Republican Tax Plan (a nothingburger with cheese)

[billsfan89]

2 hours ago, Koko78 said:

 

Nit picking, nit. Knit picking would probably involve socks or a scarf.

 

What major point? That the people/entities who pay the most taxes receive the most benefit from a tax cut? No Schiff, that's basic math. It's about as intelligent a point as saying that the infamous '47%' of people who don't pay taxes received no benefit from the tax cut.

 

The unfounded point that corporations pay 9% tax (when the tax rate was 35%)? I'm not interested in fact checking his numbers; pointing out the complete lack of context with the 9% number, assuming that's even a real thing; nor pointing out that any corporation who doesn't use legal tax loopholes are staffed by morons.

2

 

Just to clarify my point on the 9%. The 9% number isn't the rate to which corporations are paying taxes on. The rate that corporations paid taxes on was set at 35% up until these tax cuts (although the effective rate to which corps were paying taxes after loopholes and deductions was estimated to be 14%.) The 9% number is the percentage of total taxes that corporations paid into. So let's say that the US government collected 100 billion in taxes (I know that's not the case just using a round number and let's ignore inflation for simplicity) corporations in 1952 were paying 32 billion of the 100 billion collected in taxes in 2013 they were responsible for 9 billion in taxes collected. Corporations share of the economic activity in the US has increased since 1952 even adjusted for inflation so the context is that we are collecting way less money from corporations despite corporate profits being at all-time highs. The point is that these gigantic companies are doing fantastic, the stalling of the US economy isn't going to be fixed by giving even more to corporations. 

 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/eriksherman/2017/04/24/trumps-corporate-tax-slash-ignores-how-litte-companies-already-pay/#3dd177ab58aa

 

Now we could argue all day about this stuff but I do want to point out that I do not think that the corporations are at fault here. Corporations are doing what they should be doing trying to make as much money as possible in a highly competitive marketplace. They take advantage of what they should be taking advantage of. The problem isn't the corporations the problem is our government is corrupted by the influence of money in politics. These companies funnel money into our political system and they get influence. The influence has resulted in crony capitalism at its worst. 

 

Our government should be policing these companies so that they don't use regulator capture and curry special deductions and favors that give an unfair advantage in the market. Even libertarians are against the crony capitalism that is on display from our government. I have no issue with lowering the high statutory rate down from 35% to some rate around 25% to be more in line with other developed nations but then they should have gutting a lot of the subsidies and tax credits to even out the drop and essentially reward the companies that were playing by the rules and punish those companies that were bribing to get special deals from our Congress.

16 minutes ago, Tiberius said:

So did the vast majority of the cuts go to the wealthy? 

 

Will most of you be fine with cutting medicare and Social Security to balance the budget? 

 

 

 

That's where this is going, the middle class gets a modest tax cut but they get their social security and Medicare cut big on the back end so that we can fund big tax cuts for the top earners and corporations. The GOP will sell it as making the programs solvent and that we can't afford such luxuries because of huge deficits completely ignoring the massive unfunded tax cuts that are driving these deficits further up and the endless wars that borrowed trillions from these earned benefit programs when they were producing a massive surplus. 

[B-Man]

Indianapolis’ new idea: tax commuters to pay for roads

 

There’s a new “genius” idea (genius as in stupid) in Indiana: tax people who live outside Marion County, but work in the county. The commuter tax is being considered because county roads are basicallylike driving on the moon. Indianapolis Star columnist Matthew Tully thinks the commuter tax makes sense.

A lot of us benefit from jobs based in a county in which we do not live. We should appreciate what that county has done to attract the job, and we should understand that our vehicles contribute to the wear and tear on the roads that so many complain about. We should also understand that all of Central Indiana benefits from a stronger Indianapolis and from a more regional mindset.

The most recent commuter tax proposal went nowhere at the Statehouse in 2014, but it is worth revisiting. It would give the county that hosts a job one quarter of one percent of the income taxes collected from commuting workers’ wages. (That’s a whopping $250 a year on a $100,000 salary.) The money could come from an increase in the tax rate or a slight shift in how the current tax revenues are doled out. Either way, Indianapolis would receive roughly $25 million a year. Other counties would receive the same benefit from workers who travel in to work each day.

It’s certainly something Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett, whose government runs the county as well, appears to be considering, and wants the General Assembly to consider the idea to level the playing field. He’s also trying to get city-county to take $13M from the rainy day fund to fix up roads which look like a dark version of Swiss cheese instead of actual pavement.

 

{snip}

 

The third problem is the fact it’s just another example of the government insisting on managing a service others could provide. There’s nothing stopping citizens from deciding to buy some Quikrete and fill the pothole. There are plenty of examples of people doing this in other cities, including a group of anarchists in Portland. An artist in Chicago is doing this too. Why couldn’t businesses take care of the streets around their business to make sure people have a smooth ride? It can’t be that hard, can it?

 

I know people want to have the government take care of it, but if the government is failing, why not let individuals take care of it? It’s a lot cheaper than enacting another new tax which takes more money out of the pockets of others and into government coffers. Especially since taxpayers are already paying off Lucas Oil Stadium.

[Nanker]

NYC used to have a commuter tax. It was abolished in 1999. But now they have a Mobility Tax - that goes to the MTA. It's .34% of payroll that companies and self employed have to pay. 

 

Philadelphia still has a commuter tax - of about 3.5%. 

[row_33]

Boston should tax those who commute in from New Hampshire to work

 

 

 

[Tiberius]

Really?? Another round of tax cuts? 

 

Just ts trying to grab as much loot as they can before getting out I guess. 

 

 

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/03/14/brady-trump-tax-cuts-414589

[Gary M]

On 3/7/2018 at 4:49 PM, billsfan89 said:

Our government should be policing these companies so that they don't use regulator capture and curry special deductions and favors that give an unfair advantage in the market.

 

Like Delta airlines not paying fuel tax?