House Republicans have offered an economic recovery plan that will create twice the jobs at half the cost for hard working Americans. The House GOP plan does not include wasteful pet projects and it ensures that the funding immediately goes into effect. No waste, just jobs.
House Republicans are proposing:
Immediate Tax Relief for Working Families:
Rather than a refundable credit based on payroll taxes, House Republicans propose reducing the lowest individual tax rates from 15% to 10% and from 10% to 5%. As a result every taxpaying-family in America will see an immediate increase in their income with an average benefit of $500 in tax relief from the drop in the 10% bracket and $1,200 for the drop in the 15% bracket. A married couple filing jointly could save up to $3,200 a year in taxes.
Help for America's Small Businesses:
Small businesses (those employing less than 500 individuals) employ about half of all Americans, yet they can be subject to tax rates that siphon away one-third or more of their income. House Republicans propose to allow small business to take a tax deduction equal to 20% of their income. This will immediately free up funds for small businesses to retain and hire new employees.
No Tax Increases to Pay for Spending:
The stimulus proposal pending in Congress includes record levels of government spending that will substantially increase the current deficit. House Republicans are concerned that this level of spending will result in some proposing near-term tax increases on American families. House Republicans are insisting that any stimulus package include a provision precluding any tax increases now or in the future to pay for this new spending. House Republicans believe that any stimulus spending should be paid for by reducing other government spending, not raising taxes.
Assistance for the Unemployed:
Incredibly, the Federal Government actually imposes income taxes on an individual receiving unemployment benefits. House Republicans propose to make unemployment benefits tax free so that those individuals between jobs can focus on providing for their families. The plan would also extend unemployment benefits from March to December, 2009.
Stabilizing Home Values:
The real-estate market is paralyzed as potential buyers wait on the sidelines waiting for prices to fall even further. This is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. In order to encourage responsible buyers to enter the market and stabilize prices, House Republicans propose a home-buyers credit of $7,500 for those buyers who can make a minimum down-payment of 5%.
Democrats, through their American Recovery & Reinvestment Act, promised to stimulate the economy at the cost of $787 billion. Much of this stimulus package includes wasteful spending, and it is only increasing the American debt.
Democrats said they would cut taxes and reduce unemployment, but instead they are:
Increasing Taxes:
Democrats are calling for the biggest tax increase in American history. If approved by the Senate, H.Con.Res. 85, the Democrat budget resolution, will increase taxes by $574 billion over five years and $1.154 trillion over ten years, as compared to extending current low-tax policies as called for in the Republican alternative. Furthermore, Democrats proposals have included energy consumer tax increases through their "Cap-and-Tax" bill, increasing the federal tobacco tax, increasing taxes on small businesses, increasing capital gains and dividends taxes for high income families, capping charitable giving tax deductions, increasing the death tax, increasing the carried interest tax, and creating new taxes on domestic energy production. Also, Democrats are likely to raise taxes to pay for their proposed government-run health care.
Furthering Unemployment:
Four months after passage of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act, unemployment numbers have not decreased. In fact, they have reached a 25 year high and are still climbing. Democrat taxes on small businesses, which create 60 to 80 percent of all new jobs in America, are stifling job creation. The "Cap-and-Tax" bill will result in an enormous loss of American jobs, as domestic industries will outsource millions of manufacturing jobs to India and China. Estimates show a "net reduction in U.S. employment of 2.3 million to 2.7 million jobs each year of the policy through 2030," even after the creation of new green jobs.
Substantially Increasing the National Debt:
The Democrats' "stimulus" spending spree, combined with the largest budget in history, will increase the public debt from $8.5 trillion in 2009 to $16 trillion in 2019. In January, CBO estimated the debt would rise to $9.3 trillion in 2019. In five short months Democrats have put us on a path to increase the public debt by $7 trillion over CBO's estimate, and borrow as much public debt in ten years as our entire nation borrowed in 233 years.