What Georgia thinks about: The House’s latest tax proposal

Historically, lowering the corporate tax rate has not increased wages, created jobs nor been responsible for economic growth. In fact, corporate tax cuts hurt economic growth because they increase the deficit, which means less capital for economic investment that lends to higher interest rates and lower wages. Consequently, in order to pay for these tax cuts, the revenue squeeze would come from cutting programs like Medicare, Social Security, infrastructure and education. This would do more harm in the long run. If corporations were going to “trickle down” increased capital to employees, they would have by now considering they have been enjoying a steady rise in profits since 2008 and the stock market has broken records. Yet, wages are still stagnant. Decreasing the corporate tax rate will do nothing more than increase the pay of the top 1 percent-5 percent within most companies. The average American will not reap the rewards of lowering the corporate tax rate and, in fact, may suffer as a result.

• Candice Crigler, a student studying global affairs who lives in Dunwoody

Anyone who thinks that large corporations will "pass the savings on to you" is deluding themselves. Corporations are out to benefit their shareholders. They won't raise wages just because they receive a tax break. That is not only bad math, but a complete ignorance of economics. Magical thinking will not automatically drop $4,000 into every worker’s bank account.

• Michelle Zupan, works for a non-profit and lives in Augusta

Trickle Down Economics is a horrible myth that has yet to work in this country. Republicans continue to push this message and cannot provide evidence of it being successful when implemented. If congress focused on jobs as much as they focus on pleasing their big money donors we would all be in a better position. I applaud the idea of simplifying the tax code, but that can be done without given a tax break to the richest among us. I I feel this tax plan is a horrible plan that is doomed to fail.

• Marcus Copeland, works in the banking industry and lives in McDonough

America has the highest corporate tax rate in the world. Want to see less factories move offshore?Want more goods made in America?Want more manufacturing jobs?Want to see the trade deficit go down?Want to pay less for everything you buy?Want a booming economy for decades to come?Want to see more rapid growth in your 401k plans?Want your employer to pay you more?If you answered yes to these questions, then you should support a reduction in the corporate tax rate.When corporations have to pay less money to the government, then they have more money to invest in new plants and equipment. They can lower prices and be more competitive in international markets. They can pay their employees more. They can pay bigger dividends. They can keep their factories open here.Many economists say that corporations don't really pay taxes anyway, they just add that amount to the price of their goods and services, so the consumer actually pays the tax for the corporation when they buy their products. A major reduction in the corporate tax rate will result in a huge economic stimulus from the ground up, so regardless of the way you vote, you should support a reduction in the highest corporate tax rate in the world.

• Lou Davis, works in international business and is a part-time instructor at Lanier Technical College, teaching GED to inmates at both the Dawson and Lumpkin county jails

I do not support a tax cut that disproportionately relieves large corporations of tax liability. Historically, these sorts of cuts have not caused wealth to "trickle down" in the form of jobs. While a large company could, theoretically, use the extra income to hire more workers, the companies are equally or more likely to distribute the savings in the form of higher executive compensation or larger distributions to investors. I would support a plan that raises taxes on the wealthiest in exchange for lower rates for working-class people and better public services, including a public health care option.

• James Radford, civil rights lawyer who lives in Decatur

Yes, I do believe a corporate tax cut will be a big boost for the economy. It will not only encourage growth, it just may be enough to keep corporations in this country and may even be enough of an incentive for some corporations to move back to the United States.

• Richard Kraft, retired from the real estate industry and lives in Peachtree Corners

I am not a huge fan of the proposed tax plan, however one issue many seem to ignore is that cutting the corporate tax rate from north of 30 percent to 30 percent is only a change on paper. In the new proposal corporations would also lose many of the deductions they currently take advantage of. For many organizations the effective tax rate is already in the range of 20 to 25 percent. Therefore the corporate tax cut will change very little other than reduce the labor budget of accounting departments.

