Issue Position: Taxes

Issue Position

Issue Position: Taxes

When it comes to tax policy, my foundational belief is that South Dakotans spending more of their own money is better for the economy than the government using it to fund bureaucracy. That is why I have consistently supported tax relief legislation that puts more money back in the pockets of taxpayers, which helped spur the economic recovery in 2001. Recent tax relief has included reduced marginal tax rates for families and small businesses, increasing the child tax credit, and repealing the unfair death tax. Unfortunately, the tax relief that Congress passed was not permanent and some of these measures are set to expire in the near future. Congress should now make this tax relief permanent to protect taxpayers from what would be the largest tax increase in American history.

An excellent case in point is the fact that on May 17, 2006, President Bush signed into law the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act. I supported this legislation because it prevented a tax increase on South Dakota families and small businesses by extending expiring portions of previous tax relief provisions. Specifically, this bill extended middle class protection from the Alternative Minimum Tax. If this bill had not passed, thousands of middle class South Dakota families would have paid higher taxes on account of an ever expanding Alternative Minimum Tax. This bill also extended small business expensing provisions and the reduced capital gains and dividend tax rates, which have allowed taxpayers across the income spectrum to keep more of their money and invest more in our growing economy. If Congress does not act again soon to extend or make tax relief permanent, middle-class South Dakota families will be hit with increased taxes.

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