With his new budget proposing an incredible $4.7 trillion in tax increases, President Biden has secured his legacy as history’s biggest tax increaser. The size and scope of his tax increases are unprecedented, with Treasury’s explanation running 226 pages, and if ever enacted would put us on a path to long-term economic stagnation and decline.Biden’s tax increases are a perfect reflection of Washington Democrats’ philosophy of bigger government, redistributing income, and punishing success, increasing taxes to levels not seen in years.Under his budget, annual taxes collected each year would increase from $4.8 trillion in 2022 to nearly $8 trillion in 2033, a 63% increase. Taxes as a share of the economy would increase to 20.1%, well above the 50- year average of 17.2%, and a level exceeded only once in our history in 1944.Individual taxes as a share of the economy would increases to 10.5%, the highest level ever since the income tax began in 1913. The top individual tax rate would reach nearly 45%, the highest level since 1986.Corporate tax receipts would increase by $2.7 trillion over the next ten years, an increase of 56%. Corporate taxes as a share of the economy would increase from 1.7% to 2.6% in 2025, the highest level since 1979, and more than 50% higher than the modern average. The corporate tax rate would be raised to one of the highest in the world, higher than China and every other country in the OECD.A new surtax on business income and investment would hit millions of small businesses with a surprise $650 billion tax increase. The maximum tax rate on capital gains and dividends would increase from 23.8% to 44.6%, an 87% increase, the highest capital gains rate since 1978. The budget includes page after page of other damaging tax increases, including a $437 billion tax on unrealized gains.Biden’s tax hikes are comparable to the tax increases proposed by President Hoover in 1932 as the economy was sinking into a downturn. Although many in Washington view this budget as a political document, the tax increases have a real world economic impact, affecting millions of financial and business decisions.With the economy starting to stall and financial market distress growing, these tax increases should be rejected out of hand.
If They're Passed, Biden's Proposed Tax Increases Would Be Historically Large
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