Statewide Iowa — A tax debate is looming for federal policymakers because Trump era tax cuts expire at the end of 2025. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is proposing a change in federal tax policy rather than an extension of the tax cuts approved in 2017.
Ramaswamy says the 59 percent inheritance tax he proposed in his book last year was a thought experiment and the 12 percent flat tax he’s proposed this year would be assessed to all income, including inherited money or assets. Ramaswamy says a 12 percent flat tax means a broad base of Americans would be paying the lowest possible rate.
Ramaswamy has proposed the complete elimination of some federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service.
Ramaswamy made his comments during a recent interview with Radio Iowa. This is not the first time a GOP presidential candidate has proposed a flat tax. Steve Forbes made a 17 percent flat tax the hallmark of his campaigns in 1996 and 2000, but the Forbes plan included personal exemptions, so a family of four would pay no federal taxes on their first 36-thousand dollars of income. Ramaswamy’s 12 percent flat tax would apply to every dollar of income, without exemptions. Ramaswamy campaigned in Clear Lake, Marshalltown, Nevada and Boone on Thursday.
