You decide: postcard or 1040?

Let’s play the postcard-tax game. Note: Game assumes you are married and filing a joint return with taxable income under $90,000. To play you will need your 2016 tax return. Next you will use a postcard to list your income from 2016 and add any tuition that your employer paid. Now you will calculate your deductions.

If you itemized, then add only your medical and charitable deductions. Use the higher of the itemized deductions or the new joint standard deduction of $24,000. No personal exemption for the postcard. Next, subtract your deduction from your income to equal taxable income. Final step is to multiply your taxable income by 12 percent to equal your postcard taxes liability.

If your postcard tax liability is less than your 2016 form 1040 tax liability, then you win. I did not win because I lost my personal exemptions, senior credit, medical deduction, state and local tax deductions and property-tax deduction.

Will readers win or lose with the proposed tax bills? The “cut, cut, cut” proposed tax bill for me resulted in cuts to my exemptions and cuts to my deductions and cuts to my tax credits and no cuts to my future tax liability.

On another note with the proposed tax bill, the deficit will increase by $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years.

Chris Lowery Westerville

Pat Groseck Grandview Heights