Good enough

The key word in the title of this post, from my perspective, is “alternatives”–not “additions.”  The Obama Administration is reportedly considering some new proposals for a variety of business tax cuts that they believe would be particularly effective in creating jobs quickly.  As the AP’s Julie Pace reports:

Several days ago we showed an analysis that indicated that the elimination of the payroll tax cut would likely eat into 1.5% of 2013 US GDP and subtract as much as 3.5% of 2013 growth based on one submodel - a deduction to overall US growth which already puts US GDP forecasts in borderline recession territory.

We greet the new year with an America that has a Fiscal Cliff deal. Actually no, it doesn't - not even close.

Blank also toured Palermo’s Pizza with Mayor Barrett and met with local business leaders as part of White House Business Council outreach effortActing U.S. Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank traveled to Milwaukee today to deliver the keynote address at the 113th League of Wisconsin Municipalities Annual Conference to discuss the American Jobs Act–how it will spur economic growth, accelerate job creation and benefit Wisconsin.  The League is a nonprofit and nonpartisan association of cities and villages that serves as an information clearinghouse, advocacy organization and legal resource for Wisconsin municipalities; it is comprised of 190 cities and 392 villages. At the Conference, Blank discussed details of President Obama’s American Jobs Act.  Blank highlighted the different ways the plan would make an immediate impact on job creation: cutting taxes for small businesses, putting more money in the pockets of consumers through an expanded payroll tax cut, and preventing the layoffs of teachers, firefighters and policemen, while putting construction workers to work through much-needed renovations to school, roads, rail and airports renovations. Blank underlined the need for Congress to act quickly on the bipartisan measures in the Jobs Act. “Outside experts say the American Jobs Act would put nearly two million people to work, while putting more money in the pockets of workers and repairing infrastructure vital to enhancing America’s competitiveness,” Blank said. “It’s time for Democrats and Republicans in Congress to come together and swiftly pass the measures in the Jobs Act, which will put people back to work right away and put more money in the pockets of American families.” Earlier in the day, Blank joined Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett on a tour at Palermo’s Pizza, a rapidly growing regional company that added almost 100 jobs last year and is leading the “Earn to Learn” program with the Mayor’s Office, which gives high school-aged youth a chance to develop marketable skills through direct work experience and training seminars. 

THE Supercommittee has failed. When Congress finally struck its deal to raise the debt ceiling during the summer, it agreed to find just over a trillion in budget savings through a bipartisan committee (said supercommittee), which would be empowered to develop recommendations that would then be subject to a Congressional vote in a process mercifully stripped of most of the procedural bottlenecks that now choke so much legislation. Should Congress fail in this endeavour, a number of automatic cuts would instead kick in in 2013.

President Obama held a press conference today to continue his fight for Congress to pass the American Jobs Act. He explained what needs to happen to boost economic growth in the United States. One of the key proposals are tax cuts for small businesses. The President’s plan includes new tax cuts to businesses that provide immediate incentives for firms to hire and invest. These tax cuts would be available to all businesses, regardless of size, but are designed to target their impact towards the smallest businesses. Key elements of his proposal are: A payroll tax cut to businesses, with a focus on small employers ($65 billion in combination with the payroll tax holiday for new wages)A complete payroll tax holiday for new jobs or wage increasesExtend 100 percent business expensing through 2012 ($5 billion)Help entrepreneurs and small businesses access capital and grow A payroll tax cut to businesses, with a focus on small employers ($65 billion in combination with the payroll tax holiday for new wages) The President’s plan will extend the payroll tax cut to firms by cutting in half their payroll tax on the first $5 million in payroll. Next year, instead of paying 6.2 percent on their payroll expenses, firms would pay only 3.1 percent. The President’s plan would provide tax cuts for all firms, with focused relief on the 98 percent with less than $5 million in payroll. How It Would Work for a Typical Firm: A construction firm with 50 workers earning an average of $50,000 a year – for a total payroll of $2.5 million – would receive a payroll tax cut of 3.1% of its total payroll, or about $80,000. The firm’s workers would receive an average tax cut of about $1,500 a year from the employee side payroll tax cut in the President’s plan.