10/22/07 Crapo calls for AMT repeal

Senator Mike Crapo has been talking about it for awhile, the debate rages on but there's been no action on Capitol Hill to abolish the Alternative Minimum Tax. Crapo says what was supposed to be a tax on a couple of hundred wealthy individuals has morphed into something else. CRAPO "this law that was aimed at the very high levels of the income scale was not indexed for inflation and it has grown and grown and grown to the point where now this coming year its going to hit about 23 million Americans including I think somewhere in the neighborhood of ten to 15 thousand Idahoans." Crapo says the price tax to the taxpayers is 50 billion dollars this year, 80 billion next and growing every year after that. The debate in Washington now is centered on lost tax revenue should the Alternative Minimum Tax be eliminated. CRAPO "Do we have to raise taxes in an equal amount on Americans in order to compensate for it and believe it or not some are saying that's exactly what we must do. If that position were to prevail we would have to raise taxes in the amount of over 800 billion dollars over the next ten years." Senator Crapo says Congress needs to address its spending habits where two thirds of the budget goes to entitlement programs, which he says are out of control. He says it's also time for a new tax code to replace a convoluted system. Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott