Herman Cain has tweaked his 9-9-9 plan to address some of the criticisms of his initial tax reform proposal, but at first glance, it seems that the revised plan runs into a number of problems.
As described in a campaign brochure (PDF), the new plan calls for exemptions for businesses creating jobs within impoverished neighborhoods to be designated as “opportunity zones.” And the an Associated Press story adds that Cain is also, “proposing new tax brackets to reflect different income levels.”
I see two major problems with the proposal. The first is that a number of studies have already questioned whether his plan would raise enough money in taxes to remain revenue neutral, as Cain insists it would be. Adding exemptions would reduce revenue further if not offset elsewhere.
Furthermore, once you start adding exemptions and special carve outs and different brackets, it undercuts the central selling point of the original 9-9-9 plan: its simplicity.
I have an email into the campaign seeking further details, and will update when I have more.
