Pennsylvania Can't Afford Biden's Tax Increases
Today at 1:00 p.m. Joe Biden will host a major rally in Philadelphia, where he will repeat his vow to repeal the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
“First thing I’d do is repeal those Trump tax cuts,” said Biden on May 4 in South Carolina.
"When I'm president, if God willing I am, we're going to reverse those Trump tax cuts," Biden said this week in New Hampshire.
Biden's promise to repeal the tax cuts is a threat to raise taxes. Repeal of the tax cuts would hit Pennsylvania hard:
- Pennsylvania households would lose their tax cut -- a 24.5 percent tax cut on average, according to data reported by H&R Block.
- Pennsylvania residents would again be forced to pay the highly regressive Obamacare individual mandate tax. 166,680 Pennsylvanians paid the tax totaling $108,842,000 according to the most recent IRS annual statistics ((2016). 81 percent of people hit with the tax made less than $50,000 a year, and 40 percent made less than $25,000 a year. This tax was one of the many violations by Biden of his pledge against any and all middle class taxes.
- 840,000 Pennsylvania households who claim the Child Tax Credit would see the credit slashed in half from $2,000 to $1,000.
- 4.4 million Pennsylvania households who claim the standard deduction would see it slashed in half. (TCJA nearly doubled the standard deduction from $6,300 to $12,200 for an individual and from $12,600 to $24,000 for a family.)
The tax cuts are helping a long list of Pennsylvania businesses give pay increases, benefit increases, and bonuses. For example:
- Uncle Charley's Sausage (Vandergrift, PA) hired new employees, purchased new equipment including a new sausage stuffer, and added a new production line.
- Hudson Facades (Linwood, PA) increased base pay and put $3,000 into every factor worker's 401(k) account.
- Almo Corporation, the Philadelphia-based appliance distributor, is investing in a new distribution center and an ongoing headquarters renovation that can accommodate 65 additional employees.
- Guy Chemical Company (Somerset, PA) increased wages, bonuses, and investment in new equipment including a new forklift, new laboratory furnishings, updated computer equipment, and a new software system.
- Dollar Bank (Pittsburgh, PA) gave $2,000 permanent raises for employees making $60,000 or below.
If Biden repealed the tax cuts, Pennsylvanians would also be stuck paying higher utility bills because the corporate tax rate would revert back to 35 percent. Thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the corporate rate was reduced to 21 percent, and as a direct result PA utility companies passed on these savings to customers in the form of lower electric, water, and gas bills.
Examples include Pike County Light & Power Company, PPL Electric Utilities Corporation, Wellsboro Electric Company, West Penn Power Company, PECO Energy Company, Peoples Gas Company, UGI Central Penn Gas Inc., Pennsylvania American Water Company, and Citizens Electric Company of Lewisburg.
From a nationwide perspective, if Biden repeals the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the following would happen:
- A family of four earning the median income of $73,000 would see a $2,000 tax increase.
- A single parent (with one child) making $41,000 would see a $1,300 tax increase.
- Millions of low and middle income households would be stuck paying the Obamacare individual mandate tax.
- Utility bills would go up in all 50 states as a direct result of the corporate income tax increase.
- Small employers will face a tax increase due to the repeal of the 20% deduction for small business income.
- The USA would have the highest corporate income tax rate in the developed world.
- Taxes would rise in every state and every congressional district.
- The Death Tax would ensnare more families and businesses.
- The AMT would snap back to hit millions of households.
- Millions of households would see their child tax credit cut in half.
- Millions of households would see their standard deduction cut in half, adding to their tax complexity as they are forced to itemize their deductions and deal with the shoebox full of receipts on top of the refrigerator.
As noted by the New York Times, thanks to the GOP tax cuts, “Most people got a tax cut.”
The NYT also stated: “To a large degree, the gap between perception and reality on the tax cuts appears to flow from a sustained — and misleading — effort by liberal opponents of the law to brand it as a broad middle-class tax increase.”
The Washington Post also stated: “Most Americans received a tax cut.”
More evidence of the benefits flowing from the tax cuts can be found in a recent H&R Block report, which stated, “overall tax liability is down 24.9 percent on average.”
In Biden's home state of Delaware, the report found that residents received a 24.6% reduction in their taxes, on average.
Biden and the rest of the 2020 Democrats have thoroughly convinced themselves the tax issue is dead, but Americans will have their own say at the ballot box.
