A new report shows that as the United States’ tax system grows more complicated because of Obamacare regulations, the economy is taking more of a hit.
According to data from the National Taxpayers Union Foundation (NTUF), complying with the federal income tax cost the economy about $234 billion in productivity last year.
The group came to that figure by adding the out-of-pocket cost of tax preparation assistance ($31.7 billion) and the estimated cost of $202.1 billion due to lost labor hours Americans spent dealing with their 2013 tax returns that were filed in 2014.
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The economic hit was lower than the previous year by almost $10 billion, and the NTUF concludes that “was an anomaly.”
The increase to this year’s figure, according to the NTUF, stems from the Affordable Care Act and the mountain of paperwork it has created at the IRS.
“Looking deeper at NTUF’s research, there is one big reason to think this could be the beginning of a trend in the wrong direction: 3,322 pages of legal guidance for Obamacare (or the ACA) added to IRS.gov (1,077 pages of regulations, 1,377 pages of Treasury decisions, 669 notices, 100 revenue procedures, and 12 revenue rulings),” the report reads.
“Essentially, Obamacare is coming home to roost.”