• Greg Bieger, works in the tech industry and lives in Marietta

Corporations pay a blended tax rate ranging from 15% up to 39%, but once the taxable profits are over $335,000 the rate lowers to an effective rate of 35%. A cut in the rate to 20% will certainly help big corporations that pay taxes at the top rate; however, the amount of taxes that corporations actually pay is questionable. How many big corporations (grossing over $50,000,000) a year actually pay taxes and at the top rate? Corporations do provide this country's economic stimulus. Additionally, corporations move and keep their money in foreign countries because of the lower tax rates there. A lower tax rate may give them incentive to keep their money in the USA and benefit the American economy and citizens.I do wish that small businesses would have their taxes cut to 20% instead of 25%. Small businesses do a large percentage of the hiring in this country. However, it seems they don’t have the lobbying dollars to get the lower tax rate.

• Mary Patrick, a certified public accountant who lives in Jasper County

Currently, the United States has the third highest corporate tax rate in the developed world, and in what we call a 'free country,' this ought not be. Lowering the corporate tax rate in America from 35% to 20% would certainly boost our economy for several reasons. Lower corporate taxes bring jobs home. The tax burden has led many corporations to move manufacturing and other operations to offshore locations, although we often try to find other explanations for these jobs being lost from our economy. Lower taxes bring down prices. Corporations don't actually pay taxes, but rather pass the cost on to consumers in the prices of goods. Lower taxes encourage entrepreneurship and innovation. Ronald Reagan once said, “If you want less of something, tax it,” and history has proven him right. Bringing the corporate tax rate more in line with the average among developed nations is the right thing to do.

• Joshua Morris, HVAC/plumbing design engineer for a small firm in Gwinnett who lives in Gainesville

Both Senate and House tax plans echo "Reaganomics," which ended the 1980 recession. "Reaganomics" tripled the national debt by sharply raising military spending. While the lowest fifth of taxpayers were pleased by a six percent increase in their after-tax household income, taxpayers in the top fifth were ecstatic to receive their whopping 80 percent income increase! What we know for sure is that both Senate and House bills overwhelmingly favor wealthy individuals and corporations. We know that no legislator can state that all taxpayers will receive tax cuts. We know that corporations, given additional funds, are (not surprisingly) apt to invest in advanced technology, which sometimes eliminates jobs. What we know for sure is that, just like healthcare, true tax reform must be fair to all. Fair. To. All.

• Maureen Allen, freelance copy writer who lives in Blairsville

On the surface, the idea of reducing the corporate tax rate seems reasonable, since the U.S. rate is higher than in other developed countries. But what is not getting a lot of coverage is the percentage of corporations who don’t pay the full rate. Most get breaks and pay only a fraction of it. It’s difficult to discern what rate a given corporation is paying, but until we understand the full situation we cannot clearly see what advantages this drop in rate would bring. Would there still be breaks?Further, would corporations use the financial gains to boost employment? Some of the most productive eras in our history were during times of very high tax rates. There’s no evidence that lowering them increases economic growth. As for the workers, historically only federal regulations which encouraged hiring and set a decent minimum wage have shown to boost their situation. A balance of regulations and tax rates has to be put in place in order for those funds to funnel down to the workers. With the number of protective regulations currently being removed, this break doesn’t make sense for anyone except the executives and the shareholders. That’s not economic growth.

• Micki Gonzalez, a musician who lives in Tucker

Tax cuts to the middle class and small businesses would be a huge boost to the economy. We have seen the salaries of CEOs of big business rise to ridiculous amounts. Big business is not suffering, but small companies are. Helping the little guy puts money right back into our communities.

• Laura Register, elected member of Grady County School Board and lives in Cairo

The US has one of the highest corporate tax rates. It also has a system in which the owners of the corporation are taxed twice on their income. The corporate tax as well as the tax on the individual through dividend returns is taxed. I had a small C corp. as a martial arts school owner. I chose this route for added liability protection but the tax on my business and as an individual stifled my incentive to grow and increase profits. Imagine that on a large scale. Why would any business want to grow and increase employment while they are paying a tax that punishes success?We would all love to see more jobs in this country, but currently with the high cost of regulations, insurance and taxes why bother if a big chunk of every dollar you earn is confiscated by the federal government? I wish both parties would support a decrease in the corporate tax rate to 15%. I believe we would see an explosion in new jobs in this country.

• Mike Steele, a farmer from Chattanooga

Corporate tax cuts benefit investors and shareholders, but there's little evidence that they lead to job creation and overall economic growth. When the United Kingdom cut its corporate tax rate by 10 percent, inflation-adjusted wages fell, too — even when we control for global economic fluctuations during that same period.

