We've all read about some of the possible tax hikes in the Deficit Reduction proposal from the bi-partisan National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. Created by President Obama, the Commission is Co-Chaired by Erskine Bowles, Chief of Staff to President Clinton, and Alan Simpson, former Republican Senator from Wyoming. Reductions in Social Security, a higher tax on gasoline and potential elimination of popular tax deductions have been widely reported. But what would this mean to wealthy investors?
Most would agree that the tax system needs overhaul and simplification. "At least we have some legislative individuals that realize the need to adhere to some fiscal responsibility and are willing to put some proposal ideas on the table," says Andrew Rice, VP and CFO of Money Management Services, Inc., in an e-mail. Rice blogs about taxes at AdvisorOne.com —see his latest post, "Obama 'Care' Or Obama 'Tax?'"
Because the proposals are in draft stage and no one can predict whether their final form will be able to garner the 14 of 18 votes needed to even bring forth a proposal to Congress, it is hard to project what this will ultimately mean. But from the Co-Chairs' Proposal, and their $200 Billion in Illustrative Savings, we can project what shape some of the issues would take.
Here are the "five basic recommendations" of the Co-Chairs' proposal:
1. Enact tough discretionary spending caps and provide $200 billion in illustrative domestic and defense savings in 2015.
2. Pass tax reform that dramatically reduces rates, simplifies the code, broadens the base, and reduces the deficit.
3. Address the "Doc Fix" not through deficit spending but through savings from payment reforms, cost-sharing, and malpractice reform, and long-term measures to control health care cost growth.
4. Achieve mandatory savings from farm subsidies, military and civil service retirement.
5. Ensure Social Security solvency for the next 75 years while reducing poverty among seniors.
Rice agrees with "the broad features," proposed: "Simplifying the tax code, cutting spending across the board, deficit and debt reduction, and some form of mandatory savings, however, the details associated with each are still government benefited and not consumer driven." What we need, he notes, are "decisions that are growth-based, spending controlled, consumer driven and corporately run."
Five Crucial Issues to Consider
While there is no mention of the estate tax, there are other parts of the proposed plan that, if enacted, would affect wealthy investors. Five that immediately come to mind are:
- Treatment of dividends and capital gains as ordinary income;
- Elimination of some or all of the mortgage interest deduction;
- Elimination of the state tax deduction on federal returns;
- Abolishing the alternative minimum tax (AMT); and
- Imposing a limit on charitable deductions.
Qualified Dividends and Cap Gains
With qualified dividends and cap gains at a 15% tax rate now, most investors, and certainly wealthy investors, would pay more tax on gains and dividends under the proposed plan. That said, it would seem that taxable bond income would be more favorably treated, as that is currently taxed at ordinary income-tax rates and new ordinary-income tax rates would theoretically be lower than the current 35% highest federal rate.
Interest on Mortgages
