the audit could reveal money owed to the government that he believes former employees mishandled. In dismissing the suit on Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Henry Kennedy Jr. noted that the property rights protected under the Fifth Amendment don’t guarantee anyone’s right to pay taxes.

Massachusetts Won’t Tax Online Sales

Boston Herald:  Despite intense lobbying by big-box stores and the recent passage of a California measure to force online retailers to charge sales tax, the sponsor of a similar bill in the Bay State said his proposal is headed for defeat.

“The speaker and the governor have made it perfectly clear that they won’t support any new taxes,” said state Rep. Martin Walsh. “My bill has a less than 50-50 chance of passage because legislators perceive it as a new tax.”

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