Tax Breaks: The Texas Two-Step Through The Courts Edition |
We’re nearing the home stretch for the tax filing season, and the most recent IRS data shows a mixed bag as the April 15 deadline nears. Refunds are higher than last year, with total refund dollars up and the average refund now around $3,571, roughly an 11% increase. However, these numbers–which reflect an increase of about $350 over last year–aren’t as strong as lawmakers had expected (many, including Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, claimed it would be closer to $1,000 more). Worse, the numbers reveal that average refunds have actually declined in recent weeks, dropping from $3,804 a month ago to $3,623 last week, and now settling lower.
(At the same time, filing and processing figures are still slightly behind last year, indicating the season hasn’t fully caught up yet.)
Getting those refunds hasn’t been entirely smooth either. While the usual advice still applies—file electronically and choose direct deposit to speed things up—some taxpayers are running into delays, especially as the IRS shifts away from automatically issuing paper checks when direct deposit fails.
Most refunds still arrive within about 21 days for e-filers, but timing can slip if there are errors, missing information, or additional review is needed. And if your refund doesn’t match what you expected, it could be due to IRS adjustments or offsets for certain debts. Refunds may be a bit more generous this year, but they are also a bit more unpredictable, so keeping an eye on your filing details and refund status matters more than ever.
Taxes are clearly on the minds of some Americans who are moving abroad—but that doesn’t mean leaving the IRS behind. U.S. citizens are taxed on their worldwide income, no matter where they live. For those who want a clean break, renouncing citizenship is an option, but it is a serious step with lasting financial consequences.
One of the biggest hurdles is the exit tax, which can apply if you meet any of three triggers: having a net worth over $2 million, averaging more than about $211,000 in annual income tax liability over five years, or failing to certify full tax compliance for the prior five years. If you fail any of those tests, the IRS treats you as if you sold all your assets before expatriating and taxes the gains accordingly. The lesson? While moving abroad may be relatively easy, fully exiting the U.S. tax system is anything but.
Closer to home, Texas courts are having a moment.
On March 19, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas struck down a Treasury rule that would have required reporting on all-cash residential real estate transactions, dealing another blow to the government’s recent transparency efforts. The rule, issued through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), was designed to target money laundering by requiring real estate professionals to collect and report detailed information on cash sales of residential real estate and would have applied broadly to hundreds of thousands of transactions each year.
Judge Jeremy Kernodle (the same judge involved in some of the Corporate Transparency Act, or CTA, rulings) found that the Treasury went too far by treating........