Rangel's School Tax Credit Bonds In Stimulus

[sandnsea]

The House Ways and Means Committee on January 22nd voted 24 to 13 along party lines to approve a revised $275 billion package of economic stimulus tax measures that would expand bond provisions. The changes to the bond provisions were included in a so-called manager's amendment that was introduced by chairman Charles Rangel, D-NY.

Other bond-related changed Rangel made to the legislation include authorization of an additional $ 1 billion a year for two years for qualified school construction bonds, a new type of tax-credit bond that would be created under the package, bringing the total authorization to $22 billion over 2009 and 2010.

http://www.bondbuyer.com/article.html?id=20090122OCM2WD5C

These are included as part of the tax cuts that the left is opposing. Please learn something about what is actually in this bill before you start criticizing the whole thing.

[Still Sensible]

1. But tax cuts sound so republican

good point and good advice

[Shiver]

2. This should be considered more along the lines of investment

or even infrastructure rather than tax cut, I think. K&R - you're better at this research thing than me :P

[Aloha Spirit]

3. I appreciate the semantic value when Democrats approach spending via tax credits, but it definitely

has limitations. To me, while it might make it easier to pass, it also makes it harder to monitor the spending.

Rigby wrote about the difference between tax credits and spending programs a couple weeks ago in HP

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-rigby/tax-credits-vs-spending-w_b_155389.html

[sandnsea]

4. Tax credit bonds IS spending

Instead of people receiving interest, like they do with muni bonds, the federal govt sponsors the bonds and gives people tax credits. These particular bonds have 30 days to go to states, who have 30 days to get them to schools, who then have to spend them on infrastructure.

http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=5624&type=0

[Aloha Spirit]

5. I agree, but it is not classified as federal spending in the budget.

I'm interested in seeing how people react to Obama's National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank.

[sandnsea]

6. Haven't gotten that far

I am just identifying the tax related measures so people can see that most of it is good policy.

[Aloha Spirit]

7. Aah. Well,

I appreciated Summers on meet the press today
http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=news-000003017643

dick gregory kept asking why they have to let the Bush tax credits expire (cry baby gregory)
Summers educates him: When you put money into the hands of those with very high incomes, only a much smaller fraction of it is spent and so you derive much less benefit in terms of pushing the economy, in terms of pushing the economy forward.

Later he also teaches gregory about the multiplier and how some programs create more jobs than others (duh)

Whoa, 60 minutes is amazing tonight...

good luck