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0 pointsjordanb8y ago0 comments

Interestingly this was the premise behind Brownback's tax plan in Kansas:

Small businesses were being held back by their tax burden. They wanted to invest more capital in their businesses, to scale up and hire more people. They had untapped opportunities in the market that they could not pursue because they didn't have the money that they would have if their taxes were lower.

Here's how that worked out: http://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/336684-kansas-legisl...

  Ratings agencies downgraded Kansas's bonds, forcing the 
  state to pay more in borrowing costs. Funding for state 
  school programs fell, and the Kansas Supreme Court ruled 
  the state government was not adequately funding schools. 
  Earlier this year, legislators grappled with a budget 
  deficit of almost $900 million.

  In 2016, voters kicked out a handful of anti-tax 
  Republicans, in favor of challengers who backed higher 
  taxes, despite Brownback's opposition.

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3 comments · 1 top-level

Gibbon18y ago· 2 in thread

> Small businesses were being held back by their tax burden.

It's never taxes on profits that holds small businesses back. It's all the annoying things you need to do to employ people[1]. Best thing the government could do for small businesses is provide healthcare and decent pensions for workers. Which would be two fewer things for a business owner to worry about. Having the state employment agency handle payroll would also really really help. (For a small business payroll is a big headache always)

[1] Also important is lack of access to capital and uneven income.

travmatt8y ago

>Best thing the government could do for small businesses is provide healthcare and decent pensions for workers.

The lack of these things is a competitive advantage for larger companies with the resources to negotiate these benefits in behalf of their employees

njarboe8y ago

What would be really great is if there were no income or payroll taxes. If you want to work for someone or hire someone you, just exchange money for labor. It would be so liberating. Maybe start income tax at $1 million like the old days and just let us lower income people get to work.

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Ratings agencies downgraded Kansas's bonds, forcing the state to pay more in borrowing costs. Funding for state school programs fell, and the Kansas Supreme Court ruled the state government was not adequately funding schools. Earlier this year, legislators grappled with a budget deficit of almost $900 million. In 2016, voters kicked out a handful of anti-tax Republicans, in favor of challengers who backed higher taxes, despite Brownback's opposition.