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Three cheers for America’s tax cut turnaround

By Mark Anthony Jones

You can’t throw a rock these days without hitting another news story about our rip-roaring economy. That’s the direct result of our brand-new tax code. It’s lifting us from recovery to prosperity with exhilarating speed. Millions of Americans have already seen bonuses this year, and a million more will see raises and bonuses as businesses recognize their substantial tax savings.

The best news about tax cuts is its big impact on small business, justifiably called the backbone of our national economy.

Before tax cuts, small firms faced as much as a 40 percent chomp out of their revenues—even before state and local tax collectors took their share. That meant as much as half of every dollar earned was raked off the table, crimping small businesses’ expansion and operating decisions.

Like lots of states, Missouri’s economy is a small business economy. Over 99 percent of our firms are small ones. And together, they employ nearly half of all private sector workers in the state. All told, that’s over a million paychecks going out each month. Our old tax policy made it too hard for those businesses to grow—and too hard to extend that growth to their workers and customers.

Under the new code, however, our job-creating small businesses get a new 20 percent deduction. Instead of hunkering down, as I have been doing in my business for almost 10 years, these additional funds will allow them to reach for the stars.

Now, I’m a Republican. I serve as my party’s county chair in one of the most populous counties in the state. So it’s probably no surprise that I supported the White House and Congress in their diligent work to get to yes on December’s long-overdue tax overhaul.

But Missouri—again, like many states—is home to plenty of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. I wouldn’t embrace a bill out of sheer partisanship. I didn’t support the tax bill because of mere politics. I did it because it was good policy. When it comes to stable, sustainable growth, tax cuts like these just work.

You don’t have to take my word for it. Listen to the country’s economists, who agree by a ratio of three to one that 2018 will bring big time economic expansion. Check out the studies by respected analysts who anticipate real tax relief will kick in this year for big majorities of Americans.

Not that anything about today’s tax cut is rocket science. More money in the private economy and less money shipped off to Washington D.C. to be spent on often vague federal priorities helps local communities and the people who inhabit them.

As the bill wound through Congress, most of us already looked forward to lower taxes or a stronger economy. Gearing up for a win, small business added 94,000 jobs at the end of the year.

Now, even though the process provided ample opportunity for partisan mud-throwing, the tax code is gaining public support at the rate of about 20 points a month. Many will see their tax withholdings shrink in this month’s paychecks. Public confidence in small business is topping the charts—and so is small business confidence. Majorities of Americans regardless of political ID say they feel good about the economy. In fact, we haven’t felt better about it since the dot-com days.

Thanks to Congress and President Trump, the new tax code rewards small businesses that take on new hires, raise their wages, beef up equipment, and ramp up additional locations. This will help fuel the current economic expansion for years to come.

— Mark Anthony Jones is Chair of the Jackson County Republican Party.