[Vision2020] Where is the Money?

[Tom Hansen]

Dale "Doug's Boy" Courtney posted at http://right-mind.us
<http://right-mind.us/> :

 

"The Cato Institute has a briefing paper on the results of the 2003 tax cut.


 

Executive Summary: 

 

The centerpiece of President Bush's tax cut in 2003 was a sharp reduction in
the individual dividend tax rate. The dividend tax cut was designed to spur
investment and boost the stock market by increasing the after-tax return on
corporate earnings, thus raising stock valuations. The tax cut also reduced
the tax bias against dividends to spur larger payouts to shareholders. That
reduces the amount of discretionary cash available to executives and will
likely reduce the number of Enron-style corporate financial scandals.

 

This study examines the impact of the dividend tax cut after one year. We
gathered data on dividend payouts before and after the 2003 tax cut for all
Standard & Poor's 500 companies. We found a highly positive response to the
tax cut: 

 

Annual dividends paid by S&P 500 companies rose from $146 billion to $172
billion, an increase of $26 billion. 

 

In addition, special dividends of $7 billion have been paid, raising the
total first-year dividend increase to $33 billion. 

 

Thus, dividends increased 18 percent without special dividends and 23
percent with special dividends. 

 

Twenty-two companies that did not previously pay dividends have initiated
regular dividends.

 

Equity values rose more than $2 trillion after the tax cut. 

 

The large and positive response to the dividend tax cut, which is scheduled
to expire at the end of 2008, suggests that Congress should make it
permanent

 

Intoleristas: What about "it worked" don't you understand?"

 

Again, Mr. Courtney, you are 100,000,000,000,000% correct.  It worked.  It
worked for each and every person that receives substantial dividend income
form stock investments.  That does not include an extremely vast percentage
of middle and low income families.

 

So, once you clear the smoke away, you will find that:

 

"It (hadn't) worked."

 

Tom Hansen

 

 

A good friend will come and bail you out of jail.  But a true friend will be
sitting next to you saying, "Damn . . . that was fun!"

 

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