Washington, D.C — Today, Harry Stein, Associate Director for Fiscal Policy at the Center for American Progress, spoke out against alleged plans by Congress to provide permanent business tax cuts while leaving critical changes to programs for the working poor on the cutting room floor. Reports indicate that the proposal on tax extenders would permanently extend corporate tax breaks for research and development, without any corresponding permanent extension of expansions to the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit that are scheduled to expire in 2018. The deal would also allegedly phase out tax incentives for renewable wind energy while preserving a host of excessive and extraordinarily expensive tax breaks enjoyed by the oil and gas industry.
The possible deal on tax extenders gives huge tax cuts to big businesses, while raising taxes for 50 million struggling Americans by allowing expansions of the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit to expire. The Koch brothers score an especially big victory due to the phasing out of tax breaks for wind energy, while fossil fuels continue to enjoy major tax subsidies.
At a time when almost all the benefits of the recovery are already going to the top 1 percent—and corporations are doing better than ever—Congress might actually pile on more government subsidies for those who need them least. We need an economy that works for everyone, but the reported tax extenders package is only a good deal for the wealthy few.
For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Allison Preiss at 202.478.6331 or [email protected].