Don’t throw Reagan’s tax reform principles under the bus

By David Nelson

Published August 20, 2017 4:01am ET

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Don’t throw Reagan’s tax reform principles under the bus — Current tax proposals by Republican leadership include separate tax rates for small business income, capital gains, and dividends. That idea is contrary to President Ronald Reagan's tax reform principles of adding simplicity and fairness to the tax system. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) | Mark Lennihan

Current tax proposals by Republican leadership include separate tax rates for small business income, capital gains, and dividends. That idea is contrary to President Ronald Reagan’s tax reform principles of adding simplicity and fairness to the tax system.

In President Reagan’s bipartisan Tax Reform Act of 1986, all items of income were subject to the same tax rates. Did Mr. Reagan and a bipartisan Congress get it all wrong in 1986, after laborious research and lengthy hearings?

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Tag:

Commentary Congress Paul Ryan Ronald Reagan Tax Reform Taxes