Payroll tax cut will be included in ‘Phase 4’ package: Steve Moore
Discussions about another stimulus bill began on Capitol Hill this week
A tax cut favored by President Trump is said to be among the measures Republicans are keen on including in an additional stimulus package as discussions take place on Capitol Hill.
Economic adviser to Trump, Steve Moore, told FOX Business on Tuesday that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Trump believe there should be some kind of payroll tax included.
Moore added that a payroll tax would “directly encourage employment and directly encourage more hiring.”
REPUBLICANS WANT MORE DIRECT STIMULUS PAYMENTS, MCCONNELL SAYS
Moore has been calling for a payroll tax suspension as a means to accelerate growth without adding to the federal deficit.
The payroll tax is paid separately from federal income taxes and funds Social Security and Medicare. Employers and employees each pay 6.2 percent for Social Security and 1.45 percent for Medicare, and an additional 0.9 percent is levied on the highest earners.
A suspension of the payroll tax could incentivize employers to hire more workers by reducing their payroll costs while giving employees a boost in their paychecks.
MORE CORONAVIRUS STIMULUS CHECKS COULD BE ON THE WAY, BUT YOU MAY NOT QUALIFY
Additionally, Moore said he believes there is going to be a push among Republicans to lower the unemployment insurance benefit bump, which was $600 under the CARES Act.
“Republicans can’t live with that, they think it’s going to discourage … workers from entering the worker market, the labor market, in the fall,” Moore said.
The extra $600 per week is scheduled to expire at the end of the month.
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The Trump administration has supported what it calls a “back-to-work” bonus, which would provide an incentive for workers to reenter the labor force.
Here’s a look at two separate policies that have been proposed by Republican lawmakers.
As previously reported by FOX Business, McConnell said on Tuesday that another bill would likely include another round of direct payments to individuals. Legislation, he said, would focus on kids, health care and jobs.
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