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| Unions will dodge O's health tax |
| 2010-01-15 |
| Big Labor got some big love from President Obama and congressional Democrats yesterday after they agreed to exempt union workers from the whopping "Cadillac tax" on high-cost health-care plans until 2018The sweetheart deal, hammered out behind closed doors, will save union employees at least $60 billion over the years involved, while others won't be as lucky -- they'll have to cough up almost $90 billion. The 40 percent excise tax on what have come to be called "Cadillac" health-care plans would exempt collective-bargaining contracts covering government employees and other union members until Jan. 1, 2018. In another major concession to labor, the value of dental and vision plans would be exempt from the tax even after the deal expires in eight years, negotiators said. Under the plan to help fund health-care reform, the tax would kick in for plans valued at $8,900 or more for individuals and $24,000 or more for families. That's slightly higher than the $8,500 and $23,000 thresholds in the bill passed by the Senate last month. The threshold will be even higher for certain plans with many older workers and women -- a move to benefit unions with a high proportion of female membership, sources said. New York labor leaders -- who had initially campaigned against the Cadillac tax, favoring instead a surcharge on the wealthy -- said they are thrilled. I just bet they are! "We can live with it. We have an agreement that nothing will be taxed until 2018," crowed George Boncoraglio, regional president of the Civil Service Employees Association. I'd like to be able to live with it, too. Here we are again, our "Government" (meaning us rubes) foots the bill for Unions. Officials said the deal was thrashed out over more than 15 hours of negotiating at the White House that ended after midnight Wednesday. Powerful unions were well-represented around the bargaining table. Participants included AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and Andy Stern, head of Service Employees International Union; Anna Burger, head of Change to Win; and the leaders of unions representing teachers, government workers, food and commercial workers, and electricians. Stern has been among the most frequent visitors to the White House over the last year, showing up more than 20 times, according to logs. Originally, the Cadillac tax included in the Senate bill was estimated to raise $149 billion through 2019. But Trumka said the exemption would reduce that amount by $60 billion -- money that negotiators will now have to find elsewhere, or reduce the coverage in the legislation. Boncoraglio said CSEA leaders were meeting in Albany -- preparing to wage a major offensive against the tax -- when their Washington lobbyist called and briefed them on the changes. Obama backs the Cadillac excise tax, citing economists who say it would drive down costs by encouraging insurance companies to offer employers and workers a chance to buy lower-cost health plans to avoid the levy. In other words, less coverage. Everybody is now equal. Except for Union and Government employees. They are "special". |
| Posted by:Deacon Blues |
| #11 write note to selves - next revision to the Constitution add entry to the effect that voters get the option of none of the above which upon plurality vote bans all listed candidates in that category for any office for 10 years. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2010-01-15 23:11 |
| #10 Easy Bumper sticker REELECT NOBODY |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2010-01-15 22:37 |
| #9 What are we going to do about that? At every opportunity, vote the candidate of the governing party out of office. |
| Posted by: Blackbeard Omomock5867 2010-01-15 22:00 |
| #8 And for those of us in the Clueless Socialist Workers Paradise of California, we already had a 10% increase in withholding courtesy of exactly the same liberal politicians/thieves. 3 more years of this, and Bambi doesn't give a crap about anything but the institutionalization of his socialist agenda, salting the civil service ranks forever with liberal managers and lawyers, further salting the federal bench, and letting the regulations and executive orders he has/will issue constrict the noose of governance ever tighter. Folks, in case you haven't thought of it, I'm beginning to wonder if my feelings aboutwhat my goverment has become are similar to those of the founding fathers...before they founded the present government. We are slipping into a place where the people who run the government think they really are our Masters, and plan to keep it that way. What are we going to do about that? |
| Posted by: NoMoreBS 2010-01-15 17:44 |
| #7 Recall that Caliphornians did not get this year's tax refunds on a timely basis or in a negotiable instrument. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2010-01-15 16:04 |
| #6 Deacon Blues, I wouldn't be so sure that I'll be getting it (the interest free loan depriving me of use and, possibly, profit = defacto tax increase) back next year.... |
| Posted by: Uncle Phester 2010-01-15 16:00 |
| #5 Uncle Phester, your tax rate didn't change, only the amount of withholding. It gives the Government a tax-free loan of your money. You will get it back when you file next year. This in a time of near-depression. Take more money out of private circulation. They were hoping no one would notice such a small amount. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2010-01-15 15:07 |
| #4 as Uncle noted - won't stand up to an Equal Protection challenge, just like the whore-purchases (Ben and Mary) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-01-15 15:04 |
| #3 Oh, good. Another reason for everybody to love unions... |
| Posted by: tu3031 2010-01-15 14:24 |
| #2 I'm in a union (mandated by position) and received a card last Dec. to send to The White House pleading against the tax. We did not have a "vote" in the matter. I threw the card away (I guess that was my "NO" vote.), hoping that Zero and the gang would go ahead with it, thus finally getting through to many of my bone-headed union bretheren. Too bad he caved, but the Equal Protection Clause / Fourteenth Amendment could kill the exception. Let's hope there is someone in Congress with the testicular fortitude to look into this. As cut and pasted from another post: I got my bi-weekly paycheck today - increase in Fed taxes by 1.45%. Not a lot of $, but most assuredly a "Tax Hike," and I'm anything but "Wealthy." The lies of this administration become increasingly apparent. The question is what, if anything, the voting population will do about it.... |
| Posted by: Uncle Phester 2010-01-15 14:15 |
| #1 Absolutely outrageous. Union members should vote NO on this and share the pain with their neighbors. |
| Posted by: crosspatch 2010-01-15 14:03 |