"Joe Biden is not Methuselah. He is Walter Mondale part deux," said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. In 1984 Mondale famously promised to raise taxes if elected. He lost to Ronald Reagan in the electoral college 525-13, winning only his home state of Minnesota and the District of Columbia.
See also:
Biden: “First thing I’d do is repeal those Trump tax cuts.”
Joe Biden broke his middle class tax pledge
Kamala Harris Vows Repeal of Tax Cuts “on Day One”
“Mayor Pete” Calls for Steep Tax Hike on Homes and Businesses
Biden: “When I’m President, if God willing I am, we’re going to reverse those Trump tax cuts.”
Photo Credit: Marc Nozell/Flickr
More from Americans for Tax Reform
A Trump Ban on Flavored E-Cigarettes Will Cost Him the 2020 Election: Data on 12 Important Swing States
Over the past week, President Donald Trump has been considering an outright ban on nearly every electronic cigarette and vapor product on the market. Not only would the implementation of a flavor ban be disastrous for public health, but it may cost Trump the election in 2020.
In a piece for the Washington Examiner, I explained:
"Internal polling conducted by Americans for Tax Reform in October 2016, just five months after the Obama administration announced their own timeline for a de facto e-cigarette ban, found that 4 out of 5 adult vapers' vote-moving issue was where a politician stood on the issue of taxing, regulating, and banning e-cigarettes."
What might that mean in 2020? If you look at the 12 states which will likely determine the outcome of the election, based on the margin of victory or loss by Donald Trump in 2016 and changing political currents, there are at least 4.15 million adults in battleground states that use electronic cigarettes, according to FDA-funded survey data. Those states include Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Georgia, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Maine, Arizona, and Nevada.
Here's how that breaks down per state (click to enlarge):
If voter turnout holds flat in 2020 over 2016, there are roughly 2.55 million vaper voters scattered across these 12 key battleground states. The data on the number of adult vapers may underestimate the true figure because adult use of these products has increased in the last two years. To ignore that these adults have used e-cigarettes to quit smoking cigarettes, something that they're proud of and strongly believe in would be among the biggest political miscalculations of the presidential campaign in 2020. Not only do these people rightly attribute the use of flavored nicotine products to saving their lives, but their family members, friends, and neighbors have likely heard their stories as well.
If Trump wants to depress voter turnout or turn voters away from his winning message in states where the margin of victory could be just a few thousand votes, banning flavored nicotine e-cigarettes would be a great way to go about it.
More from Americans for Tax Reform
In major win for consumers, Trump revokes California’s waiver on auto emissions standards
This morning President Trump announced that his administration will revoke California’s waiver that permits the state to set its own fuel economy regulations separate from national standards. This action from the president brings the U.S. closer to a single, unified fuel economy standard.
“The Trump Administration is revoking California’s Federal Waiver on emissions in order to produce far less expensive cars for the consumer, while at the same time making the cars substantially SAFER,” The President stated on twitter. “Many more cars will be produced under the new and uniform standard, meaning significantly more JOBS, JOBS, JOBS! Automakers should seize this opportunity because without this alternative to California, you will be out of business.”
Issued under President Obama, the California waiver forces auto manufacturers to build more expensive cars in compliance with California’s regulations. Under the waiver, auto manufacturers can comply with federal standards yet still barred from marketplace in California.
However, no other state is permitted a waiver from federal rules, meaning if another state would like to set less stringent fuel economy rules compared to federal requirements, it does not have that option. As auto manufacturers can’t economically build two separate vehicle fleets, the waiver effectively allows California to dictate national requirements for vehicles in 49 other states.
Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s announcement:
"Today’s decision by President Trump is a major win for consumers and the US economy. Letting California dictate emission standards for the 49 other states is a proven disaster for jobs, vehicle safety and affordability.
No one living in Ohio, Michigan or Florida voted for California’s nanny state politicians. Gavin Newsom’s bureaucrats have no business telling them what car they can or can’t drive. That decisions rightly belongs to consumers. Americans for Tax Reform applauds President Trump for revoking California’s waiver and freeing consumers from Californian bureaucrats."
Revoking California's waiver is step one of the administration’s anticipated reform to the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, with step two expected to be finalized later this year.
The administration’s proposed rule to freeze CAFE standards at 2020 levels is projected to save American consumers nearly $2,500 on the price of a new vehicle, putting more Americans behind the wheel of newer and safer cars. If finalized, the Department Transportation projects the rule would lead to a reduction of up to 1,000 lives lost annually in fatal vehicle crashes.
