Stock Transaction Tax: Yet another Tax Increase

Curtis Dubay / December 04, 2009

Congress is discussing yet another tax increase. This one would be a tax on stock transactions and could fund a new jobs bill since it has become apparent to everyone that the stimulus failed to create any jobs on net. This was underscored again when the Labor Department reported Friday another 11,000 job loss for November.

The job-destroying stock transactions tax gained traction this week when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she “believe(s) the transaction tax still has a great deal of merit.” Improving business confidence is the great missing ingredient holding back a strong economic recovery. Serially threatening the economy with new taxes and new regulations is no way to improve the confidence of America’s families and businesses of a prosperous future.

The push for the tax began a few weeks ago when the AFL-CIO, in concert with some Congressional leaders, began a new campaign for yet another tax hike to fund Washington’s ongoing explosion of spending. This latest collaboration between Big Labor and Big Government would be a 0.25 percent tax on all stock trades. Given the budding deficit pressures another tax hike proposal is hardly surprising, but, curiously enough, this new tax would target the pensions of the AFL-CIO’s own members.
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