The Wall Street Sales Tax

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As policymakers in Washington, DC continue to debate our nation's budget priorities, some of the options currently being considered are cuts in Social Security benefits, education and health programs, important investments in transportation infrastructure and health research, and anti-poverty programs, among many others.

The last major budget deal, enacted earlier this year, increased tax rates on the very wealthy – individuals with annual incomes of $400,000 or more and couples with annual incomes of $450,000 or more. While these revenue increases helped, annual budget deficits are expected to grow again after 2015. In part this is because despite the latest round of deficit reduction, tax revenues remain lower as a share of the economy than they were during the Clinton years, the last time the federal budget was balanced.

There is a better and more progressive way to address our long-term budget deficits than cutting important programs like Social Security, education, and health research: enacting a Wall Street Sales Tax (also known as the Financial Transaction Tax). Download the full fact sheet to read more.

Image by flickr user ~inky, used under a Creative Commons license.

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