boedicca
Uppity Water Nymph from the Land of Funk
- Feb 12, 2007
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This is quite simply our budget problem in a picture:
Government transfers of income to households started to overtake personal taxes at the start of 2008, and the gap has been widening. In 2010, households received $2.3 trillion in income support from unemployment benefits, Social Security, disability insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, veterans benefits, education assistance and other cash transfers of government funds to individuals. Also last year, households paid $2.2 trillion in income, payroll, and other taxes. The difference was $125 billion, equivalent to 1 percentage point of overall personal income and about three times the amount Republicans and Democrats agreed to cut from government spending through Sept. 30.
Budget Deficit: Government Handouts Top Tax Income
We can't continue this out of control unlimited spending on entitlement programs. The major objective of the budget should be to reform these so they do not exceed reasonably tax receipt forecasts. The other side of the equation is the absolutely abysmal employment picture due to how this spending is crushing GDP growth. More jobs will lift receipts - but this won't happen until the spending is addressed.
Government transfers of income to households started to overtake personal taxes at the start of 2008, and the gap has been widening. In 2010, households received $2.3 trillion in income support from unemployment benefits, Social Security, disability insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, veterans benefits, education assistance and other cash transfers of government funds to individuals. Also last year, households paid $2.2 trillion in income, payroll, and other taxes. The difference was $125 billion, equivalent to 1 percentage point of overall personal income and about three times the amount Republicans and Democrats agreed to cut from government spending through Sept. 30.
Budget Deficit: Government Handouts Top Tax Income
We can't continue this out of control unlimited spending on entitlement programs. The major objective of the budget should be to reform these so they do not exceed reasonably tax receipt forecasts. The other side of the equation is the absolutely abysmal employment picture due to how this spending is crushing GDP growth. More jobs will lift receipts - but this won't happen until the spending is addressed.