President Joe Biden is proposing a series of tax increases on investors and top-earning Americans in his annual budget request to Congress.
(Bloomberg) — President Joe Biden is proposing a series of tax increases on investors and top-earning Americans in his annual budget request to Congress.
The tax proposals, which are at the center of what the White House estimates is a $3 trillion deficit-reduction plan, will be immediately rejected by Congressional Republicans. But the ideas set up Democrats’ approach to the debt-ceiling fight later this year, as Republicans are gearing up to ask for spending cuts.
One of the biggest changes would be nearly doubling the rate of the capital-gains tax, and applying an additional surcharge to fund Medicare, which would mean taxes on investments could rise to almost 45%.
Here are the details of the tax proposals in the budget request that the White House released Thursday:
Capital Gains
The budget proposal would increase the capital-gains rate to 39.6% from 20% for people earning at least $1 million to equalize the taxation of investment and wage income. Biden is also proposing to increase the 3.8% Obamacare tax to 5% for those earning at least $400,000, in an effort to shore up the Medicare Trust Fund. That would mean the richest taxpayers would pay a 44.6% federal rate on investment income and other earnings.
The plan also calls for taxing assets when an owner dies, ending a tax benefit that allowed the unrealized appreciation to go untaxed when transfered to an heir.
Billionaires Tax
Biden is proposing a 25% minimum tax rate on households worth at least $100 million — the wealthiest 0.01% of taxpayers. This would mean that many of the richest Americans — who currently pay an 8% rate on their incomes because of tax preferences that allow them to cut their IRS bills — would face significant tax increases.
Income Taxes
Biden is proposing to raise the top personal-income tax rate to 39.6%, from 37%, for those making more than $400,000. That higher rate would reverse a cut signed into law by former President Donald Trump.
In addition, Biden proposes expanding the Obamacare net investment-income tax — which is currently 3.8%, but he is calling to increase it to 5% — so that it applies to all incomes “without loopholes,” not just investment proceeds, over $400,000, according to the White House.
Corporate Taxes
Trump’s 2017 corporate-tax cut would get significantly rolled back, bringing the top rate to 28% from 21%. The proposal also calls to increase the taxes US companies owe on their foreign earnings to 21%, doubling the 10.5% included in Trump’s tax law.
Carried Interest
The carried-interest tax break used by private equity fund managers to lower their tax bills would be eliminated under the Biden plan. Under current law, investment fund managers can pay the 20% capital-gains rate on a portion of their incomes that would otherwise be subjected to the 37% top individual-income rate.
Stock Buyback Tax
The plan would quadruple a tax on stock buybacks that was added to the tax code last year as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. The proposal, to increase the rate to 4% from 1%, would reduce the differential tax treatment between share repurchases and dividends and urge companies to spend that money to grow their businesses, according to the White House.
Crypto Losses
The budget would eliminate a tax break for crypto investors that allows them to sell assets at a loss, generating tax breaks and then immediately repurchase those currencies. This would apply a restriction to crypto holders that is already in place for those who invest in the stock market or other securities.
Rich Retirement Accounts
The plan would end a loophole that allows the wealthiest — including billionaire Peter Thiel — to accumulate savings in tax-favored retirement accounts intended for middle earners. Biden would limit the amount taxpayers with incomes over $400,000 can hold in Roth individual retirement accounts.
Estate, Gift Taxes
Biden calls to strengthen the tax rules governing estate and gift taxes, making the system more difficult for wealthy individuals and trusts to avoid taxes. He stops short of calling for a reversal of Trump’s estate tax changes, which drastically reduced the number of people who have to pay the levy.
Real Estate
The budget proposal would eliminate a tax break known as “like-kind exchanges” that allows investors to avoid paying taxes on the proceeds of a property sale if they reinvest those profits into real estate. This tax break is currently only available to real estate investors.
Oil and Gas
Tax preferences for fossil fuels would be cut under the Biden budget. Oil and gas companies have recorded record profits in recent years, but have failed to invest in production and instead prioritized stock buybacks, according to the White House.
Child Tax Credit
Biden would expand the child tax credit to $3,600 for children under six and $3,000 for older children, up from $2,000. This would revert the credit to the more generous version Democrats passed in 2021 during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. The plan would also expand the earned income tax credit, a benefit for low-income workers, for individuals who do not have children.
(Updates with details about the billionaires tax, estate taxes and child credit)
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.