Abstract: President Obama’s tax plan will, famously, end the 2001 and 2003 tax relief for Americans earning $250,000 a year or more. But, far from raising taxes only on the “rich,” the widespread effects of the Obama plan will hurt Americans at every income…
The 2001 and 2003 tax relief packages are set to expire at the end of this year. If these packages are allowed to expire, on January 1, 2011, taxes will go up automatically for American taxpayers—without a single piece of legislation ever crossing the President’s desk. President…
Curtis Dubay talks with David Weinberger about the proposed dividends tax hike and its impact on business and seniors' retirement income. To get regular updates on Heritage in Focus podcasts, visit our RSS feed or subscribe on iTunes. …
Abstract: There is much talk in Washington and the media about the impending expiration of the 2001 and 2003 tax relief. Those in favor of letting the tax cuts expire argue that to do otherwise would be merely…
Abstract: The top tax rates on qualified dividends are scheduled to jump from 15 percent to nearly 40 percent on January 1, 2011—just one of many reasons the Bush tax relief should be extended. Without an extension, dividend…
President Barack Obama has called for a huge, $921 billion tax increase beginning on January 1, 2011. Congressional Democrats intend to meet his request and more—after the mid-term elections.[1] To achieve the bulk of this increase, they need merely do nothing: The tax relief enacted a decade ago…
Abstract: President Obama has called for a huge tax increase to take effect on January 1, 2011. Instead of reducing spending, he proposes to raise taxes on a wide swath of taxpayers—including small businesses—despite the weak economic recovery. Congressional Democrats stand poised (immediately following the November elections) to…
The President has proposed raising the tax on dividend income from 15 to 20 percent while his allies in Congress have created a procedural path whereby the income tax rate on dividends could again reach 39.6 percent. At the same time, it has been suggested by some that the deduction…
Abstract: President Obama has proposed raising the capital gains tax rate to generate billions in new revenues for the federal government. However, according to data included in the President’s own budget, if implemented this tax increase would—at best—offset the…
House and Senate negotiators are hammering out details of a tax bill that would extend the 15 percent tax rate on dividends and capital gains for two years. Failure to reach an agreement would result in a major tax increase beginning January 1, 2009, when the capital gains tax rate would climb to 20…
In a bold move, President George W. Bush has proposed that the double taxation of dividends be eliminated. Under his plan, businesses would still pay tax on corporate income, but individual stockholders would no longer pay a second tax on that income when it is distributed as dividends. The President is…
Some leaders in Congress want to increase the federal tax on gasoline by 5.45 cents per gallon, for the first year, and then index it to inflation. They would use the revenue from this tax increase to finance additional spending on highways and other transportation projects, which they say will benefit the economy. Macroeconomic…
Myth 1: Lowering capital gains tax rates will not help the economy. Fact 1: Cutting capital gains tax rates is the single best tax policy to improve economic growth. Capital gains play a unique role in fostering economic activity, especially by entrepreneurs in high-technology areas. The current top statutory rate of 20 percent significantly exceeds the…
Two recent National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) papers begin the formal study of whether the 2003 dividend tax cuts affected corporate dividend policy. Economists have debated for years whether lowering individuals' taxes on dividends would lead to increased corporate payouts, and the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (JGTRRA) provides a…
With major tax reform once again heading the list of legislative priorities, many analysts are hoping that the 108th Congress will make tax law far less a factor in economic decisions than it is today. Making the tax code more economically neutral is particularly desirable when it…
Why is the 2003 tax cut working so much better than the 2001 tax cut? Why is the economy performing better, for instance, and why are tax revenues growing faster than projected today compared to what happened after the 2001 tax legislation? The answer is that not all tax cuts are created equal. Tax…
Rebuilding Iraq during the raging insurgency was no easy task. It required ingenuity, courage and innovative ways to...…
Yesterday's topic at the New York Times "Room for Debate" blog series was on the President's Afghanistan withdrawal...…
For the second time in a week, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D–MT) has called for the suspension of...…
No demographic was more opposed to Obamacare's passage and no group wants to see the law repealed more than America's...…
Without action from Congress, the Obama tax hikes are set to take effect January 1, 2011. However, this doesn’t mean...…
AMERICA NEEDS A READY AND MODERNIZED FIGHTING FORCE The President’s Budget The Obama Blueprint: While a robust...…