Some of America's Richest Say 'No, Thanks' to Bush Tax Cuts

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Sat, 09 Apr 2005 15:56:08 -0400

Some of America's Richest Say 'No, Thanks' to Bush Tax Cuts

 

 

http://www.commondreams.org

 

 

 

Published on Friday, April 8, 2005 by OneWorld.net

 

Some of America's Richest Say 'No, Thanks' to Bush Tax Cuts

 

by Abid Aslam

 

 

 

WASHINGTON -- Some of America's wealthiest individuals have declined

billions of dollars in tax cuts bestowed upon them by President George

W. Bush's administration and have urged others among the country's

richest and most famous to donate their federal tax cuts to campaigns

against the Bush package, often described as ''tax breaks for the rich.''

 

''It's obscene that Washington is handing out tax breaks to

millionaires with one hand and shredding the safety net with the

other,'' said Marta Drury, a member of Responsible Wealth, a national

network of affluent Americans advocating what they term ''widespread

prosperity'' and concerned that a deepening wealth divide in America

is undermining the country's social and democratic fabric.

 

''So I'm calculating my 2004 tax cut and donating it to organizations

fighting for responsible, fair, and adequate taxes. I don't believe

that people like me with incomes over $200,000 need $69 billion in tax

cuts,'' Drury added, referring to the total estimated value of 2004

tax cuts granted Americans in her income bracket.

 

Responsible Wealth, founded in 1997 and claiming 1,000-plus members,

has stood at the forefront of what Time magazine termed the

''billionaire backlash'' against elite tax cuts and Bush's proposal to

repeal the estate tax. On Wednesday, members urged others in the ranks

of America's rich and famous to join the ''Responsible Tax Pledge''

initiative.

 

The tax pledge asked members to calculate their 2004 tax breaks and

donate these to fair-tax campaigns. For wealthy individuals like

Drury, the average estimated tax break in 2004 was $20,000. For

several other pledge signatories, it amounted to more than $100,000.

 

''It's irresponsible to put America deeper into debt to give tax cuts

to millionaires,'' the tax pledge stated.

 

It said it was ''wrong to give tax cuts to the wealthy instead of

investing in education, research, job training, affordable housing, a

healthy environment, vaccines, and emergency services.''

 

The pledge called on Congress ''to reject more tax cuts for wealthy

Americans, roll back the existing tax cuts for the very wealthy

instead of making them permanent, and support responsible, fair, and

adequate taxes.''

 

Taxpayers who made more than $1 million received an average federal

income tax break of $123,592 in 2004, according to the Tax Policy

Center, a joint project of the Urban Institute and Brookings

Institution think tanks. This compared to $383, the average tax break

in 2004 for the two-thirds of taxpayers who made less than $50,000 per

year.

 

''The next time a politician says we can't afford to fund something

you care about, ask yourself if $69 billion per year would help,''

said Scott Klinger, Responsible Wealth's co-director. ''When you hear

that the only choices we have are to cut budgets, increase the deficit

or increase your taxes, remember that $69 billion in tax breaks went

to people who made more than $200,000 last year.''

 

Bill Gates Sr., co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation--the

largest foundation on Earth--and father of the Microsoft Corp.

co-founder, has spearheaded Responsible Wealth's campaign to oppose

regressive changes to the tax code and to reform and preserve the

estate tax.

 

The tax is levied against estates of more than $1.5 million where

assets are not transferred to a surviving spouse and thus applies to

about 2 percent of all inheritance cases, Responsible Wealth said.

 

Even so, permanently repealing the tax as Bush has proposed would cut

federal revenue by $1 trillion over two decades and have the effect of

depressing charitable giving by $12-24 billion per year, Responsible

Wealth said, citing Congressional Budget Office figures.

 

The elder Gates for years has argued that individual wealth is a

product not only of hard work and smart choices but also of a society

that provides economic development, education, health care, and

property rights protection. Such an economy's top dogs benefit the

most from tax-funded institutions and programs and therefore should

not resent or seek relief from having to pay taxes, he has said.

 

He still has some convincing to do.

 

Facing off against Gates and Responsible Wealth are families including

the widow and heirs of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. founder Sam Walton and

influential lobby groups including the National Federation of

Independent Business.

 

Led by Sam Walton's only daughter, Alice, the family spent $3.2

million on lobbying, conservative causes, and candidates for last

year's federal elections. ''That's more than double what it spent in

the previous two elections combined,'' USA Today reported Wednesday,

citing public documents.

 

The Waltons have sought income tax changes and other legislation that

could preserve their shareholding in America's biggest business and

the family's $84 billion fortune, the newspaper said.

 

2005 OneWorld.net