The House Ways and Means Committee says it is looking at surtax on wealthy taxpayers as the primary source of funding ObamaCare:
As discussed in the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, the surtax would apply to individuals with adjusted gross income of more than $200,000 and couples over $250,000, according to officials involved in the discussion. Most spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks were private.
Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., a member of the panel, said the panel is looking at a surtax around 3.5 percent.
In addition, key lawmakers are expected to call for a tax or fee equal to a percentage of a worker’s salary on employers who do not offer health benefits.
Given today’s news that unemployment continues unabated (159,000 Americans filed new claims for unemployment last week) it’s not unreasonable to ask if the Democrats pushing for these tax increases actually know where jobs come from. As has been mentioned on this blog many times, small business is the largest employer (and the largest source of new jobs) in the U S economy. The “wealthy” that the House Democrats are targeting for tax increases are these small businesses, not the stereotypical “coupon clipping” aristocrat that Congress would have you believe.
One of the advantages that small businesses enjoy is their ability to react quickly to changes in their market spaces. They are quick to hire when business expands and quick to fire during a retraction (as we are in now). Having dealt with small businesses for years I’ve come to learn that they are also quick to respond to higher operating costs such as tax increases by reducing what usually is the largest expense they incur: payroll. Small business is already staring at the sunset of the Bush tax cuts; however, now Congress proposes to burden them with an additional surtax to pay for ObamaCare.
Does anyone believe the new ObamaCare surtax will expand employment? That begs the question as to whether Democrats actually care about unemployment. Judging the Democrats by their actions (instead of their intentions) indicates that there is a growing gulf between the working (and employing) class in America and the ruling class in Washington.