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore
More from Americans for Tax Reform
Stephen Colbert Calls Out Warren for Dodging Middle Class Tax Question
In a face-to-face interview, CBS's Stephen Colbert called out Elizabeth Warren on The Late Show for repeatedly refusing to answer the question of whether or not she would impose tax increases on middle class Americans:
Here is the key exchange:
Stephen Colbert: "You keep being asked in the debates 'How are you going to pay for it? Are you going to raise the middle class taxes?' How are you going to pay for it? Are you going to raise the middle class taxes?"
Elizabeth Warren: "So, here's how we're going to do this. Costs are going to go up for the wealthiest Americans, for big corporations."
Colbert: "Taxes which will be in those costs?"
Warren: "Yeah. Hard working, middle class families are going to see their costs go down."
Colbert: "But will their taxes go up?"
Warren: "Well, but here's the thing."
Colbert: "No, but here's the thing. I've listened to these answers a few times before, and I just want to make a parallel suggestion for you about how you might defend the taxes that perhaps you're not mentioning."
This is at least the sixth time Warren has dodged the middle class tax question.
In July, Warren got into a heated exchange with MSNBC's Chris Matthews while refusing to answer Matthews' question on middle class tax hikes. She also dodged the question during the CNN and ABC debates.
In POLITICO Jeff Greenfield noted that Warren could be holding back an admission that "Medicare for All" will lead to higher taxes for the middle-class because she is worried about losing voters.
Greenfield wrote:
This leaves an obvious question that will follow her through the campaign: “Bernie Sanders is frank enough to acknowledge the obvious, and then explain it. Why won’t you?” The answer may be as simple as: If you say you will raise middle class taxes, an unmeasurable but likely significant number of voters simply will not bother to wait for the rest of your explanation.
As ATR noted earlier, "Medicare for All" would require anywhere from $32 trillion and $36 trillion in higher taxes over the course of the next decade.
If you want to stay up-to-date on Democrats and their threats to raise taxes, visit www.atr.org/HighTaxDems.
Video: Warren Dodges MSNBC’s Middle Class Tax Questions
Warren's contentious exchange with MSNBC's Chris Matthews
Elizabeth Warren keeps dodging the middle class tax question. In the most recent Democrat debate on Sept. 12 in Houston, Warren dodged the question twice.
But an especially heated exchange between Warren and MSNBC’s Chris Matthews took place on July 30 following the CNN Dem debate. Matthews grilled warren asking if she would increase taxes on the middle class in order to shovel money to “Medicare For All.”
[Click here to view]
Chris Matthews: "Your pay won't go up. You dodged that tonight. Jake Tapper kept saying how much are your taxes going to go up.”
Elizabeth Warren: "How much are your costs going to go down?"
Matthews: "No, no, no, different question. How much will your taxes go up?"
Later in the interview, Matthews explicitly asked Warren: "Will you pay more in taxes?"
When she dodged the question, Matthews fired back and stated "Why don't you want to answer that question?”
During the CNN debate, Warren repeatedly dodged Jake Tapper's question asking if the middle class would pay more in taxes as a result of Medicare for All.
Warren is avoiding the reality that middle-class Americans would have to pay more in taxes, as Bernie sanders notes is necessary to fund Medicare for All.
"Yeah, [we'd have to] raise taxes on the middle class," Sanders told a CNN reporter after the July debate.
In POLITICO Jeff Greenfield noted that Warren could be holding back an admission that Medicare for All will lead to higher taxes for the middle-class because she is worried about losing voters.
Greenfield wrote:
This leaves an obvious question that will follow her through the campaign: “Bernie Sanders is frank enough to acknowledge the obvious, and then explain it. Why won’t you?” The answer may be as simple as: If you say you will raise middle class taxes, an unmeasurable but likely significant number of voters simply will not bother to wait for the rest of your explanation.
As ATR noted earlier, Medicare for All would require anywhere from $32 trillion and $36 trillion in higher taxes over the course of the next decade.
If you want to stay up-to-date on Democrats and their threats to raise taxes, visit www.atr.org/HighTaxDems.
See more:
Elizabeth Warren is Still Dodging the Middle Class Tax Question
Video: 2020 Democrats Promise Higher Taxes
Biden Caught Lying about GOP Tax Cuts
Bill De Blasio: “As President, I Would Issue a Robot Tax”
Bill De Blasio: “As President, I would issue a robot tax”
Kamala Harris Calls for Ban on Plastic Straws
Elizabeth Warren's Climate Plan Calls For "Reversing" GOP Tax Cuts
Sanders: We’re Going to “Absolutely” Raise the Corporate Tax Rate
Elizabeth Warren on Corporate Tax Cuts: “I really want to see them rolled back.”
