Published by Mark Petersen and the Carson Group Partners Investment Committee
Every new administration in Washington D.C. has an agenda which results from the November election results. Candidates have talking points on the campaign trail. The winner believes that he or she has a ‘mandate’ from the people to implore Congress to enact their legislative will. We saw with the recent attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that this may not be the case. For the time being, Healthcare Reform has taken a back seat to Tax Reform, an item seemingly easier to accomplish. After all, who does not wish to pay less income tax? However, we have seen in recent years that when Republicans and Democrats must agree, the results are far from certain. With that in mind, we thought it might make sense to see who may be impacted by the various Trump tax proposals and who may have a vested interest in the outcome of the legislative process.
Proposal
Reduce the tax brackets from the current seven to three
Married Joint filers:
- Less than $75,000: 12%
- More than $75,000 but less than $225,000: 25%
- More than $225,000: 33%
Retain the existing capital gains rate structure
Carried interest taxed as ordinary income
8% ACA tax on investment income will be repealed
Increase standard deduction for joint filers to $30,000 from $12,600
Eliminate personal exemptions
Itemized deductions capped at $200,000
Repeal death tax
Capital gains held until death and valued over $10 million will be subject to tax to exempt small businesses and family farms
Contributions of appreciated assets into a private charity established by the decedent or the decedent’s relatives will be disallowed
Potential Impact
Reduces highest ordinary income tax rate by 6.6%
Largest benefit for high-income individuals
Increase tax rates for certain financial business and their owners
3.8% tax reduction for highest income individuals
Limited application to high income individuals
Largest benefit for those who do not itemize deductions or barely exceed the standard deduction amount
Most impactful to large families, exemptions already phased out for high income earners
Limited impact to very high income, already subject to phase out of itemized deductions at high income levels
Most impact on C-corporations
S-corps and LLC’s pay tax on current earnings
Potential large reduction in charitable giving by eliminating the tax deductibility of charitable contributions
Proposal
Repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) with Health Savings Accounts
Modify existing law that inhibits the sale of health insurance across state lines
Allow individuals to fully deduct health insurance premium payments
Tax-free contributions to Health Savings Accounts
Lower healthcare costs for all Americans
Reduce number of individuals needing access to programs like Medicaid and CHIP by installing programs that grow the economy and bring capital and jobs back to America
Renegotiate trade deals
Repeal Dodd-Frank
Attack fraud, waste and abuse in government
Immigration reform
Potential Impact
Potential bookkeeping relief and penalty risk reduction for large employers (over 100 employees)
Potential for increased competition which may reduce insurance rates
Greater benefit for large group plans
Benefit across the board
‘Cadillac’ health plans fully tax deductible
No change from current law unless the annual contribution cap is removed
Has the potential to lessen the need for tax revenue
Potential for trade wars which are not good for any country and potentially increase import prices
Less government regulation, particularly for financial industry businesses
Potential to lessen the need for tax revenue
Wage pressure for the jobs currently held by immigrants and across the board wage pressure in a ‘full-employment’ economy
The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. To determine what is appropriate for you, consult a qualified professional.
Sources:
https://www.donaldjtrump.com/policies/tax-plan/
