Cuccinelli Tax Plan Would Benefit The Wealthy Without Specifying How To Pay The Bill
Cuccinelli Proposed Cutting Taxes By $1.4 Billion By Reducing Income And Corporate Taxes. According to NBC Washington, “Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli released his tax plan Tuesday that would cut about $1.4 billion in taxes by reducing the state’s personal income and corporate tax rate. His proposed plan, “Economic Growth and Virginia Jobs Plan,” would reduce the personal income tax from 5.75 percent to 5 percent and the corporate tax rate from 6 percent to 4 percent.” [NBC Washington, 5/8/13]
More Than 75% Of The Tax Cuts Would Go To Households Earning At Least $108,000 A Year. According to the Washington Post, “The Richmond-based Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis examined one piece of that proposal — Cuccinelli’s plan to reduce Virginia’s top individual tax rate from 5.75 percent to 5 percent — and found that the state’s wealthiest citizens would benefit the most. ‘Nearly 4 in 10 Virginians (39 percent), mostly low- and moderate-income households, would see no reduction in their income tax bill,’ the institute said. ‘No Virginian earning less than $21,000 would receive a tax cut under the proposal and only half of all families earning between $21,000 and $39,000 would see their taxes reduced.’ More than three-fourths of the benefits of the tax cut would go to households earning at least $108,000, the analysis found, , while middle-class taxpayers would get a relatively small cut. [Washington Post, 5/16/13]
Washington Post Editorial: Like Mitt Romney, Cuccinelli Refuses To Say How He Would Pay For His Tax Plan. According to a Washington Post staff editorial, “Like Mitt Romney, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II wants to cut taxes — by a lot. Like Mr. Romney, Mr. Cuccinelli, the Republican candidate for governor, promises this would not reduce government revenues by a dime, since he would also eliminate significant tax loopholes and deductions. And like Mr. Romney, Mr. Cuccinelli adamantly refuses to identify these loopholes and deductions. Why would Mr. Cuccinelli expect Virginians to fall for this?” [Washington Post, 5/9/13]
Washington Post Editorial: Cuccinelli’s Tax Plan Would “Starve The State Of The Resources It Needs.” According to a Washington Post staff editorial, “Mr. Cuccinelli unveiled his plan at a yogurt shop, claiming it would help such businesses grow faster by cutting their taxes. More likely, it would starve the state of the resources it needs to fund public schools, state colleges and universities, public safety, mental health programs and state parks.” [Washington Post, 5/9/13]
Virginian-Pilot Editorial HEADLINE: “Candidate Cuccinelli’s Economic Gimmick” [Virginian-Pilot, 5/9/13]
Virginian-Pilot Editorial: Cuccinelli’s Tax Plan “Undermines The Commonwealth’s Fragile Recovery, Pushes A Greater Financial Burden Onto Cities And Counties And Still Leaves The State Incapable Of Fulfilling Its Responsibilities.” According to a staff editorial in the Virginian-Pilot, “Republican gubernatorial nominee Ken Cuccinelli unveiled a tax reform plan this week that he cast as a way to promote economic growth and create jobs. The proposal is more likely to manufacture an unnecessary budget crisis that undermines the commonwealth’s fragile recovery, pushes a greater financial burden onto cities and counties and still leaves the state incapable of fulfilling its responsibilities.” [Virginian-Pilot, 5/9/13]
Roanoke Times Editorial: “Cuccinelli’s Plan Looks Like Fantasy.” According to a staff editorial in the Roanoke Times, “Cuccinelli also wants to reduce individual and corporate income taxes, which produce more than 70 percent of the revenue for the state’s general fund budget. He said Tuesday the $1.4 billion loss of revenue can be made up by eliminating tax preferences that promote “crony capitalism,” but offered no examples of specific breaks he would target. Tax credits for education and health would be protected, he said. Given the General Assembly’s reluctance to eliminate ineffective tax preferences or sales tax exemptions enjoyed by the state’s most powerful industries, Cuccinelli’s plan looks like fantasy.” [Roanoke Times, 5/9/13]
Published: Jul 19, 2013