Bill de Blasio Calls for Corporate Tax Rate Hike
Amy Klobuchar: Raise the Corporate Tax Rate to 25%
Biden on capital gains tax: “We should raise the tax back to 39.6 percent”
Kamala Harris Threatens to Repeal GOP Tax Cuts 3 Times in August
Joe Biden: “I’m going to eliminate most all” of GOP Tax Cuts
Cory Booker Calls for Repeal of "Toxic" GOP Tax Cuts
Marianne Williamson Joins Dems Calling for TCJA Repeal
Kamala Admits Her Plan Would End Employer Insurance
“Medicare for All” is a Middle Class Tax Increase, Say Dems
Elizabeth Warren Can’t Dodge the Middle Class Tax Question Forever
Dem Socialized Healthcare Plan Will Lead to Middle Class Tax Hikes
Supposed “Moderate” Democrat John Delaney Wants to Impose Carbon Tax on the American People
Klobuchar Suggests Capital Gains Tax Hike and “Doing Something” About TCJA
Kamala Harris Campaign Headquarters Located in Opportunity Zone Created by GOP Tax Cuts
Julian Castro: “We’re going to have to raise taxes.”
Biden and Harris: Raise the Corporate Tax Rate
Biden tweet: Ignore the fact I’ve already called for middle class tax hikes
Kamala Harris: “I Will Reverse” Trump’s Tax Cuts
Kamala Harris Calls for Repeal of Tax Cuts Four Times in Three Minutes
Julian Castro Caught Lying about GOP Tax Cuts
NYT: Bidencare Will be Funded by “rolling back” GOP tax cuts
Kamala Harris: I Will Repeal “That Tax Bill”
Cory Booker: “I do support” Imposing Carbon Tax on Americans
Harris: “We are Going to Repeal That Tax Bill”
Biden: I Will Raise Corporate Tax Rate to 28%
Kamala Harris Continues to Lie about Tax Cuts
Jay Inslee: “Repeal the Trump Tax Cuts”
Biden Running Ads to “Repeal Trump’s Tax Cuts.”
VIDEO: Ten Times Biden Threatened to Repeal Tax Cuts
Here’s what happens if Dems repeal tax cuts
VIDEO: 10 Times 2020 Democrats Have Threatened to Repeal TCJA
Kamala Harris: When I Enter Office "I Will Repeal" the TCJA
Biden: “First thing I would do as President is Eliminate the President’s Tax Cut.”
Bernie Sanders claims people would be “delighted to pay more in taxes”
Biden: Tax Cuts Will be “Gone” If I’m Elected
Kamala Harris: I Will Repeal Tax Cuts “on day one”
Biden again says capital gains tax is “Much too Low”
Biden: Capital gains tax “much too low”
VIDEO: Five Times Biden has Threatened to Repeal Tax Cuts
Biden: “First thing I’d do is repeal those Trump tax cuts.”
Joe Biden broke his middle class tax pledge
“Mayor Pete” Calls for Steep Tax Hike on Homes and Businesses
Kamala Harris Vows Repeal of Tax Cuts “on Day One”
Biden: “When I’m President, if God willing I am, we’re going to reverse those Trump tax cuts.”
ATR Supports Trump Administration's Schedule B Reform
The Trump Administration has proposed a rule to streamline the nonprofit filing process and prevent future administrations from targeting organizations by leaking sensitive information. Under this proposal, many nonprofits including 501(c)(4)s, 501(c)(5)s, and 501(c)(6)s would no longer be required to submit a Schedule B form to the IRS.
The IRS has no need for the donor information and can enforce tax laws without it. On top of having no use for it, the IRS has inappropriately used the information. In 2014, the IRS had to pay the National Organization for Marriage $50,000 after disclosing their donors to an oppositional organization who published it.
Further, according to a 2016 study by the Government Accountability Office, the IRS has disproportionately targeted organizations based on religious, educational, and political views, specifically Tea Party groups.
The information that is public will not change under the proposed rule, though money and time will be saved on both sides by eliminating this tedious process. In fact, The Institute for Free Speech estimates that nonprofits would save about $63 million if Schedule B were repealed.
