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Taxes - The Heritage FoundationTaxes - The Heritage Foundation The death tax: What does it kill? Who does it affect? It affects hundreds of thousands of small-business owners across the country—as well as their employees and community residents who benefit from the senior and day care centers, playgrounds, charities, and learning centers that are built or supported by small-business owners. Like water and sunlight in an ecosystem, small businesses provide sustenance essential to building and preserving communities. So high is the death tax that a large portion of heirs to small companies cannot afford to pay it after the business founder dies, and see themselves forced to sell to giant corporations—which have no personal ties to the communities of their new acquisitions, and thus no incentive to commit to local institutions. What does the death tax kill? The best of American life and civil society itself. The death tax is simply antithetical to the core of the American dream. View Article - Mon, 26 Jul 2010 10:53:00 -0400 Senator Jim DeMint cites Heritage research in his speech on preventing the renewal of the death tax. View Article - Wed, 21 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 2010 is the only year since 1916 in which heirs to an estate will not have to pay the dreaded death tax. Victory for small businesses? Not yet—due to a legal quirk, the death tax is scheduled to come back to life in 2011. Studies, statistics, and real life have shown again and again that the businesses and families burdened with the death tax often see themselves forced to cut back on benefits, investments, and employees. The death tax keeps new jobs from being created, hurting not just the affected businesses, but the economy as a whole. Because it is a tax on capital, the death tax destroys as many as 1.5 million jobs that the economy needs as it struggles to recover. Heritage Foundation tax policy expert Curtis Dubay details a replacement for the death tax, and explains why Congress must kill the death tax—now. View Article - Tue, 20 Jul 2010 18:09:00 -0400 The Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act would likely lead to the same conditions that caused the housing bubble of a few years ago. View Article - Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:00:00 -0400 Curtis Dubay discusses the expiration of the death tax and the threat of its return. View Article - Mon, 19 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 Brian Riedl discusses the federal budget and the Bush tax cuts. View Article - Wed, 14 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 President Obama and congressional Democrats are blaming their trillion-dollar budget deficits on the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003. Letting these tax cuts expire is their answer. Yet the data flatly contradict this "tax cuts caused the deficits" narrative. Consider the three most persistent myths: View Article - Tue, 13 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 Brian Riedl discusses the expiration of the Bush tax cuts and other budget issues. View Article - Tue, 13 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 Professional sports leagues have ways of ensuring that “the last shall be first.” Teams with bad regular-season records get the top draft choices, theoretically allowing them to bring in the best young talent. Teams with excellent records draft later. View Article - Thu, 08 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 At approximately 8:30 a.m. on the first Friday of every month, the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics releases a snapshot showing what the U.S. labor market looked like in the previous month. The report usually runs more than 30 pages, and is filled with (generally obscure) statistics, tables, and charts. But the highlight of each month's report is a single figure that circulates quickly through the press, and is taken immediately to be an important indicator of the general health of the economy: the unemployment rate. View Article - Mon, 05 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 It would come via a piece of legislation called the "Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act." Attached, ridiculously enough, to a spending bill that provides war funding for the troops, it will soon hit the House floor for a vote. View Article - Fri, 02 Jul 2010 01:00:00 -0400 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, will have grave effects on families, including higher taxes, less choice in health care plans, and potential loss of coverage. The result will be millions still without coverage and increased government dependency. View Article - Fri, 25 Jun 2010 15:49:00 -0400 America has repealed large health care bills before, and repeal of Obamacare is certainly possible now. View Article - Thu, 24 Jun 2010 12:41:00 -0400 The recent passage of Obamacare poses grave effects on small businesses and doctors. View Article - Wed, 23 Jun 2010 13:00:00 -0400 Senator Jim DeMint cites Heritage research on tax breaks and job creation in Senate debate. View Article - Wed, 23 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400 The annual federal budget deficit is projected to reach 8.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2020—more than three times the historical average of 2.3 percent. This dramatic increase in the federal deficit will be exclusively the result of increasing spending, not declining revenues (or the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts). Rapid growth in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid costs and interest payments on the national debt will cause virtually all of this new spending. Any sustainable fix must therefore address the source of the problem—rapidly rising entitlement spending. View Article - Mon, 21 Jun 2010 11:38:00 -0400 JD Foster discusses a proposed millionaire tax. View Article - Mon, 21 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400 The deficit will reach a stunning $1.5 trillion this year, and it is obvious that spending is the problem. In fact, raising taxes to pay for the increase in spending would have harmful effects on the economy. View Article - Fri, 18 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400 President Obama uttered that unpresidential phrase last week. He needs to stop the threats, take a deep breath and calm down—especially when reacting to criticism by the press and the American public. That’s part of what you get when you’re elected President of the United States. Many Americans were shocked that this President would, yet again, pass the buck and blame others for problems in the gulf. View Article - Mon, 14 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400 Curtis Dubay discusses the venture capital tax and other proposed taxes. View Article - Tue, 08 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400
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Looking for more great sites?
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May I suggest the following....
