Posted on 10/03/2008 9:52:26 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
Washington - While crafting a bill intended to rescue the U.S. economy this week, lawmakers couldn't stop themselves from adding billions of dollars in tax breaks that have little to do with restoring confidence in financial markets.
Senators quietly tucked a number of earmarks into the tax package of the 451-page bill that was passed Wednesday night and is expected to be put to a vote in the House today: a $2 million tax benefit for makers of wooden arrows for children; a $100 million tax break to benefit auto racetrack owners; $192 million in rebates on excise taxes for the Puerto Rican and Virgin Islands rum industry; $148 million in tax relief for U.S. wool fabric producers; and a $49 million tax benefit for fishermen and other plaintiffs who sued over the 1989 tanker Exxon Valdez spill.
Many of the tax breaks were put in place years ago and were set to expire. But their inclusion is complicating efforts in the House to pass an economic rescue plan; an earlier attempt failed Monday. Several House Republicans railed on Thursday against the pork-packed bailout bill.
"One thing we didn't appreciate in the Senate's action was that they decided that this bill should become Christmas in October," said Steven LaTourette, R-Ohio. "We just don't think (the earmarks) should be in this piece of legislation."
The tax earmarks were scarcely noticed during the Senate debate over a bill that featured a $700 billion bailout package and a $112 billion tax package, including the renewal of popular tax breaks for businesses and renewable energy projects and a one-year effort to shield at least 20 million Americans from paying the alternative minimum tax.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Rosebud Earmarks.
Is the bailout bill now being considered online anywhere?
Such Garbage!
Either we need to pass:
1) Line item veto
2) Sponser links to each item inclusion in a bill
3) The ability to have special elections to remove the politicians from office
4) Or, the ability to throw all these bastards out of office,immediately!
Protesters perform a skit mocking the economic bailout plan in
front of the Capitol building. (Kevin Lamarque / Reuters)
What happened to McCain’s promise to “name names and make them famous” re: earmarks?
The bill being considered is posted online at Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com/projects/pdf/AYO08C32_xml.pdf
You will need to download and install the Adobe Acrobat Reader to view it, if you haven’t already.
Yep, like I always said, a big phony, against tax cuts’, ‘for tax cuts’, ‘against drilling’ , ‘for drilling’, ‘against earmarks’, ‘for earmarks’ ‘against big government’ , ‘for big government’,..... ANYTHING ELSE YOU FOLKS CARE ABOUT? WRITE IT IN..
Rush just said that at least this time we KNOW McCain will screw us and should not act surprised.
What are ya gonna do? Complain that it’s too socialist?
“Hey, there’s a bunch of socialist stuff in our socialist bailout bill!”.
Yeah, that’ll work.
This is the big break-the-bank addition that will lead us into socialized medicine when the HMOs all go bankrupt, since mental illness is (1) scientifically undisprovable and (2) completely open-ended.
The "woman's health" provision in the national abortion decision is what has allowed any abortion for any reason at any time. Same problem: can't be disproved.
The New York Times has now done a piece resurrecting the "talking cure," the most expensive and longest-lasting type of psychotherapy, complete with a photo of Freud. I wondered if psychoanalysis would ever come back into vogue. Looks like now is the time, according to the Times, as our Congress makes it insurable.
Nooooooooo . . . . . . . . . REALLY???????
(In other news, a consensus of global scientists have concluded that the sun does, indeed, rise in the east!)
Even if you like wealth redistribution from the poor to the rich, this one has to have you vote "No!"
I just sent my Exxon bill to the White House.
I guess in broad terms, the toy wooden arrow issue is a “tax benefit” Here is the current law -
There is imposed on the first sale by the manufacturer, producer, or importer of
any shaft (whether sold separately or incorporated as part of a finished or
unfinished product) of a type used in the manufacture of any arrow which after its
assembly measures 18 inches overall or more in length, or measures less than 18
inches overall in length but is suitable for use with a bow described in paragraph
(1)(A),a tax equal to 40 cents per shaft. IRC 4161(b)(2)(A). For sales after 1/1/07
the rate is 42 cents per shaft.
It seemed that sometime in the past, there was a percentage of value excise tax on arrow shafts. Later it was changed to the per arrow cost, above. The problem is the law now puts a 42 cent tax on a a 30 cent play arrow. This is part of the 1937 Pittman-Robertson act, as amended, which provides money to the states for wildlife restoration. In the 1970’s, the tax was expanded to archery equipment and handguns, with half of that money going to hunter safety classes and shooting ranges.
So what you have is really a technical correction of the excise tax, as the tax was never designed to be charged on toys. Bows with a draw weight of less than 30 lbs are not taxed, as they are not enough for hunting, and are for beginner target practice or toys.
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