Critics have falsely stated that the rule will allow for illegal foreign transactions. However, there are already measures in place to track these transactions, and it is highly unlikely that anyone will admit to funneling illegal money on the form. Even if the IRS did suspect laws were being broken, it has no authority to share the information it collects with the FCC and the DOJ, the two agencies with the ability to enforce campaign finance laws.
The proposed rule would hold the IRS more accountable and protect free speech of donors and those working for non-profits. American citizens have the right to associate with and donate to organizations freely and privately. If a Schedule B is leaked, the IRS can and has faced legal consequences. In 2014, the IRS had to pay the National Organization for Marriage $50,000 after disclosing their donors to an oppositional organization who published it.
The proposed rule, “Guidance Under Section 6033 Regarding the Reporting Requirements of Exempt Organizations” will be open for comments until December 9. ATR urges support for Schedule B reform to eliminate the unnecessary time and effort of the process, while protecting privacy and free speech.
Photo Credit: Flickr - Martin Haesemeyer
60+ Groups to Congress: Defend American Workers from Union Coercion and Oppose the PRO Act
Today, a coalition of more than 60 groups and activists, led by Americans for Tax Reform, sent a letter to Congress. The letter urged members of Congress to vote against the PRO Act because of the harm the Act would do to American workers.
The full letter can be found here or below:
September 16, 2019
Dear Member of Congress,
We are writing in opposition to the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act. Senator Patty Murray and Congressman Bobby Scott introduced the PRO Act in the Senate (S. 1306) and House of Representatives (H.R. 2474) on May 2, 2019.
We oppose the PRO Act because the legislation would harm workers and taxpayers by codifying many of the Obama-era rules and decisions that led to higher unemployment and a stagnant economy. Representatives who vote for this bill are simply helping labor union bosses, their campaign contributors, at the expense of American workers.
For example, one of the Act’s harmful provisions would codify the National Labor Relations Board’s 2015 Browning-Ferris Industriesdecision. That decision expanded the definition of joint employer and increased liability for many businesses, especially franchises. In fact, the International Franchise Association has found that the expanded joint employer rule costs the franchise sector as much as $33.3 billion annually and has led to 376,000 lost job opportunities. Codifying this NLRB decision would effectively eliminate this business model, putting many employees and small businesses out of work. However, big labor would benefit from this provision because they could unionize these employees more easily.
This bill would also force all private sector workers to pay fees to labor unions, whether they wanted to support them or not. This would effectively invalidate all state Right-to-Work laws and would deny First Amendment rights to these workers. This provision hurts workers because right-to-work laws have benefited workers. From 2008 – 2018, for example, the percentage growth in the number of people employed in right-to-work states was 10.8%, while the percentage for those in forced-unionism states was much lower at 5%. Invalidating these laws would, therefore, hurt workers and employers, but would provide more dues to unions.
Another business model that is severely threatened by this legislation is the gig economy. The PRO Act would codify California’s new “ABC” test to determine who is an independent contractor and who is an employee. This test makes it harder for employers to hire independent contractors, but makes it easier for unions to unionize workers. According to the Federal Reserve, about 3 in 10 Americans work in the gig economy, and these workers would be at risk for losing their jobs.
One final example is the provision that would codify the Obama-era ambush elections rule. That rule shortened the time frame of an election to unionize workers and provided the contact information of workers without their consent to labor unions. This rule harmed workers by providing them with an inadequate amount of time to learn how unionization would affect them. In addition, unions would be able to violate the privacy of workers once they had their contact information. Once again, with a shortened time frame and the contact information of workers, labor bosses could more easily unionize these workers.
Because the legislation harms workers in order to help labor union bosses, we strongly urge Members of Congress to vote against the PRO Act.
