Sorting out the impact of GOP tax-reform plans
In recent weeks we’ve been confronted by a slew of tax proposals from GOP presidential candidates, ranging from Herman Cain’s “9-9-9″ plan to Rick Perry’s “Cut, Balance and Grow Plan.” For many voters, the details of those various proposals can no doubt get a little hazy and confusing.
To address that problem, I’ve been wanting to put together a comprehensive post addressing all of the plans at once. Thanks to the release of Rick Perry’s plan and a new report on household incomes released Tuesday by the Congressional Budget Office, I finally have the analytical data I needed to pull it all together.
Before we go further, let’s review the CBO findings:
1.) The overall federal tax system became less progressive between 1979 and 2007, thanks largely to the greater relative impact of payroll taxes.
2.) The share of federal transfer payments going to poor Americans also fell sharply, from more than 50 percent to 35 percent. According to CBO, “that shift reflects the growth in spending for programs focused on the elderly population (such as Social Security and Medicare), in which benefits are not limited to low-income households.”
3. The study also documents the ongoing concentration of national income among the richest 1 percent of U.S. households. It found that the share of after-tax income going to the lowest-income 20 percent of Americans fell between 1979 and 2007, dropping from 7 percent to 5 percent. In fact, income share fell by 2 to 3 percent for almost every income group. It rose only among the most affluent 1 percent. Their share of national income more than doubled, from 8 percent in 1979 to 17 percent in 2007.
(Although those percentage shifts may not sound like much, in real terms it is quite large. For example, the 7 percent shift in household income from the middle 60 percent of Americans to the richest 1 percent represents a shift of $539 billion a year from the 60 percent to the 1 percent. Overall, the CBO reports that income of the highest-earning 1 percent rose by 275 percent in that time frame, after inflation.)
Anyway, as promised the final exhaustive package on GOP tax-reform plans is available HERE. I’ve put it in the form of an info-graphic. Take a look and if you think I’m missing anything, or if you think of a way to make it clearer, let me know.
– Jay Bookman
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609 comments Add your comment
JKL2
October 26th, 2011
9:07 pm
getalife- I did not feel like thinking
And you prove it several times a day.
Find your billfold yet? I’ll be the guy in the Army uniform driving the government van thru Atlanta tomorrow if you run across it.
Eli Jones
October 27th, 2011
8:25 am
This petition demands that congress stop the massive spending. You, your kids and your grand kids will have to pay this wasted money back because it is borrowed money. Make your voice heard by signing this petition and pass it on.
http://cutspendingnow.org/petition/
Eli Jones
October 27th, 2011
8:25 am
Because of Eric Holder’s and Barack Obama’s gun running, US border agent Brian Terry and US immigration customs enforcement agent Jaime Zapata were killed by those guns. Also over two hundred of Mexico’s citizens have been slaughtered by Holder’s and Obama’s guns. Obama used 10 Million dollars of our tax money to finance the Fast And Furious insanity.
…………………………………………………………
SIGN THE PETITION TO PROSECUTE ERIC HOLDER FOR “FAST AND FURIOUS” (and pass it on)
http://act.theteaparty.net/5273/prosecute-eric-holder/
Adam
October 27th, 2011
9:07 am
Conservatives love to top post on the old posts.
You are all too chicken to join the current conversation.
Beep Beep
October 27th, 2011
10:36 am
Yesterday I watched my 2 boys in their regional Cross Country meet. It was not unlike the “wealth gap”. There were a few way out front, more in the middle and some way back. Knowing many of the kids and have seen then train it was not hard to guess where most individuals will be at the end of the race. Yes some of them have more talent than others, but the top finishers always work harder, train longer and take care of their bodies. This is like income earners. They get an education, get a career, don’t have 4 kids by 3 different sperm donors and work way harder and longer than others. The ones that have kids in high school, don’t learn anything, don’t graduate and don’t go to college, don’t work harder will always finish last. There is no fair share and wealth is not a stagnant resource. It is there for anyone to go after. I have a 1 – 1 – 1 plan for Herman Cain to add to his platform. For those enlightened individuals that espouse the wonderful socialist way of life can trade in their US citizenship and go to Cuba, China, Venezuela, North Korea, Somali, etc in exchange for one of those countries individuals that want a capitalist opportunity in the United States. This is a 1 for 1 trade, 1 time only. Everyone then gets the system they want.
Adam
October 28th, 2011
8:10 am
Beep Beep: That is a ridiculous analogy. It doesn’t apply. For one thing. you don’t “earn” billions of dollars. You accumulate it and use it to grow more of it, through capital gains and other such financial gimmicks.
John
October 28th, 2011
9:30 pm
Libertarian
October 26th, 2011
11:06 am
You say:
“There is one thing missing from your graphic. The word “give” is misleading. By letting someone keep more of their money you are not “giving” them anything. I think what you want is for the top 1% to “give” more money to the bottom half.”
While I am sure you think you were very cute, the issue is much more serious than that. The Republican tax reform plan is not designed to help this country get out of debt, because by definition it is “revenue neutral” . That means not an extra cent will go into the tax coffers. This is not a question of giving Caesar, what is Caesar’s. So, why would any moral elected official decide it is in our country’s best interest to increase taxes on the poor and middle class just to fund another generous tax break for those at the top? Once you understand young families, will be hurt the most, and how children will suffer over this ill conceived Republican plan, you will see it is so wrong minded. Young families spent nearly every discretionary dollar they have to help their children be all they can be. I can remember doing all I could to have enough money to buy badly needed tutors, and educational tools for my kids. If, I tried even harder, I could afford a week of Boy Scout camp, or a vacation every few years, even if it was just camping out for a long weekend. “We” need to “invest” for tomorrow, and if it means keeping a graduating tax rates to do so, it is for the better good of this country. This means letting the poor and the middle class keeping more of their own hard earned money; if this concept is good for the rich, it is certainly good for the poor, don’t you agree? I believe our divine maker understands the concept and would support it, too. I hope others will open their hearts.
Beep Beep
October 30th, 2011
11:14 am
Adam that is the difference in people like you that feel you only earn what your union has set as your wage. Many people take “earned” monies and use other avenues to grow that money. You call them gimmicks…we call them investments and they ARE earned!
Adam
October 30th, 2011
7:59 pm
Beep Beep: No, that’s gambling. Did you “earn” the money you got when you won the jackpot. No. But it is still classified as income, and should be taxed the same as any other income.
Money to grow money is a gimmick. Not something you earn. There’s certainly no real value in that, especially when compared to the value of hard working individuals.
And btw, there are no unions anywhere where I live. They have been drummed out of society, and all I see are communities falling apart as the communities I live in and nearby fall to pieces trying to pay as few people as little as possible to get as much profit as possible for the big boss.