For anyone searching this thread at the last minute, I agree with this poster. It should tell you it is switching you and for what reason.
The problem is that the system doesn't say in the final review why it is forcing the switch to standard plus the 300 vs. sticking with the itemized. It's not clear at all because the online software makes a big deal about going itemized during the deductions review process.
What needs to be coded in is an explanation of "hey, you're close to the line here - if we change you to Standard Deduction and we put 300 in line 10A (or whatever it was) of the work sheet it is a better deal for you than itemizing because you are so close"
Or it should tell you at the end during the federal review "Hey, we know we told you to go with Itemized, but in the review we found that you're actually better off going with Standard plus this line for charitable contributions filled in this way."
It doesn't. All it says is to do is "review this line." With no explanation or not instructions as to why. That's the bug. The software is doing what it says it does- it finds the best option ...at the last minute ... and switches appropriately. It just doesn't tell you why.
Below is an answer the Turbo Tax folks posted at:
https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/charitable-donations-deductions/help/standard-vs-itemized-deductio...
"Some customers are reporting confusion over the calculations of standard deduction versus itemized deduction in TurboTax Online and TurboTax CD/Download. Customers whose deductions are very close in difference aren’t understanding or seeing that the Charitable Donations credit (with a maximum of $300) is being applied to their standard deduction, leading them to believe that itemized should be chosen to maximize.
However, if they select itemized and continue (believing it to be higher), they think the standard deduction is being "forced." They’re not able to see that with the $300 credit, the standard deduction is actually more beneficial than the itemized deduction.
This issue won't prevent you from filing your tax return"
