Posted on 01/31/2002 1:30:51 PM PST by 4Freedom
WASHINGTON - While no promises were made, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas, R-Calif., agreed that Puerto Rico made the right move by proposing the new section 956 plan to improve the island's economy, rather than attempting to "revisit" tax programs already killed in Congress, Resident Commissioner Anibal Acevedo Vila said Wednesday.
"He was aware of the [956] proposal and told us it was a smart thing to come up with a new proposal and not to revisit Section 936 and 30A," Acevedo Vila said, commenting on a meeting Tuesday between Gov. Calderon, Economic Development Secretary Ramon Cantero Frau, himself and the key lawmaker.
Thomas, who heads the tax-writing panel that must sign off on the Section 956 plan for it to be approved in Congress, "got the message" that Puerto Rico's economy has been hurt since the demise of 936, the resident commissioner said.
He was told the island has lost 27,000 jobs since 1996, when the Section 936 and 30A tax plans began phasing out, and that manufacturing jobs are at their lowest in 20 years, Acevedo Vila said.
"Since manufacturing makes up 42 percent or 43 percent of the island's GNP [gross national product], this has badly hurt the whole Puerto Rico economy," the resident commissioner said.
Thomas pointed out that the free trade agreement between the United States and Mexico was hurting Puerto Rico, Acevedo Vila said.
The California Republican also "agreed that every dollar invested in the Puerto Rican economy comes back in goods [some $19 billion annually] bought from the United States," Acevedo Villa said.
Still, the resident commissioner acknowledged that while the meeting was "very positive," Thomas did not commit to pushing for the island's new proposal.
The 956 plan would allow subsidiaries of U.S. companies in Puerto Rico that become Controlled Foreign Corporations to repatriate their profits 90 percent tax free.
Right now, firms are taxed the full 35 percent on income brought back to the states. This causes them to invest that income overseas for better tax advantages.
The island hopes its proposal, if approved, will attract high tech companies to set up operations in Puerto Rico and create more jobs at higher salaries for skilled workers, while affording the U.S. Treasury taxes it might not otherwise collect.
Acevedo Vila brought up Wednesday another possible legislative vehicle for the Puerto Rico tax program, other than the economic initiative now being debated in Congress.
He said Democrats could be pushing for a minimum wage hike this year and that tax benefits usually accompany such legislation.
The 956 proposal could be included in that type of package, he said.
Oh, that's just great. We give them billions of U.S. Taxpayer's hard earned dollars, every stink'n year, and they SHOP-TILL-THEY-DROP for American stuff with it.
Let's take that brilliant economic strategy and see if we can erase the trade deficit with it. Not.
I'm going to call GM and tell them that for every $30,000 they invest, in my household, I'll buy a $30,000 car from them.
I think I'll call Carnival Cruises, Resorts International and Disney and tell them that for every $5,000 they invest, in my household, that I'll take a $5,000 cruise or a vacation with them.
This could work, if their executives are all stupid, liberal Democrats.
A concept that our politicians think makes such great business sense for the U.S. Taxpayers ought to make the private sector ecstatic. No?
>sarcasm<
They don't pay income tax?.
Vieques, no agreement no deal.
The former section 936 windfall profits tax scheme resulted in companies, like Pepsi and Coke, receiving about $350,000 in yearly federal tax savings for each job they created in Puerto Rico. The kicker is they would have created those jobs anyway. They wanted to sell in the Puerto Rican market.
This is just another big scam. The companies get rich. The politicians get rich. The average resident of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Taxpayer get screwed.
Why should only corrupt politicians get to steal all the money?
'Church of the Heavenly Thong Bikinis'
'Church of the Reforming Tax Dodgers'
>sarcasm<
>sarcasm<
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