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Last week, I voted twice against the nearly $1 trillion Wall Street bailout bill in the U.S. House. The first bill (with a $700 billion price tag for taxpayers) failed with an overwhelming bipartisan majority. Then the Senate passed a second version that was loaded with tax "sweeteners" in an attempt to attract enough lawmakers in the House who voted "Nay" the first time around to switch their vote to pass the bill. That jacked the price tag up to $810 billion. You've got to love Washington.
We were supposed to be voting on a financial bailout bill, but unfortunately we got much, much more.
Taxpayers for Common Sense have listed their Top 10 Tax Sweeteners in the recently passed Bailout Bill. As the organization notes, not all of these are outrageous on their own, but when we are supposed to be voting on a bailout package that is already putting the American people further in debt, these extras are the last thing that should be thrown into the mix as political currency to attract votes. They should have been dealt with at another time.
1.) Sec. 503. Exemption from excise tax for certain wooden arrows designed for use by children ($2 million)
2.) Sec. 317. Seven-year cost recovery period for motorsports racing track facility ($100 million)
3.) Sec. 308. Increase in limit on cover over of rum excise tax to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands ($192 million)
4.) Sec. 301. Extension and modification of research credit ($19 billion)
5.) Sec. 504. Income averaging for amounts received in connection with the Exxon Valdez litigation ($49 million)
6.) Sec. 601. Secure rural schools and community self-determination program ($3.3 billion)
7.) Sec. 201. Deduction for state and local sales taxes ($3.3 billion)
8.) Sec 502. Provisions related to film and television productions ($478 million)
9.) Sec. 325. Extension and modification of duty suspension on wool products; wool research fund; wool duty refunds ($148 million)
10.) Sec. 309. Extension of economic development credit for American Samoa ($33 million)
Check out Taxpayers for Commonsense for more information on these provisions and several others.
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