Some time around June of 2009, the US government will start mailing out federal tax rebates to US citizens. Unlike the previous rebate when only people that paid in taxes received the rebate, this time most people will receive the rebate, but they must file a tax return to get it. There are hundreds of thousands of people, especially senior citizens, that do not file tax returns anymore. Federal tax preparation services like H&R Block are running advertisements trying to encourage these folks to file a 2008 income tax return so they will receive the federal tax rebate this summer.

It is still an open question as to whether this summers federal tax rebate will help the US economy avoid falling into a recession. However, these tax rebate that range anywhere from $300-$600 are a step in the right direction. The only problem I see with the US federal government mailing out these rebate checks is the fact that they will need to borrow the money to fund them. It is a crying shame that with more than a trillion dollars flowing into Washington D.C. each year that Congress and President Bush still find ways to spend more than that amount to run the federal government.

Most experts agree that the US economy is not only slowing down, but they also believe that a recession is on the horizon for later this year. One only needs to look at the ever rising price of crude oil or the astronomical price of gold to know that something is just not right in the US economy. Just today, the government announced a sharp drop off in the number of jobs created in the US and I personally think that this is just the first sign of worse things to come. The US capitalist system is fantastic when the economy is running fast and smooth. However, it can be very cruel when times turn to recession and sometimes depression.

So, if you want to receive a federal tax refund check - you must make sure and file a federal tax return before April 15th this year. While it has been difficult to find out if these tax rebate checks will be taxable and thus add to your 2009 income for tax purposes next year. The best strategy is to expect that these federal tax rebate will be treated as 2009 taxable income when you file taxes again in 2010. As a child I remember being taught that there was no such thing as a 'free lunch' at least in regards to the federal government. Any time the federal government gives anything away to it's citizens there are always strings involved in that gift and many times people wish in the end that these gifts with strings attached were never given in the first place.