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School Levy Madness! |
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Sunday, October 18, 2009
www.meatandpotatoes.org
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 Times are tight, and yet in Summit County Ohio, fiscal responsibility seems to have gone right out the window. As usual, during an off election year where there is no high profile President, no Governor, no Congressional election to the State or Federal level, the tax levis are creeping out of the woodwork. Summit county Board of Elections has a total of 21 tax levies approved for voting up from 14 in November of 2008. In the past year the economy has continued to slump shedding hundreds of thousands of jobs and pushing the states unemployment numbers into double digits. We have all collectively tightened our belts, and gotten by with less, yet our governments are still asking for more from us.
As you put off replacing your car, stretch your kid’s cloths as long as you can and watch every penny at the grocery store, here’s a nice slap in the face for you. In Summit County alone these 21 levies are trying to raise an additional $414 million dollars! That’s right, even while your federal taxes are on the verge of going up thanks Cap and Trade and who knows how much more for mandated national healthcare, it’s still not enough!
City Levies:
There are some struggling cities that are in need of emergency systems, and these cites are asking for very small amounts, and doing so with only 2 to 3 year commitments. In fact the amount of funds requested by these cities for such purpose represents a fraction of the amount I mentioned above.
School Levies:
On average Schools are asking for a longer 5 year commitment of tax increases, and one of the most dysfunctional districts (and most funded already) is asking for a 10, that’s right 10 year commitment.
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B is for Barberton and Betty |
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Most of Summit County is represented at the Federal Level by Betty Sutton, you may remember the “Tax and Spend” liberal from her many photo ops with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. I can’t remember hearing much else; since she is the ONLY member of congress who refuses to appear on our local talk radio station….you got something to hide Betty? Well her home town of Barberton is following in her footsteps this fall, and is a great example of both the city and the Congresswomen’s failed approach to throwing crazy money at the problem! |
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A Closer Look at Barberton:
Barberton is middle of the road as far as the number of students in it’s School system, K – 12 count is about 3600 students according to Ohio.gov, yet they currently spend nearly $20K per year on each student. That is the second highest of any school system looking for money this fall. The city is asking for a staggering $87 Million over the next ten years boosting the per student amount to $24K per child. Despite the massive amount of spending already being done (more then it would cost to send these kids to collage) Barberton still has one of the lowest graduation rates at 91.40%.
The only school system worse, is the one spending more, and that is Springfield, and for the record they are touting a 85.10% graduation rate, while spending $200 more per student per year. The sick part is they are doing this with 1300 less students. Springfield is also asking for a total of $63 million between the 3 different levies is has on the ballot.
Running the Numbers:
This has made me absolutely sick in seeing that of the schools system on the ballot this November the average numbers break out like this:
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Average Number of Students: |
2,528 |
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* Average Expenditures per student per year: |
$19,110 |
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Average per student per year increase being asked for: |
$3,021 |
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** Average Amount of that that goes to Administration: |
$2,217 (11.6%) |
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** Average Total Administration Costs per year: |
$6.59 Million |
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*** Average Graduation Rate: |
$94.4% |
| * Total expenditure per student includes local and State funding for Administrative, Building, Staff, Pupil Support and Instructional for 2007 - 2008 school year from Ohio.gov |
| ** Administration = Salaries for administrators, office staff, and office supplies only |
| *** Data from Ohio.gov |
Here are the raw numbers, and ask yourself if your children are actual getting the education they deserve after all of this. These numbers do NOT take into account for privet and charter schools.
The truly sad part is that 1.5% of all students in Summit County are homeschooled at the parent’s expanse after paying their portion of Sate and Property taxes of all of this! I don't know about you, but I want a refund!
| School System |
Current per /y Student Expenditure |
Totle Administration Cost per/y |
Graduation Rate in 2008 |
Totla Levy Request Amount |
| Barberton |
$19,945 |
$8.06 M |
91.40% |
$87 M |
| Springfield* |
$20,087 |
$5.31 M |
85.10% |
$63 M* |
| Norton |
$18,560 |
$5.30 M |
100.00% |
$44 M |
| Cuyahog Falls |
$18,938 |
$10.61 M |
95.10% |
$39 M |
| Manchester |
$18,181 |
$3.30 M |
95.80% |
$37 M |
| Tallmadge |
$19,595 |
$6.05 M |
96.40% |
$34 M |
| Green |
$18,734 |
$8.63 M |
95.10% |
$29 M |
| Coventry |
$18,843 |
$5.48 M |
96.80% |
$14 M |
| * Springfield has 3 sperate levies for 11 M, 17 M, and 35 M that combine to $63 M |
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| 1 - There is no liberal bias in the media |
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| 2 - Separation of Church and State |
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| 3 - Banning partial birth abortions is an assault on a woman's right to choose |
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| 4 - The Outsourcing of American Jobs |
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| 5 - The Creation of Green Jobs |
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| 6 - Same Sex Marriage |
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| 7 - Rasing Taxes Equals more government funds |
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| 8 - The Supreme Court should keep International Courts in mind |
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| 9 - America must be humble to the international community |
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| 10 - Government Knows Best |
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My Top Blog Picks:
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We are an independent group of thinkers, who are neither Democrats nor Republicans, but believe in right and wrong. It’s time to clear all the crazy stuff from our lives, and get down to just the Meat and Potatoes of today’s issues. Join us, and invite your friends to sit down at your table and discuss with us. Site Map | |
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