Posted on 10/13/2011 5:19:07 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Herman Cain's "9-9-9" tax reform is attracting enough attention to become the focus of this week's Presidential debate. As a plan for overhauling revenues and unleashing the private sector, it's a bold gambit that shows Cain is willing to take chances and shake up the Capital.
The 9 percent business tax is a stroke of genius. It would give us the lowest business rates in the world and would make us the "tax haven" for investment from everywhere. The stock market would barely be able to stay abreast. The 9 percent personal income rate would eliminate all the deductions and put everyone on a level playing field. Tax collection from "the rich" would skyrocket because no one would hide income anymore, but "the other 99%" would make out as well. Cain's plan would fold in the 15 percent payroll tax so the new 9 percent rate would be an improvement - but would end the immunity that the bottom half has from paying any taxes at all. Altogether a good show.
The stickler is that 9 percent national sales tax. That's where things start to fall apart....
The sales tax has long been the preserve of the states and is now imposed in all but five of them (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon). The informal arrangement has been that the federal government gets income taxes, the states get the sales tax and local municipalities are granted the property tax. Often they poach. States and even cities have imposed income taxes and have also started trespassing on the property tax. But for the federal government to demand a 9 percent sales tax would be a whole new departure. Combined with state and city levies, it puts us near 20 percent, which is black market territory.
(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...
I keep hearing people say they don't like Cain plain because 9-9-9 may become 20-20-20, I don't think so.
The Sales Tax revenue stream to the Gov’t is the only new stream and the plan eliminates the payroll tax stream.
The Sales Tax stream will be less likely to go up then anything else. People will have this money in their pocket and will notice every time it changes. The payroll tax people never see the money so they never really notice how much it is.
The new sales tax is Cain way to introduce the FairTax, eliminate the fear at a low rate.
I like his plan, sure every plan is going to have issues and people can come up with arguments.
I've always wanted a simpler tax policy then what's going on now and Cains the only one offering it.
Not well thought out and not ready for prime time.
I agree. This is the whole basis of Cain's support - this 999 plan. It's reaching mythical proportions isn't it?
People better be careful what they wish for. This plan is a lobbyist's dream.
You’re right. This article attacking the 999 plan and endorsing Cap & Trade was laughable. Something else the author says makes me laugh....
“So a national sales tax is a non-starter. The whole thing is just too complicated and hard to enforce.”
What a marroon. If some local yokel in Podunk City can collect and enforce sales taxes, then why not the US government? Too complicated? Has this moron ever read the IRS Tax Code?
All 71,000 pages of it?
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_pages_are_in_the_IRS_tax_code
There goes the mortgage deduction. That ought to kill off the housing industry.
A nice simple plan, hoping for some simple people to allow him to implement it.
“There goes the mortgage deduction. That ought to kill off the housing industry.”
Not only that, a new house would also get slapped with an extra 9% sales tax added to it.
Because after Cain leaves office, they will turn 9-9-9 into 19-19-19 then 29-29-29.
You are free to worry that ONE of the numbers will be increased, such as increasing corporate taxes in a populist movement.
He stated it very directly and clearly in answer to questions at Tuesday’s debate.
It has been discussed all over the news ever since.
It also kills things like the 401K and IRA deductions. For a man who supports private retirement plans, slapping a tax on the money contributed is only going to discourage it.
Yup, the writer is an IDIOT. 130% increases in electric rates are not regressive?
I see no problem in collecting a national sales tax. Fuel taxes are collected at the pump, an essentially flat tax should free up a lot of IRS employees who should become unemployed with a flat tax. Most states collect sales taxes now an additional 9% of the same terms seems pretty easy. Standardize the items sales tax is paid on between the states... what is done now in some state is just foolish anyway. Most states don’t tax essential foods now. Carry on with that.
As for creep in the tax rates... cap the Federal spending as a % of GDP... about 17.5% or so sounds like a good number to me. I think that works out. It sure isn’t the 21 to 25% we have and are heading for.
So who is being deceptive, Cain or his website? And if his website in inaccurate on that point then what other proposals on it are wrong?
It also claims everyone will save 15% off their personal tax bill from eliminating the payroll taxes. That is less than truthful because half of that is a savings to business, and there is nothing to say that it will be passed on to employees.
You’re campaigning hard against Cain.
It doesn't necessarily have to. If your income is higher or, similarly, you have more money in your pockets due to paying lower taxes, you can afford more. The prices may be static (though I doubt that would happen over the long term, anything is possible), the amount of expendable income has increased anyway.
The 9% sales tax is a major turd in the punch bowl for the average Joe.
I am going by what he listed in his ‘plan’, not the spin that seens to change daily depending on who he is talking to.
He tied himself to the ‘999 plan’ when he said in debates to check his website.
So now he is saying the ‘plan’ is a moving target?
Seniors get hosed big time by having SS income taxed at the full 9%, even those just scraping by.
Cain is operating on a very low budget...and that is probably his biggest issue...being able to finance his run for the long haul.
“The problems I see are that this will take longer than an election cycle. No politician is going to risk his seat falling on the knife for this. It is too complicated.”
Oh, but Cain says his plan is simple, don’t you know...
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