Sincerely,
Grover G. Norquist
President, Americans for Tax Reform
James L. Martin
Founder/Chairman, 60 Plus Association
Melodie Bowler
Associate Director, Alaska Policy Forum
Phil Kerpen
President, American Commitment
Lisa B. Nelson
CEO, ALEC Action
Tom Giovanetti
President, Americans for a Strong Economy
Rick Manning
President, Americans for Limited Government
Scot Mussi
President, Arizona Free Enterprise Club
John Palatiello
President, Business Coalition for Fair Competition
Garrett Ballengee
Executive Director, Cardinal Institute for WV Policy
Andrew F. Quinlan
President, Center for Freedom and Prosperity
Timothy Lee
Senior Vice President of Legal and Public Affairs, Center for Individual Freedom
Olivia Grady
Senior Fellow, Center for Worker Freedom
Catrin Wigfall
Policy Fellow, Center of the American Experiment (Minnesota)
Bob Luebke
Director of Policy, Civitas Institute (North Carolina)
David McIntosh
President, Club for Growth
Russell Hollrah
Executive Director, Coalition to Promote Independent Entrepreneurs
Nathan Benefield
Vice President & COO, Commonwealth Foundation (Pennsylvania)
Trey Kovacs
Policy Analyst, Competitive Enterprise Institute
Matthew Kandrach
President, Consumer Action for a Strong Economy (CASE)
Tom Schatz
President, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste
Katie McAuliffe
Executive Director, Digital Liberty
Grant Callen
President, Empower Mississippi
Peter J. Ferrara
Dunn Liberty Fellow in Economics, The King’s College
Senior Fellow, Heartland Institute
Senior Fellow, National Tax Limitation Foundation
Brian Minnich
Executive Vice President, Freedom Foundation (California, Oregon, Washington)
Adam Brandon
President, FreedomWorks
Victor Riches
President and CEO, Goldwater Institute (Arizona)
J. Scott Moody
CEO, Granite Institute (New Hampshire)
Tim Chapman
Executive Director, Heritage Action for America
Mario H. Lopez
President, Hispanic Leadership Fund
Fred Birnbaum
Vice President, Idaho Freedom Foundation and Idaho Freedom Action
Heather R. Higgins
CEO, Independent Women's Voice
F. Vincent Vernuccio, J.D.
President, Institute for the American Worker
Chris Ingstad
President, Iowans for Tax Relief
Sal J. Nuzzo
Vice President of Policy, The James Madison Institute (Florida)
Brett Healy
President, The John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy (Wisconsin)
Becki Gray
Senior Vice President, John Locke Foundation (North Carolina)
Dave Trabert
President, Kansas Policy Institute
Connor Boyack
President, Libertas Institute (Utah)
Michael J. Reitz
Executive Vice President, Mackinac Center for Public Policy (Michigan)
Matthew Gagnon
CEO, Maine Heritage Policy Center
Carl Copeland
Executive Director, Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance
Jameson Taylor, Ph.D.
Vice President for Policy, Mississippi Center for Public Policy
Robert Fellner
Policy Director, Nevada Policy Research Institute
Douglas Kellogg
Executive Director, Ohioans for Tax Reform
Daniel J Erspamer
CEO, The Pelican Institute for Public Policy (Louisiana)
Lorenzo Montanari
Executive Director, Property Rights Alliance
David Y. Denholm
President, Public Service Research Council
Mike Stenhouse
CEO, Rhode Island Center for Freedom and Prosperity
Paul J. Gessing
President, Rio Grande Foundation (New Mexico)
Bette Grande
CEO, Roughrider Policy Center ND
Karen Kerrigan
President & CEO, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council
Maureen Blum
Founder and Principal, Strategic Coalitions & Initiatives, LLC
Tim Andrews
Executive Director, Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Lynn Taylor
President, Tertium Quids (Virginia)
Christian N. Braunlich
President, Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy (Virginia)
Carl Bearden
CEO, United for Missouri
Suzi Voyles
Georgia President for Eagle Forum
Georgia State Director for Maggie’s List
Rick Esenberg
President and General Counsel, Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty
Worker Rights Alliance (Washington)
Heather Greenaway
Executive Director, Workforce Fairness Institute
Carol Platt Liebau
President, Yankee Institute for Public Policy (Connecticut)
Norquist Letter to Romney Regarding Capital Gains
Today, ATR President Grover Norquist sent a letter to Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) regarding indexing capital gains taxes to inflation. The full text of the letter can be found here and below:
To: Senator Mitt Romney
From: Grover Norquist
Cc: Republican Members of Congress
September 13, 2019
Dear Senator Romney,
A few weeks ago you said you were “looking at” joining the hard left in the Democrat party in imposing a national energy tax on all Americans – a carbon tax – along with Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, and Pete Buttigieg.
Today in a letter you not only undermined Senator Ted Cruz and 20 other Senate Republicans, you misstated President Trump’s position on ending the taxation of inflation in capital gains.
President Trump has repeatedly, correctly stated that he knows he has the legal authority to end the taxation of inflation in capital gains by allowing taxpayers to calculate cost as “cost plus inflation.”
