Posted on 05/07/2010 9:40:11 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
Chairman of House tax-writing committee wants to move forward, but much remains uncertain on taxes.
Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sandy Levin (D-Mich.) would like to extend at least some of the tax cuts enacted under President George W. Bush before lawmakers adjourn for the August recess.
"I think it is preferable," he told reporters Thursday.
The Bush tax cuts are largely set to expire at the end of the year, but Democrats want to extend the rates for the middle class. They don't intend to extend cuts to wealthier taxpayers who make at least $250,000 in annual income.
"The one thing we will not extend are those taxes on folks making over $250 [thousand]; we're not going to extend that," Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.), a Ways and Means member, told The Hill. "All others seem to be on the table."
Much else remains uncertain, including how to handle taxes on investment income. Democrats themselves don't appear to have decided how to address expiring rates on dividends and capital gains, partly because they don't want to make changes to tax rates that could have an adverse impact on the economy.
At the same time, the record budget deficits make it difficult not to look for income from some taxpayers.
"You're asking a question that remains to be discussed," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) when asked about dividends and capital gains taxes. Van Hollen is a Ways and Means member who also serves as Assistant to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
Absent congressional action, the 15 percent tax on dividends resets in January to pre-2001 levels, when most payments were taxed at rates that topped out at 39.6 percent. The tax on capital gains is also set to increase next year, from 15 percent to roughly 24, when the Medicare surtax takes effect.
"What we don't want to do is send a message that we want to hurt business at a time when we need to support business," Pascrell said.
Extending the current tax rates on capital gains and dividends for wealthier people will require offsets.
Lobbyists working the issue believe the challenge will be getting that extension through the Senate, but also say budget reconciliation instructions by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) leave some wiggle room for making it happen.
"Conrad's budget is silent on tax rates for cap gains and dividends," one lobbyist told The Hill. "With his reconciliation instructions, there is plenty of maneuvering room for the Finance Committee to do what they want with the upper-end taxpayers. So we don't think Conrad's budget is by any means determinative, and perhaps not even instructive as to what will happen with those rates."
Implementing the Obama Ebonomic Policy will devastate the free market.
Taxes on investment income is up in the air?? Are they coming after your 401ks and other retirement investments....and breaking every promise for it to be a tax benefit???
“I think it is preferable,”
...because as any dem will tell you, an August extension helps a November election! ~sarc
Yep...In other words, “Help Us!! We’re Drowning! Somebody throw me a life preserver.” After you save the life of the rapist, murderer and thief, do you really think he’ll stop raping, murdering and thieving?
Now that the Democrats fully understand 1)They are going to lose the House at a minimum come November..and 2) Sun setting the Bush tax cuts will further erode the economy..and 3) That makes Owe-bama a one term failure worse than Jimmy Carter...they want to talk ‘tax cuts’ and ‘extension of tax cuts’.
So predictable.
Not some - go all or nothing & add few more. Don’t play their (Libs) game. Either tax cuts are good or they are bad. Let us wallow in the s-— until it is tattooed into the libs head that their form of governing is a joke. Then let us conservatives come to the rescue & wipe all of these puke libs to the ash heap.
This is demspeak for "we need to act sane until after the election".
I think they are trying to decide what the capital gain tax and dividend tax rates should be for non-retirement accounts. This isn't (yet) a plan to tax Roth accounts or to tax non-Roth accounts at anything other than normal income tax rates. They want to be able to raise cap gains and dividend rates on everyone, but still be able to weasel out of Obama's campaign promises of not one tax increase on those making under $250,000.
They used to call it ‘closing the houses’.
Everyone EVERYONE! should pay some income tax as a stakeholder in this Republic. If we do it correcly every person will pay the same tax rate on every dollar. (It is so unfair to make the workers carry the free-loaders more and more every year.)
Hmmm, I thought with democrats/communists that ALL tax cuts were evil and contributed nothing good to their version of society and the government.
Why would you extend tax cuts that according to the democrats/communists for the last 8 yrs. did not go to anyone but the “rich”?
The Dems really do have themselves in a bind if they suddenly admit (after 6-8 years) that the “Bush” tax cuts were good for all Americans.
That’s got to hurt.
Will someone please clarify which “INCOME we are talking about?
GROSS INCOME
ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME
TAXABLE INCOME
Those are 3 entirely different figures.
All we hear from Washington is ‘income’ & that isn’t clear enough for me.
Levin wants to extend some Bush tax cuts before the ELECTION.........there, fixed it...........
They might make out better than doing gains or losses or ADD the fee thing.
I'm sure they don't like it when folks claim a loss..
Yet to be determined by new legislation. However, it will most likely be AGI.
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