Deficit Commission Releases its Final Report–The Moment of Truth

Dec 1, 2010 | 2 min read | Print Article

So the “The Moment of Truth” is here. We've been combing through the specifics of the aptly titled final report of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform to identify what we think are the best – and most possible – reforms and cuts included in this report and will be updating our website with info throughout the next few days. As a starting point, we wanted to share with you all our handy chart comparing the Chairmen’s Mark released last month and today’s document. For background purposes, here’s a link to the letter we sent last month.

We hope that whatever the vote of the Commission, Congress will take these ideas seriously. We’ve said all along that no stone can be left unturned and this document gives Congress a roadmap for finding spending cuts and revenue sources under rocks of all sizes.

Keep watching our site for more detailed analysis of the report and the debate in the coming days.

Notable Proposed Reform: “Tax Earmarks”

One of the most notable things to come out of the commission's proposed reforms is the new attention to tax expenditures, or “tax earmarks”. TCS has catalogued and opposed numerous targeted preferential tax treatments for specific industries, many of which are renewed year after year in so-called “tax extender” legislation. Although some regard the expiration of preferential tax treatment as the equivalent of a tax hike, the truth is that many tax extenders are a form of direct subsidy that should be cut from the budget. For example, included in the list of tax cut extensions in this year’s House-passed tax extenders bill is preferential tax treatment for oil and gas companies, NASCAR sports complexes, Captain Morgan rum producer Diageo, and certain film and television productions. It is difficult to imagine Congress passing these subsidies as direct expenditures, but these and many like them are extended each year.