Wealth and Inequality in America, the Rich Get Richer and the Poor Get Poorer
Courtesy of Gus Lubin, here are some charts that will absolutely blow your mind (you can find all of them here):
Half of America has 2.5% of the wealth
Half of America has 0.5% of the stocks and bonds
Look at the gap grow!
The last two decades were great…except for American workers
Real average earnings have not increased in 50 years
Republican tax cuts have significantly increased the gap
Income tax is getting lower and lower for the rich
If you aren’t in the top 1%, then you’re getting a bum deal
Normalized to 1979, the top 1% have seen their share of American’s income more than double. The bottom 90% have seen their portion shrink.
Some Tea on the Rocks?
I’ve long thought that the tea partiers were drinking something a bit stronger than tea. Apparently, I was right!
At a March 16th Tea Party demonstration on Capital Hill, attendees were asked a wide-ranging number of questions by the Frum Forum – including some on taxes. One of the questions asked was, “Are taxes higher, lower or the same as when Obama was inaugurated?” 67 percent (or two-thirds) of tea partiers believed that taxes are now higher, 29 percent believed that they are the same and only 3 percent believed that they were lower.
According to Bruce Bartlett:
…federal taxes are very considerably lower by every measure since Obama became president. In fact, 40% of Obama’s stimulus package involved tax cuts. These include the Making Work Pay Credit, which reduces federal taxes for all taxpayers with incomes below $75,000 by between $400 and $800.
According to the JCT, last year’s $787 billion stimulus bill, enacted with no Republican support, reduced federal taxes by almost $100 billion in 2009 and another $222 billion this year. The Tax Policy Center, a private research group, estimates that close to 90% of all taxpayers got a tax cut last year and almost 100% of those in the $50,000 income range. For those making between $40,000 and $50,000, the average tax cut was $472; for those making between $50,000 and $75,000, the tax cut averaged $522. No taxpayer anywhere in the country had his or her taxes increased as a consequence of Obama’s policies.
As Einstein once said, “If the facts don’t fit the theory, change the facts.” The Tea Party gets an A+ for that!
News: Gov. Kaine Announces Four Virginia Enterprise Zone Designations
Today Gov. Kaine announced that Portsmouth, Staunton, Prince George County and Southampton County/City of Franklin (a joint zone) were designated as Virginia Enterprise Zones (VEZ).
In a press released issued today by the Governor’s office, it was explained that
“The Enterprise Zone program is an important economic development tool in bringing investment and jobs to Virginia’s distressed communities,” said Governor Kaine. “With the loss of more than 1,100 jobs in the area due to the closing of International Paper, we believe the Zones will be a valuable tool for attracting new businesses to this area and supporting the expansion of existing businesses.”
The VEZ program was first established in 1982 through passage of the Virginia Enterprise Zone Act. In 2005, the General Assembly passed the Enterprise Zone Grant Act, which transitioned the program from tax credit to grant incentives. Under the 1982 Enterprise Zone Act, a zone was designated for a 20-year period; however, under the 2005 Enterprise Zone Grant Act, zones are designated for an initial 10-year designation period with two five-year renewals and a maximum of 30 zones are allowed. Current zones will be allowed to run out.
The grants are broken into two categories: Enterprise Zone Job Creation and Real Property Investment. Qualified businesses can receive grants for a maximum of 350 jobs created above a four new net job threshold (up to $800/job, based on wages offered); and for businesses making a qualified investment in industrial, commercial or mixed use real property within the zone, grants can reach a maximum $200K, in aggregate, within any five-year period.
Examples of qualified real property investments include Excavation, Paving, Driveways, Landscaping, Painting, Doors, Windows, Roofing, HVAC, Electrical/wiring and Flooring. For a full listing, visit the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development.
Furthermore, per the press release:
“The Virginia Enterprise Zone program has been effective in supporting more than $1.5 billion in investment and the creation of more than 42,000 jobs since it was established in 1995,” said DHCD Director Bill Shelton. “These designations will work to incentives new jobs and new investment in these distressed areas of the Commonwealth.”
For more information on how these zones are designated and the criteria used in evaluating zone applicants:
Virginia Enterprise Zone Program
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