01-27-2004, 02:48 PM
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#14 (permalink)
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Apocalypse Nerd
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This just belongs here:
Quote:
Posted on Tue, Dec. 30, 2003
Big vehicle, big break
Star-Telegram
Would you like a huge tax break for that gigantic new SUV you've been coveting?
Don't despair. You've got a sugar daddy who wants to help you: the U.S. Congress.
In an illustration of its sometimes woefully finite wisdom, Congress this year authorized a tax deduction of up to $100,000 for vehicles weighing 6,000 pounds or more -- including enormous luxury SUVs such as the Hummer.
The six-figure tax break was part of a $350 billion tax-cut package. The $100,000 ripoff -- er, uh, writeoff -- is a case of a tax break gone badly awry.
Previously, a deduction of no more than $25,000 was allowed for small-business owners buying extra-large vehicles needed for their livelihoods. But the advent of huge luxury SUVs and the quadrupling of the deduction has distorted the original intent to help small-business owners, such as farmers or remodeling contractors, to buy an expensive piece of equipment vital to their business.
The tax break has become a potent financial incentive for Americans to buy gas-gulping vehicles that increase air pollution and expand our reliance on oil imports from the volatile Middle East.
People who buy Hummers costing $50,000 to $100,000 probably aren't doing so because the vehicles are crucial to their livelihood.
Congress should scale the ridiculous $100,000 deduction back to $25,000, as called for in legislation pending in the Senate.
In addition, the tax code should be more tightly written to ensure that the deduction truly goes only to small-business owners who genuinely need a big vehicle for their work, rather than to those simply lusting for a colossal tax subsidy for a luxury personal vehicle.
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http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/opinion/7597711.htm
Perhaps someday soon -we'll see ole' Astrocloud showing off his Hummer. |
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