The quick write off or accelerated depreciation

[belarus]

Kay is exactly right. And 179 depreciation can be as bad of a treadmill to get on as pre-paying half of your expenses for the next year. The tax bill gets very large very quickly once you start accelerated depreciation or prepaying expenses and want to quit.
Accelerated depreciation is a great cash flow tool for a rapidly expanding profitable business. It has to drive economy. The decision to buy equipment is much easier when it's at a 30-40% discount. 179 goes away for this tax year at this point?

[Shaggy98]

I liked section 179 if one was paying cash.  Finance a large purchase and I haven't been convinced it isn't robbing Peter to pay Paul.

[sw363535]

Kraft your always mixing up the definitions.  Comparing apples and oranges.  Kay is right.

Depreciation is a business expense.

Accelerated depreciation is an economic stimulus.

--------- Congress and the administrations of the last 40 years seem to think they both have their place.

What we should complain about is why those morons in leadership never seem to evaluate their ideas.  They get so many political "favors" going they never get time to evaluate them and never have the guts to "take back the favors".

[sw363535]

Smokey is hitting the part I, as an accountant, do not like about the 179.

If you use it (your foolish not to in at least a small degree), and for that matter any accelerated depreciation schedule, it nearly forces you to keep two sets of books on every business.  One for the tax code and another to express realistic asset value, like in the case of financial statements to back the loan for equipment purchase.  or a land loan for that matter. ------- Kraft I think that is what you are getting at also.

It is the first example i think of when I here someone say the IRS is not involved in politics.-------- They even target certain industries to allow industries they want to stimulate an unfair tax advantage.  ------- 

Just one of many many many many decisions that need to be challenged for it's constitutionallity.