INSTITUTE INDEX: Who should bear the burden of cutting U.S. debt?
The current legal limit on borrowing by the U.S. government: $14.3 trillion
Month when the Treasury is expected to surpass that limit: 7/2011
Amount by which a deficit-reduction plan offered this week by President Obama would cut the nation's debt over the next 12 years: $4 trillion
Amount by which a plan offered by House Republicans would cut national debt over the next decade: $4.4 trillion
Portion of debt reduction in the President's plan that would come from budget cuts: 2/3
Portion that would come from revenue increases: 1/3
Amount by which the President's plan would cut military spending: $400 billion
Percent by which that amount surpassed the amount that Defense Secretary Robert Gates recommended: 200
Under the Republican plan, which would transform Medicare into a voucher program, percent by which elderly beneficiaries' health care payments would increase by 2022: more than 200
Amount the Republican plan would cut from Medicaid, the health care program for the poor, by 2022: $735 billion
Amount by which Obama's plan aims to cut Medicaid spending over the next decade: $100 billion
Of the 10 states with the most deficient Medicaid programs, number in the South: 4*
Of the 10 states with the least deficient Medicaid programs, number in the South: 0
Tax increases in the Republican plan: 0
Percentage points by which the Republican plan would cut the top tax rate for wealthy individuals: 10
Amount of revenue the President's plan would raise by allowing Bush-era tax cuts to expire for Americans earning over $250,000: $1 trillion
If households with incomes over $1 million today paid federal income taxes at the same rate comparable household paid in 1961, additional revenue the U.S. would raise this year: $231 billion
If U.S. corporations paid taxes at at the same effective rate they paid in 1961, additional tax revenue that would be collected: $485 billion
Amount the Treasury could raise over the next decade by implementing five basic tax reforms: as much as $4 trillion
Amount that could be raised by establishing several higher income tax brackets for millionaires: $60 billion-$80 billion
By ending overseas corporate tax havens: $100 billion a year
By establishing a modest financial transaction tax: $150 billion a year
By making the estate tax progressive: $25 billion a year
By ending preferential treatment for income from dividends and capital gains: $88 billion
Date House Republicans plan to vote on their debt-reduction plan: 4/15/2011
* Alabama, South Carolina, Texas and Mississippi
(Click on figure to go to source.)
Month when the Treasury is expected to surpass that limit: 7/2011
Amount by which a deficit-reduction plan offered this week by President Obama would cut the nation's debt over the next 12 years: $4 trillion
Amount by which a plan offered by House Republicans would cut national debt over the next decade: $4.4 trillion
Portion of debt reduction in the President's plan that would come from budget cuts: 2/3
Portion that would come from revenue increases: 1/3
Amount by which the President's plan would cut military spending: $400 billion
Percent by which that amount surpassed the amount that Defense Secretary Robert Gates recommended: 200
Under the Republican plan, which would transform Medicare into a voucher program, percent by which elderly beneficiaries' health care payments would increase by 2022: more than 200
Amount the Republican plan would cut from Medicaid, the health care program for the poor, by 2022: $735 billion
Amount by which Obama's plan aims to cut Medicaid spending over the next decade: $100 billion
Of the 10 states with the most deficient Medicaid programs, number in the South: 4*
Of the 10 states with the least deficient Medicaid programs, number in the South: 0
Tax increases in the Republican plan: 0
Percentage points by which the Republican plan would cut the top tax rate for wealthy individuals: 10
Amount of revenue the President's plan would raise by allowing Bush-era tax cuts to expire for Americans earning over $250,000: $1 trillion
If households with incomes over $1 million today paid federal income taxes at the same rate comparable household paid in 1961, additional revenue the U.S. would raise this year: $231 billion
If U.S. corporations paid taxes at at the same effective rate they paid in 1961, additional tax revenue that would be collected: $485 billion
Amount the Treasury could raise over the next decade by implementing five basic tax reforms: as much as $4 trillion
Amount that could be raised by establishing several higher income tax brackets for millionaires: $60 billion-$80 billion
By ending overseas corporate tax havens: $100 billion a year
By establishing a modest financial transaction tax: $150 billion a year
By making the estate tax progressive: $25 billion a year
By ending preferential treatment for income from dividends and capital gains: $88 billion
Date House Republicans plan to vote on their debt-reduction plan: 4/15/2011
* Alabama, South Carolina, Texas and Mississippi
(Click on figure to go to source.)
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Sue Sturgis
Sue is the former editorial director of Facing South and the Institute for Southern Studies.