We have a new President. For some time now, social media has been awash with people laying out their hopes and dreams for what is going to happen in the next four years. I figured, why not do the same. I'm going to try to stay clear of the more cockamamey stuff and lay out a lofty, but still somewhat realistic hypothetical itinerary for the new administration.
1. The Budget Surplus Amendment
I already wrote about it, so you can click above to get the specifics (or the "deets" as the kids these days say). This manages to address several problems at once: economic, fiscal, health. It even saves Social Security by attacking unfunded liabilities, giving people a bit of extra income, and laying the groundwork for stronger retirements going forward through universal investment.
2. Revive ForeverDonor
This is something I've mentioned more than once. For those unfamiliar, ForeverDonor was a website where you put money into an account, and a portion of the gains were put towards charity/charities of your choice. This allowed the base to grow so that the organizations saw perpetual rising funding going forward, even if you left the account alone (though naturally, putting more money in would be better.)
I don't know what the government would have to throw at the Wallet Squirrrel guys as far as money, booze, and strippers goes; but I think that they could scrape it together.
The ROI here would be redonk. This too would address several things at once and build, not only a stronger country, but a stronger planet as well.
3. Prosperity Grant
I'm pilfering this one from Andrew Yang's campaign platform. While the Yang Gang was gaga over the "Democracy Dollars", I thought that this was the bigger game changer, though as a philanthropist, I may be a bit biased. How it worked was that everyone would get a voucher (if I recall correctly, it was for like $100) each year that they could put towards the charity of their choice. This got people involved and strengthened communities on a local level. It was a great idea that didn't get enough love back during the primaries. You could even combine this with the prior item and have the "grant" money go directly into everybody's ForeverDonor account, where they could decide what organizations they wanted to fund and possibly even put some of their own money in as a way to further fuel societal growth. On top of that, it would ensure that the site stayed up this time so that the snowball could really get rolling.
4. Keep the Space Force
I know, the left is salivating over the idea of Biden undoing everything that Trump did, but I think that this is one thing that should stick. Yes, it was a win for the Trump administration, but it was a win for America, and Earth as a whole I mean, come on, it's so freaking cool.
4b: Lunar and Martian colonization because hell yeah.
5. Make Taxes Fun
This is another thing that Yang laid out. The concept sounds ridiculous (at least I thought so when I first saw the page title) but the ideas were quite sound. Simplifying the tax return process is nice, and the idea of showing off instances where people benefited from tax spending is well intentioned enough, but the main draw here was the part where we as individuals got to pick an organization or project and 1% of our tax dollars went to that. It's a small number, understandably I suppose, but I loved the idea of giving people a say in what the government funded. Again, it gets people more involved and also ensures that the money is put to much better use. This was another plank that really should have gotten more credit and airplay than it did.
6. Round it up
I've mentioned before my desire to see gas prices rounded up to the next cent. That fraction is stupid. It kind of boggles my mind that, as much as prices fluctuate and as much as taxes play a role, nobody's thought to do it. As far as tax increases go, this one is perfect. It's barely noticeable (what, like one or two cents per fill up depending on what car you drive?) but cumulatively, it would give the government a decent boost in revenue.
7. Make government green
In the effort to preserve the environment, this seems like an obvious solution that nobody ever really brings up. It's usually regulation and taxes and subsidies that may or may not go anywhere. Why not work within the government framework to reduce fossil fuel usage? How much would it cost to put solar panels on the roof of the White House or the Capitol building? Then you could move to other government buildings, schools, police stations, fire houses, have solar powered street lights etc. You could do it at a pace that fits the budget, but still see actual results. It's more straight forward and more effective. This would also create jobs which would also provide an economic boost.
Also, multi-level greenhouses. I saw some video some time ago that said that even if you covered the entire continental United States in trees, it wouldn't be enough to undo the damage. The good news is that we have more land on the planet than that (not to mention aquatic plant life) but we also have a third dimension with which to work.
8. IRA reform
IRA's are cool, but there is room for improvement. One thing that needs to go is the income restriction, especially with Roths. If you get to a certain income level, you apparently can't have one. How that works with someone who opens one up earlier and than builds themselves up to a higher income I don't know. It seems like a lot of pointless effort on the government's part. As long as the contribution limit is in place, who cares? You're only allowed to put in $6,000 a year so it isn't even like having that there is "sticking it" to the rich the way the left wants to think it is. It's bureaucracy that achieves little, but wastes a lot of time and over-complicates things, be done with it.
Another idea I've tinkered with is allowing unused contributions to carry over. Right now, it's "use it or lose it". I think it might be a good idea to allow people the chance to catch up more substantially by adding that to their limit the following year. With so many people behind on retirement, a problem made worse by people raiding their retirement accounts in the wake of COVID, this would allow people to get things back on track well before their 50's when the already existing "catch up" period begins. This one needs some more specifics nailed down, I'll admit, but I think it's worth looking in to.
9. Investment Loss Deduction Reduction/Elimination
Just as gains in the market are taxed, so too are losses deductible. I get the logic to an extent, but it turns out that investors will occasionally intentionally sell stocks at a loss to offset capital gains taxes. This doesn't really sit well with me. 401K's are the bomb and IRA's aren't too shabby either, there's nothing wrong with investing avenues that also provide tax perks, but this is different.
Now, the Democrats have been pushing for a stock transaction tax, which I am not a fan of. Yes, I was paying per buy commissions when I first started, but those days are long gone. I like free trades and have no interest in going back. This, however, gives you a "Wall Street" tax that works a lot better. It also reinforces the old adage about how greater risk yields greater reward.
10. FICA Taxed Income Limit Increase
I believe I mentioned that I had no qualms with the FICA taxed income limit being increased at one point. One could argue that there shouldn't be a limit at all, but I think a more gradual approach is beneficial here. This, along with the IRA reform, would really strengthen retirement going forward on two fronts. Social Security could be shored up, and individuals would be able to better save for retirement. The IRA income limit removal also cushions the blow of the added tax, which I think works out nicely
So, there you have it. It was just dumb luck that I managed to come up with 10 things, but it rounds out nicely. It covers all the bases and manages to address several things at once. Will any of this actually happen? Probably not, but hope springs eternal and it is a fun hypothetical.