The President is aware that the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that agencies have that power in Verizon v. FCC in 2002. Even before that finding, Supreme Court lawyer Chuck Cooper made it clear that the President and Treasury Secretary have this authority. That was only made more obvious with the 2002 Verizon decision which Cooper detailed in his updated 2012 legal memo.
You also used regrettable left-wing rhetoric. According to the IRS 24,139,920 American households had a capital gains filing in the most recent year of available data. Eighty-two percent of these households made less than $200,000 that year and 56 percent made less than $100,000.
In your home state of Utah, 181,300 households had a capital gains filing. Eighty-four percent of these Utah households made less than $200,000 per year and 57 percent made less than $100,000 per year.
As noted by the Tax Foundation, “the lower rate on capital gains does not mitigate the inflation issue, as taxpayers still face tax liability whether they made a real gain or real loss.”
As also noted by the Tax Foundation: “Indexing provides important protection for all citizens, even those who have no capital gains, by reducing government’s ability and incentive to raise effective tax rates by inflating the currency.”
White House economists and Congressional Republicans together with free market groups and the business community in all 50 states will continue to push this initiative forward and get it enacted before the 2020 election.
You are putting yourself on the wrong side of the two biggest divisions between the two parties today: Democrats want to tax energy with a carbon tax while Republicans are unified in opposition. Democrats like Joe Biden want to increase the capital gains tax burden, and Republicans want to reduce the capital gains tax burden. The only way to reduce the capital gains tax burden between now and 2020 is through executive action.
It is wrong for the government to tax inflation. Ending the inflation tax will help create jobs and raise wages. ATR will continue to highlight the tens of millions of Americans who will benefit directly from ending the inflation tax, many of whom live in Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Good policy is good politics.
Ending the inflation tax on capital gains has broad and deep support. The growing list of supporters will not be discouraged by your letter.
Sincerely,
Grover G. Norquist
President, Americans for Tax Reform
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore
Czech Republic Introduces Digital Tax on American Tech Companies
The Czech Republic joins a growing number of European countries that are imposing a harmful digital services tax on American tech companies. The Czech Ministry of Finance has drafted a law introducing a 7 % digital tax on revenue from online advertising, the sale of user data, and inter-mediation services, following the European Commission’s similar proposal from 2018.
The Czech government expects the levy to be introduced in mid-2020 and estimates the tax will generate CZK 2.1billion ($90 million) in additional revenue in 2020, and CZK 5 billion ($215 million) annually after that.
The tax hits companies with global turnover higher than 750 million euro annually and with sales within the Czech Republic over 1.9million euro.
Finance Minister Alena Schillerova is following the French approach saying that the tax will apply until global tax measures are agreed at the OECD level.
Make no mistake that the Czech digital tax is discriminatory. By using revenue as a proxy for nationality, the Czech Republic is looking to pillage the accounts of American tech companies in order to get their “fair share” of tax. While the OECD is working to develop a global consensus on the issue, the Czech have decided to go ahead and follow France, risking worsening the Czech-American relationship and a massive blow back on future trade.
Photo Credit: 3D_Maennchen
Podcast: Lessons from the Battleground. Ohio Cuts Taxes, Regs, But Ups Spending.
The Buckeye State is making progress for taxpayers, with some tax cuts, regulatory reform, and more. While setting some good examples, the state's Medicaid expansion and rising spending levels aren't examples other states want to follow. Buckeye Institute's Greg Lawson joins the podcast to talk about all this and more.
Elizabeth Warren is Still Dodging the Middle Class Tax Question
Democrat presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren yet again dodged questions asking if the middle class would see a tax increase under her proposed “Medicare for All” plan during the ABC debate on Thursday night.
Here is the key exchange:
George Stephanopoulos: “Senator Warren, let me take that to you, particularly on what Senator Biden was saying there about health care. He's praised Bernie Sanders about being candid, says that Senator Sanders has been candid about the fact that middle class taxes are going to go up and most of private insurance is going to be eliminated. Will you make that same admission?”
Elizabeth Warren: [dodge]
Stephanopoulos: “Direct question. You said middle class families are going to pay less. But will middle class taxes go up to for pay for the program? I know you believe the deductibles and premiums go down.”
Warren: [dodge]
Americans for Tax Reform president Grover Norquist said: "If Elizabeth Warren will not admit the obvious—that her wild spending will require broad-based tax hikes on the middle class—in a Democrat debate, will she ever tell the truth in a general election?"
While Warren won't admit that the middle class will pay more in taxes as a result of Medicare for All, Sanders openly admits it.
