JOBS & THE ECONOMY
Wall Street may have stabilized, however, the problems on Main Street continue. By the beginning of 2012, nearly 13 million people had lost their jobs, and our unemployment rate remains stubbornly high at over 8%. Since January of 2007, Massachusetts unemployment has increased from 4.6% to 6.5%. Here in the District, we see Lawrence with an unemployment rate of 14.5%, Lowell’s unemployment at 8.8% and Haverhill and Methuen sitting at near 9.0%.
The $787 billion stimulus package didn’t solve unemployment in this country. Jobs created via pork-filled stimulus packages are not sustainable. The White House estimates that 3.5 million jobs were created or “saved” (whatever a “saved job” means). Even if we use these questionable numbers that means that each job created or saved cost the taxpayers $225,000.
President Obama attempted another round of stimulus spending via his September 2011 Jobs Plan and this past November, Representative Tsongas proposed a 21st Century New Deal government hiring program with no mention of the cost to taxpayers or the number of jobs it would create. We are witnessing a “jobless recovery” and this will be a drag on our economy for years to come. Washington DC jobs summits are great, however, we need jobs now. The private sector driven by small businesses are the engine of job creation in this country. But currently they are reluctant to hire.
Why?
Because business do not have any visibility with regard to future government policies and this uncertainlty is stifling job creation: healthcare, cap and trade, card check, increased regulatory burdens, and the looming repeal of the across-the-board bipartisan tax cuts benefiting all taxpayers that were adopted under the prior administration.
This uncertainly won’t be resolved soon so how do we overcome this?
I propose the following:
- Lower the corporate tax rate from 35% to 25% -- currently our corporate tax rate is the highest in the developed world; Businesses do not relocate overseas due to lower wages, they relocate to take advantage of business friendly regulatory and tax regimes.
- Impose a 1 year moratorium on the implementation of any new job-killing regulations.
- Permanently extend the existing temporary tax cuts--which even the Democrat controlled House extended in 2010.
- Repeal the disastrous and costly health care reform bill.
- Disavow any and all tax increases because that will only serve to stifle job growth. (You can’t tell an employer you are going to raise taxes and expect he or she to hire more employees.)
- Incent business growth by offering tax credits to companies who are expanding.
- Maintain current levels of personal income tax rates. People simply cannot afford to give more away.
