Congress Should Extend Tax Relief
As we turn the calendar to December, I am reminded that the sports season is in full swing. In the Sixth Congressional District, we have a pair of state football champions (Mound City and Penney High School in Hamilton), and a girl's cross-country champion (Kearney). Basketball season has begun and you can bet some of our teams will be cutting down the nets early next year.
In those sports, you know what the rules are when you head to the game. However, as we head into 2011, no one seems to know what the rules of our tax code will be next year. On December 31st, the current tax rates expire and will revert to the old tax rates of 2001.
That expiration would effectively be the largest tax increase on Americans in history. It would increase the tax brackets. For instance, the 10 percent bracket would increase to 15 percent. It would bring back the marriage penalty. The death tax would go from zero to 55 percent overnight.
My belief is that we should not raise taxes. We should extend this tax relief permanently in order to provide certainty for individuals and small businesses. The biggest complaint I hear from small businesses is that they are afraid to hire more people because they are uncertain what new tax or regulation Congress will pass next.
Congress needs to make sure that everyone understands the rules and pass permanent tax relief before the end of the year.
Sincerely,