• Sarita Alami, lives in West Atlanta

Are we still debating whether having a concentration of wealth at the top end of the socioeconomic ladder is a good thing? Consider the last few years in the post-recession, technology industries have taken the lead, banks have roared back, and even energy companies have seen a resurgence in the United States. Seems to be a great economic picture until you consider the fact that many urban residents are being priced out of their communities, under-30 citizens are mired in student loan debt, and many elderly citizens are struggling to meet rising medical costs.The “fix” of the financial crisis was to provide direct capital to some of our nation’s largest companies, only to see much of that money focused on automation, mergers and acquisitions, and executive bonuses. While lawmakers again promised the dream of trickle-down prosperity to the middle and lower class, most Americans saw static to marginal gains in their long-term wealth and economic mobility.It is absurd to again consider such a proposition as now is being proposed by the House of Representatives. Much like new stadiums of the past decades in Atlanta, we are told that we will benefit from these additions but are often awaiting windfalls that never come to fruition.

• Ted Ward, works as a education coordinator and lives in Decatur

Making American corporations more competitive to help economic growth sounds great! How would that work? The theory is that big corporations would now, with this tax rate cut, build and/or move factories to America creating more middle class jobs. Will that happen in reality? Two points: 1) Does the GOP plan cut out the many loopholes that allow big corporations to pay very little, if any, taxes at all? If not, then I doubt corporations will bother. In their view, it’s not broken, so why fix it. 2) How is this tax rate cut paid for? The GOP acknowledge that their bill will add 1.5 trillion over 10 years to the deficit. The part they are planning to pay for is designed to reduce the tax burden on businesses and wealthy individuals with some small cuts to middle class which I understand from the Center for Tax Policy will fade out in the coming years. Trickle down did not work when Reagan espoused it, and I do not see anything different about this tax bill. Both parties need to work together to pound out a reasonable bill that actually is fiscally responsible.

• Luanne West, a retired special education teacher who lives in Canton

Yes, I do agree with these tax cuts for corporations. I think it will inspire businesses who have gone overseas to come back as well as keep ones thinking of leaving here. It shows that our president has business experience and knows what it takes to spur on our economy.

• LouAnna Lear, a mother of 3 and a nanny who lives in Roswell

This is another example of misguided fiscal policy much like the disproven "trickle down economics." Cutting corporate taxes does NOT spur growth; study after study has shown that lowering corporate tax rates does not inspire corporations to invest in capital and labor. Rather, rewards are reaped in the form of dividends to shareholders and increased executive salaries, while the salaries of the main labor pool remain stagnant. Much like tax cuts for the wealthy does not inspire investment and expansion; rather it inspires increased personal wealth.

• Jennifer Arthur, is a bank employee who lives in Roswell

Simply said, NO! The current proposals sound promising, but in reality middle class families will lose out if Congress succeeds in passing this biased legislation I also find it ludicrous that the GOP has reverted to Gilded Age standards by supporting giving a corporation's tax cuts by claiming their need for first amendment viability. Hopefully Americans will let their DC officials this legislation is wrong for the average American

• Kenneth Russell, a retired secondary education social studies teacher who lives in Calhoun

For those who do not shield their profits, a corporate tax cut would not benefit the economy. In fact, it could hurt. According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, many corporations have enjoyed record profits in recent years at a time when workers’ wages remain near the lowest percentage in history. Instead of investing in people, new tax benefits would likely go to new technology, instead of boosting wages. Boosting wages of workers would be much more beneficial to the economy. My view is that this is another gift to the wealthiest among us. The rich get richer is the idea here.

• Joe Whitfield, an English teacher from Doerun

I believe a lower corporate tax rate would motivate U.S. companies to declare more of their income for tax purposes rather than keep the money in offshore tax havens. Currently, Apple has over $130 billion in cash outside of the country to avoid paying U.S. taxes on it.If the rate were lower, that money could be "repatriated" and invested in U.S.-based operations.Or it could be distributed as a dividend to Apple stockholders who in turn could spend or invest the money.If Congress doubts the benefit of a corporate tax break, it could pass the new rate with a sunset clause calling for review and re-enactment after two years. The sunset clause would allow Congress to save face by allowing the lower rate to expire without a vote.

• Jay Brower, an industrial engineer from Atlanta