Fix the Debt Releases Principles for Tax Reform
Washington, DC (PRWEB) July 26, 2013 -- As Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus and Ranking Member Orrin Hatch begin their pursuit of comprehensive, structural tax reform, the Campaign to Fix the Debt, a nonpartisan movement asking lawmakers to work together on legislation large enough to stabilize and reduce the national debt as a share of the economy, released its principles for a tax reform deal.
As reported by the National Journal, the group also endorsed the "blank slate" approach, which begins by wiping out all existing tax breaks and forces lawmakers to defend the breaks they believe should remain.
"Our outdated and inefficient tax code is in dire need of structural reform—on both the corporate and individual side," said Jon Romano, spokesman for the Campaign to Fix the Debt. "A 'Blank Slate' or 'Zero Plan' approach to tax reform—one that cuts out all specific tax preferences from the code and makes lawmakers justify putting them back in—is a great place to begin the process."
In a memo supporting the Senators' "blank slate" approach, the Campaign encouraged lawmakers to submit ideas consistent with the following principles and the national interest:
• Tax reform should promote economic growth and help reduce future deficits.
• Tax reform should begin with a "blank slate" by eliminating all corporate and individual tax preferences that do not pass a cost-benefit analysis, recognizing that each restoration must be accompanied by a tax rate increase.
• Tax preferences that are restored should be made more efficient and cost-effective to maximize return on investment for the American taxpayer.
• Tax reform should lower tax rates for individuals, corporations, and small businesses.
• Tax reform should promote fairness and protect the most vulnerable in society.
• Tax reform is a complement, not a substitute, for entitlement reforms. Policymakers must continue to pursue structural reforms to slow the rate of growth of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security in order to fix the debt and make those programs sustainable.
Members of the Campaign to Fix the Debt come from a broad range of social, economic, and political perspectives with the belief that America's growing debt burden threatens our future, and that we must address it now. The Campaign mobilizes key communities – including leaders from business, government, and policy – and people all across America who want to see elected officials step up to solve our nation's fiscal challenges.
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For more information about the Campaign to Fix the Debt, please visit http://www.fixthedebt.org.
Jon Romano, Fix the Debt, http://www.fixthedebt.org/, (617) 435-6613, [email protected]
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