Jeb Bush (Tax Reform)

Bush's Tax Reform (section page)

"I'm gonna fight as hard as I can to make sure that we shift power away from Washington, simplify the tax code, to spur economic activity in this country."(RD-4)

Tax Proposal

Jeb Bush released a plan that would reduce personal income tax brackets down to three brackets: 28%, 25%, 10% like the Reagan administration’s second tax reform. In the business world he says that his administration would "eliminate a lot of deductions and cut the rates down. A corporate rate of 20 percent, which puts us 5 percent above -- below that of China, and allows us full expensing of investing. It would create an explosion of investment back into this country, creating higher-wage jobs"(RD-4). Bush's campaign claims that "The plan nearly doubles the standard deduction now taken by roughly two-thirds of all filers. It eliminates the marriage penalty, expands the Earned Income Tax Credit, ends the death tax, retires the Alternative Minimum Tax and ends the employee’s share of the Social Security tax on earnings for workers older than 67"(JBW-J)

• 2% cap of filer’s gross income on total tax deductions(NPR)

• double size of standard deduction(NPR)

• double income tax credit for childless workers(NPR)

• eliminate carried interest loophole(NPR)

• estimate increasing number of Americans that don’t pay tax by 15 million, bringing the number of filers with zero taxes from 40% up to 50%(NPR)

• plan estimated to cost up to $3.4 trillion over the next decade without growth(NPR)

• businesses deduct new capital investments (NPR)