Tax Accountability Pres. Endorses Canceling Gov. Debt to Itself

By on October 15, 2013   /   Items of Interest, Latest, News Releases, Tax Accountability, Taxpayer Alert  

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CHICAGO—The President of Tax Accountability, economist, former Federal Reserve Bank examiner, and legendary tax fighter Jim Tobin, today endorsed the plan by U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson (D-9, Florida) that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke use his powers to end the debt limit crisis.
Grayson, quoted in Business Insider, Oct. 11, 2013, states that “…this idea was put forward not by me…but by Republican Rep. Ron Paul.”
“The solution advocated by Paul and Grayson is brilliant and elegant,” said Tobin. “Bernanke should simply cancel the Treasury debt that it owns. The government can just forgive the government’s debt.”
The Federal Reserve doesn’t own all of the U.S. government debt, but it does own roughly $2 trillion of it. Canceling this portion of the debt would, in Grayson’s words, “give the government substantial room under the debt ceiling standoff in Congress, and it would prevent a default.”
“Grayson is absolutely correct when he says the debt held on the balance sheet can be canceled without any significant consequence,” said Tobin. “It is a bookkeeping artifact corresponding to the money supply. In essence, the government owes this money to itself. This is not a debt problem; it is an accounting problem.”
Grayson, a Democrat, and Ron Paul, a Republican and former U.S. Rep. from Texas, are among the strongest critics of an out-of-control Federal Reserve.
Paul has campaigned to dissolve the Fed for 35 years, and wrote an entire book called “End the Fed.” Grayson has repeatedly slammed the Fed. Paul and Grayson also co-sponsored a bill to audit the Federal Reserve.
“Rep. Grayson has written to Chairman Bernanke asking that he cancel the debt held on the Fed’s balance sheet. If Bernanke were to do this, his legacy would be his being considered the greatest Federal Reserve Chairman in U.S. history.”

Tax Accountability is the political action arm of Taxpayers United of America.

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Illinois' Corporate Income Tax is 9.5% – Fourth Highest in US!

By on October 10, 2013   /   Illinois, Items of Interest, Latest, News Releases, Pension Reform, Taxpayer Alert  

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The Illinois state corporate income tax is not 7% as some politicians, columnists and organizations have erroneously stated, but is actually 9.5%, according to the president of one of the nation’s largest taxpayer groups.
“The total Illinois corporate state income tax rate of 9.5% includes a base rate of 7% and another 2.5% on top of that, which was added by constitution amendment in 1980,” said Jim Tobin, President of Taxpayers United of America. “The additional tax was called a ‘personal property replacement tax,’ which purportedly replaced a 19th-century tax that was not even being collected.”
The Ill. Dept. of Revenue’s own website states: “For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2011, corporations pay 7.0 % income tax and 2.5% replacement tax.”
“Two years ago the Democrat-controlled state legislature pushed through a huge, back-breaking 67% increase in the state personal income tax, as well as hiking the state corporate income tax. Every dollar from these gigantic tax increases is being pumped into the terminally-ill state government employee pensions funds, and these funds, which fund lavish gold-plated pension plans, are still going under.”
According to the non-partisan Tax Foundation in Washington, D.C., “The Illinois corporate state income tax rate, recently raised from 7.3% to 9.5%, rose from being the 21st highest overall corporate tax rate in the country to 4th highest. Almost all nearby states have lower state corporate state income tax rates, putting Illinois in a very unfavorable position competitively.”
“Now Springfield Democrats are pushing for a state graduated income tax with a top tier of as much as 11%. Illinois, which is struggling to survive economically, undoubtedly would become an economic wasteland if the state’s most productive individuals and corporations flee to states with lower tax rates.”

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95% of Illinois Taxpayers Held Hostage by State Pension Cartel

By on May 8, 2013   /   Commentary, Illinois, Items of Interest, Latest, News Advisory, Pension Reform  

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Chicago –Pension reform could be easy if there were no government-union bosses — and the votes they deliver — according to Taxpayers United of America (TUA).
“The entire State of Illinois has been brought to its knees by about 5% of its population,” said Rae Ann McNeilly, TUA executive director.
“The debt to accommodate this 5% has grown to 200% of the state’s annual budget. Using liberal actuarial standards, Illinois’ pension debt hits the $100 billion mark sometime this month, and that debt is created by the pension funds that serve only 5% of the state’s total population.”
“How is it that this 5% of the population has such total control over the entire state? Government unions. Government-union bosses deliver the votes to keep politicians in power. The state of Illinois is being held hostage by cowardly legislators who are so worried about the votes of the rank and file that they are willing to steal massive amounts of wealth from the rest of the state’s population to prop up a system that is a proven failure.”
“Pension reform could be relatively easy if we didn’t have government unions. We have reached the point where government unions have outlived their usefulness and are actually a threat to the entire state’s economy and general welfare.”
“There should be no Constitutional protection for union thugs who pillage the state’s coffers for the benefit of a few and the legislators who kowtow to their demands. There should be no more laws that protect this corrupt system of election quid pro quo.”
“None of the proposed pension reform bills even attempt to address the cause and effect that has brought the state to its knees. The current pension system places tremendous amounts of money in the hands of government bureaucrats who have never demonstrated responsibility with such assets.”
“Pensions, as we know them, rely on steady growth and prediction of the future. All across the country, these systems have failed. Pension reform that does not permanently eliminate the possibility of unfunded liabilities by replacing them with defined contribution retirement savings is a smokescreen and shows disregard for 95% of the state’s population.”
“The ‘Madigan bill’, being touted by Chicago machine boss and Ill. House Speaker Michael Madigan (D), not only falls short of eliminating unfunded liabilities, but worse, it guarantees that no matter how outrageous the pension debt gets, taxpayers must pay the pension bill before all others. This bill actually affords even more protection to the 5% at the cost of the 95%.”
“The ‘Cullerton bill’, which Senate leader John Cullerton purports will provide ‘real and substantial reform for a generation to come’, falls short on nearly every level and relies on the employees making the choices between COLAs and hospitalization. Both need to be cut if we intend to stay afloat.”
“Neither of the proposed bills is a panacea or even provides a margin of relief to taxpayers. It’s time for lawmakers to do their job and fix this problem as though there were no government union bosses to appease. Pension reform can be that simple. Pass the laws necessary to do the job and pass a bill that gets a state constitutional amendment on the ballot that makes it legal to do what is in the best interest of 95% of the state.”
“Real pension reform must: 1. End pensions for new hires and implement a 401k type retirement savings program with no guarantees that hold taxpayers hostage. 2. Increase current employee pension contributions to reflect private sector levels. 3. End COLA’s entirely. 4. Raise the retirement age to 67 and continue to raise it as life expectancy increase. 5. Require all government employees and retirees to contribute 50% to their healthcare premiums.”
“And while we are at it, maybe we should ban government unions and Constitutional protections to special interest groups.”

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