FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Treasury Secretary John Snow will travel to Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio, Friday, March 14th to promote President Bush’s economic agenda.  

During this trip, the Secretary will participate in three open press events.

In Columbus, at a local community center, the Secretary and CDFI Fund Director Tony Brown will announce the organizations selected to receive the first $2.5 billion in tax credit allocations under the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program aimed at stimulating growth and job creation in low-income communities. 

The NMTC is a tax credit to investors who make “qualified equity investment” in privately managed investment vehicles called “community development entities” or CDEs.  The tax credit provided to the investor will cover a seven-year period.  The credit provided to the investor totals 39 percent of the investment in a CDE and is claimed over the seven-year period.

At this event, the Secretary will be accompanied by Senator George Voinovich, Governor Bob Taft, and Congresswoman Deborah Pryce.

In Cincinnati, the Secretary will speak with employers and workers at a chamber of commerce to hear about local economic conditions and to discuss President George W. Bush's efforts to strengthen the economic recovery.  This stop is part of the Secretary’s objective to meet with people on the front lines of the American economy - small business owners, employees, individual  investors, business leaders, economists and farmers - to discuss where our economy stands, the impact of the policies we have put in place, and the steps we are taking as we move forward.  The Secretary will discuss the President’s jobs and growth plan in his remarks.

Also in Cincinnati, the Secretary will meet with several senior citizens to discuss the elimination of the double taxation of dividends – a key component of President Bush’s jobs and growth plan. 
Roughly 35 million American households receive dividend income that is taxable and will directly benefit under the President’s plan.  More than half of these dividends go to America’s seniors, many of whom rely on these checks for a steady source of income in their retirement. 

Almost half of all savings from the dividend exclusion under the President’s plan would go to taxpayers 65 and older.  The average tax savings for the 9.8 million seniors receiving dividends would be $936.

At both events in Cincinnati, the Secretary will be accompanied by Representative Rob Portman.

Friday March, 15, 2003

Columbus, Ohio

9:00 AM    NEW MARKETS TAX CREDIT EVENT
     OPEN PRESS
     The J. Ashburn Jr. Youth Center, inc
     85 S. Clarendon Ave.
     Columbus, OH 43223

Cincinnati, Ohio

1:00 PM    REMARKS TO THE GREATER CINCINNATI OHIO
     CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.
     OPEN PRESS
     Anderson Mercy Health and Wellness Center
     7995 State Road
     Anderson Township, OH 45255
     513-460-1342

2:30 PM    SENIOR CITIZENS ROUND TABLE
     OPEN PRESS
     The New England club
     8135 Beechmont Avenue
     Cincinnati, OH
     513-791-0381

Impact of the President’s Growth Package on Ohio

The package will provide benefits to 3.9 million Ohio taxpayers.

REDUCING TAXES

• 3.9 million taxpayers in Ohio will have lower income tax bills in 2003 under the President’s growth package.

• More than 920,000 business taxpayers can use their tax savings to invest in new equipment, hire additional workers, and increase pay.

ACCELERATE 10-PERCENT BRACKET EXPANSION

• More than 3.1 million married couples and single filers will benefit from the acceleration to 2003 of the expansion of the 10-percent bracket scheduled for 2008.

ACCELERATE REDUCTION IN INCOME TAX RATES

• More than 1.1 million taxpayers in Ohio will benefit from the acceleration to 2003 of the reductions in income tax rates in excess of 15-percent scheduled for 2004 and 2006.

ACCELERATE REDUCTION IN MARRIAGE PENALTY

• More than 1.3 million married couples in Ohio will benefit from the acceleration to 2003 of provisions that increase the standard deduction for joint filers to double the amount for single filers and increase the width of the 15-percent bracket to twice the width for single filers.  These two provisions were scheduled to phase in between 2005 and 2009.

ACCELERATE INCREASE IN CHILD TAX CREDIT

• More than 985,000 married couples and single parents in Ohio will benefit from the acceleration to 2003 of the increase in the child tax credit from $600 to $1,000 that was scheduled to phase in between 2005 and 2010.

EXCLUSION FOR CORPORATE DIVIDENDS

• More than 1.3 million taxpayers in Ohio will benefit from the exclusion of dividends paid from previously-taxed corporate income.