"NOYB" wrote in message
link.net...
wrote in message
ups.com...
Yep, they're all about lower taxes.....
A tax reform proposal agreed upon Tuesday by President Bush's advisory
panel would eliminate the federal deduction for state and local taxes
and sharply limit the tax break for home mortgage interest.
I seriously doubt that Bush would accept any proposal that included
reducing
or eliminating the home mortgage deduction. this is out of a bipartisan
advisory panel.
Hell, they didn;t even follow his executive order.........eliminating the
incentive of home ownership certainly is not "recognizing the importance of
homeownership" Sounds like the panel was hijacked.
http://www.taxreformpanel.gov/executive-order.shtml
Executive Order: President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws
of the United States of America, and to assist in reforming the Federal
Internal Revenue Code to benefit all Americans, it is hereby ordered as
follows:
Section 1. Establishment. There is established the President's Advisory
Panel on Federal Tax Reform (Advisory Panel).
Sec. 2. Membership. (a) The Advisory Panel shall be composed of up to nine
members appointed by the President. (b) The President shall designate one
member of the Advisory Panel to serve as Chair and one member to serve as
Vice Chair.
Sec. 3. Purpose. The purpose of the Advisory Panel shall be to submit to the
Secretary of the Treasury in accordance with this order a report with
revenue neutral policy options for reforming the Federal Internal Revenue
Code. These options should:
(a) simplify Federal tax laws to reduce the costs and administrative burdens
of compliance with such laws; (b) share the burdens and benefits of the
Federal tax structure in an appropriately progressive manner while
recognizing the importance of homeownership and charity in American society;
and (c) promote long-run economic growth and job creation, and better
encourage work effort, saving, and investment, so as to strengthen the
competitiveness of the United States in the global marketplace.
At least one option submitted by the Advisory Panel should use the Federal
income tax as the base for its recommended reforms."
That's leading some Democrats in California and New York to assail it
as an attack on the blue states -- the ones that voted Democratic in
the 2004 presidential election -- which tend to have higher taxes and
housing costs.
There were Democrats sitting on the panel too.
"The Bush panel's recommendations are a double-barreled blast aimed
squarely at California and the middle class," state Treasurer Phil
Angelides said in a press release. "These recommendations are good for
Texas, but bad for California."
Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., called it a pernicious proposal and a
"dagger to the heart of the people of New York."
The bipartisan panel, appointed by Bush early this year, was asked to
identify ways to simplify federal tax laws and redistribute the
"burdens and benefits" of federal tax "in an appropriately progressive
manner while recognizing the importance of homeownership and charity."
Its proposals, on balance, are supposed to neither raise nor lower
federal tax revenue.
Most observers think the proposal has little chance of adoption because
of the broad range of interest groups -- not to mention political
sacred cows -- it would threaten. Still, the plan is expected to spark
a far-reaching debate on tax reform.
The plan, which the panel plans to finish up next week, would simplify
taxes for the about one-third of taxpayers who itemize deductions -- by
eliminating them. Schedule A, the IRS form used to itemize deductions,
would go bye-bye along with many other tax-return forms.
The deduction for interest on a home mortgage, the biggest write-off
for many taxpayers, would be eliminated and replaced with a tax credit.
Under current law, taxpayers who itemize deductions can deduct interest
on up to $1 million in mortgage debt. The interest can be on one or two
homes as long as it doesn't total more than $1 million.
A deduction reduces income before taxes are calculated. The higher your
tax rate, the bigger the benefit.
A tax credit, by comparison, reduces your final tax bill dollar for
dollar, regardless of income.
The proposal calls for replacing the mortgage-interest deduction with a
tax credit equal to 15 percent of the interest paid on one home.
This would hurt me pretty badly. Currently, I get about $15,000 in tax
savings due to the deductibility of my home mortgage. I figure that I'd
end
up paying an additional $8000 in taxes each year if they limit the credit
to
15% of interest paid on my home.
I'm all for eliminating the home mortgage deduction...BUT only if they
first
lower my marginal rate, and create a flat tax across the board for all
income levels.