Yesterday I tried to clarify the facts about the "tax hike" that Republicans say will be the largest one in history -- you know, that little penalty if you don't buy insurance. They're trying to confuse people with misinformation -- since they have nothing better to swing votes their way.
It's not the mandate to purchase insurance that is the "tax;" it's only the teeny little penalty. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the amount with be about $27 billion over a decade.
From the perspective of our family budgets that may seem huge; but in government budgets, it is very very small.
Try this for perspective: The Congressional Research Service has estimated that making the Bush tax cuts permanent would result in a loss of revenue over the next decade at $3.5 trillion.
The Bush tax cuts would cost us 130 times as much as the tax penalty would bring in.
Forbes magazine list 130 people whose individual net worth is each more than that $2.7 billion per year.
Still think it's "the largest tax hike in history?"
Ralph
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Another comparison for perspective:
ReplyDeleteThe 10 year "tax increase" as the penalty for not buying insurance is estimated at $27 billion.
The Bush prescription drug benefit program is estimated to cost around $500 billion for a similar 10 year period.