“Yes, [the middle class] will pay more in taxes,” Sanders said during the June Democratic debate on NBC.
Jeff Greenfield from Politico noted that Warren could be holding back an admission that Medicare for All will lead to higher taxes for the middle class because she is worried about losing voters. Greenfield wrote:
"This leaves an obvious question that will follow her through the campaign: “Bernie Sanders is frank enough to acknowledge the obvious, and then explain it. Why won’t you?” The answer may be as simple as: If you say you will raise middle class taxes, an unmeasurable but likely significant number of voters simply will not bother to wait for the rest of your explanation."
As ATR noted earlier, Medicare for All would require anywhere from $32 trillion and $36 trillion in higher taxes over the course of the next decade.
If you want to stay up-to-date on Democrats and their threats to raise taxes, visit www.atr.org/HighTaxDems.
See more:
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Biden Caught Lying about GOP Tax Cuts
Bill De Blasio: “As President, I Would Issue a Robot Tax”
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Kamala Harris Calls for Ban on Plastic Straws
Elizabeth Warren's Climate Plan Calls For "Reversing" GOP Tax Cuts
Sanders: We’re Going to “Absolutely” Raise the Corporate Tax Rate
Elizabeth Warren on Corporate Tax Cuts: “I really want to see them rolled back.”
Bill de Blasio Calls for Corporate Tax Rate Hike
Amy Klobuchar: Raise the Corporate Tax Rate to 25%
Biden on capital gains tax: “We should raise the tax back to 39.6 percent”
Kamala Harris Threatens to Repeal GOP Tax Cuts 3 Times in August
Joe Biden: “I’m going to eliminate most all” of GOP Tax Cuts
Cory Booker Calls for Repeal of "Toxic" GOP Tax Cuts
Marianne Williamson Joins Dems Calling for TCJA Repeal
Kamala Admits Her Plan Would End Employer Insurance
“Medicare for All” is a Middle Class Tax Increase, Say Dems
Elizabeth Warren Can’t Dodge the Middle Class Tax Question Forever
Dem Socialized Healthcare Plan Will Lead to Middle Class Tax Hikes
Supposed “Moderate” Democrat John Delaney Wants to Impose Carbon Tax on the American People
Klobuchar Suggests Capital Gains Tax Hike and “Doing Something” About TCJA
Kamala Harris Campaign Headquarters Located in Opportunity Zone Created by GOP Tax Cuts
Julian Castro: “We’re going to have to raise taxes.”
Biden and Harris: Raise the Corporate Tax Rate
Biden tweet: Ignore the fact I’ve already called for middle class tax hikes
Kamala Harris: “I Will Reverse” Trump’s Tax Cuts
Kamala Harris Calls for Repeal of Tax Cuts Four Times in Three Minutes
Julian Castro Caught Lying about GOP Tax Cuts
NYT: Bidencare Will be Funded by “rolling back” GOP tax cuts
Kamala Harris: I Will Repeal “That Tax Bill”
Cory Booker: “I do support” Imposing Carbon Tax on Americans
Harris: “We are Going to Repeal That Tax Bill”
Biden: I Will Raise Corporate Tax Rate to 28%
Kamala Harris Continues to Lie about Tax Cuts
Jay Inslee: “Repeal the Trump Tax Cuts”
Biden Running Ads to “Repeal Trump’s Tax Cuts.”
VIDEO: Ten Times Biden Threatened to Repeal Tax Cuts
Here’s what happens if Dems repeal tax cuts
VIDEO: 10 Times 2020 Democrats Have Threatened to Repeal TCJA
Kamala Harris: When I Enter Office "I Will Repeal" the TCJA
Biden: “First thing I would do as President is Eliminate the President’s Tax Cut.”
Bernie Sanders claims people would be “delighted to pay more in taxes”
Biden: Tax Cuts Will be “Gone” If I’m Elected
Kamala Harris: I Will Repeal Tax Cuts “on day one”
Biden again says capital gains tax is “Much too Low”
Biden: Capital gains tax “much too low”
VIDEO: Five Times Biden has Threatened to Repeal Tax Cuts
Biden: “First thing I’d do is repeal those Trump tax cuts.”
Joe Biden broke his middle class tax pledge
“Mayor Pete” Calls for Steep Tax Hike on Homes and Businesses
Kamala Harris Vows Repeal of Tax Cuts “on Day One”
Biden: “When I’m President, if God willing I am, we’re going to reverse those Trump tax cuts.”
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