They get the breaks; we went broke. They're getting back on their feet or running marathons already; we're still in traction and the nurse ain't nice or cute.
They got free trade, outsourcing, bailouts, bridge loans, incentives, unbridled emissions, and all kinds of tax help, and we got - got.
It's about time we pass some tax legislation to hold them accountable for helping to move this country forward too - let them step up and share in the responsibility for funding public education and public mass transit.
It’s time to explore a recipe for legislation to mandate a dedicated employer payroll tax to supplement the funding of public mass transit and education.
In my hometown of Chicago, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) are facing a $975 million deficit and some serious cuts in administrative staff and sports programs - with more budget surgery to come; the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) has its own $96 million deficit - 1,000 workers laid off, 18% in bus service reductions, and 7% in rail service reductions. Public school and transit systems across the county are facing equally dire circumstances - and it's going to get worse.
Given this desperate state of public mass transit and public education – and the budget deficits facing most local and state governments and the federal government – it’s time for America’s private sector to share in the responsibility of financing these two fundamental public services – since they too derive benefits from them.
Corporations – from financial, banking and insurance services, manufacturing - defense, pharmaceutical and technology, to energy and agribusiness - have had the opportunity to enjoy tremendous profits, gaping tax loopholes, government incentives, generous pollution discharge and emissions allowances, and more recently, taxpayer bailouts - a veritable menu of advantages – all on the tab of the American taxpayer. But we’ve received very little gratuity in return from corporate America – except economic and financial instability, a future without the promise of job, retirement, or healthcare insurance security, and polluted land, air and water.
American business should be compelled to contribute to the funding of public education for the American worker. They’ve reaped egregious profits from outsourcing jobs and relocating manufacturing operations across our borders and overseas - they’ve pulled the rug out from under at least three generations of the American worker and taxpayer - and they’ve had the partnership of past administrations and Congress while doing it. They need to now share in the of the cost of educating the American people so that they, their children and grandchildren can try to move on from the job loss and game change that was forced upon them and reinvent themselves as the New American Workforce in a global economy – by way of a modern, well-funded educational system.
An employer-paid payroll EDUCATION tax in the range of .75-1.5% - levied on nearly every business with more than 50 employees - would certainly help to alleviate the current deficit in public education funding, but more importantly, it might fund educational innovations and models that we currently can’t afford to pursue - and that we definitely can't afford not to pursue. A percentage of the funds could be distributed by the federal government directly to municipalities - as a flat amount based on the number of existing schools within a school district - for facilities and equipment. The remainder could be distributed to the districts based on dependent children stats derived from census figures and annual IRS income tax return data; this portion might fund programs in technology, engineering and science; entrepreneurship; reading, writing and math enhancement, etc. as well as teacher/staff salaries (but not pension obligations).
Almost equally important, an employer-paid payroll TRANSIT tax could help to fund public mass transit infrastructure development and expansion as well as its daily operational costs (but not pension obligations). Mass public transit funding models already exist. Modeling city/state/regional transit funding on the Versement Transport (Transit Tax) in Paris, France is a logical and reasonable solution to the budget shortfalls that cause service cutbacks, deferred equipment/track maintenance and replacement, and prohibit expansion.
In Paris, France every employer with more than nine (9) employees pays an average tax of about 1.75% of payroll to fund transportation infrastructure and operations. Another version would also impose a very nominal percentage be withheld from employees wages - since both employees and employers realize direct as well as intrinsic benefits from the availability of public transportation. Additionally, employees who opt to use public transit would receive a tax benefit at the end of the year – an itemized deduction – to partially offset the employee transit payroll tax withheld from their wages as well as their actual transit expenses.
A public transit payroll tax would help to keep the price of public transit affordable. It may incentivize individuals to work closer to home (or live closer to work); reduce congestion on roads; very likely reduce expenditures for road maintenance and repair (which could free up funds for other projects), air pollution from emissions, and our reliance on fossil fuels. The tax could only be imposed on those businesses and workers operating or residing within the designated transit radius - and only insofar as the transit system is capacious, reliable and efficiently managed.
Paris has already done it - and many nations and provinces impose employer-paid payroll taxes for various programs and services, so we're not starting from scratch here – but we need to get cooking now before the ingredients we already have just rot away. We’ve been relying on leftovers for too long.