•Press Release Economic Growth Government
February 28, 2013
For Immediate Release: February 28, 2013
Contact: Alan Barber, (202) 293-5380 x115
Washington, D.C.-The Center for Economic and Policy Research released the following statement from co-director Dean Baker on the introduction of the Harkin-DeFazio bill:
“The Harkin-DeFazio bill provides a way to raise a substantial amount of revenue while at the same time making our financial markets more efficient.”
“The modest tax would discourage an enormous amount of short-term trading while having almost no impact on the ability of markets to finance productive investment. The cost of the tax would be born almost entirely by the financial industry, since for most investors the money saved as a result of lower trading volume will offset the higher cost of trades.
“At a time when Congress and the President are looking to cut Social Security, Medicare, and other essential programs, the idea of getting $40 billion a year from taxing speculation in the financial industry looks very attractive.”
Click here for more on the Financial Transaction Tax.
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