向富人征稅解決不了貧富差距
????一部長(zhǎng)篇經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)作品能贏得大量關(guān)注可不是件常見的事。不過(guò)現(xiàn)在,許多人都知道了法國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家托馬斯?皮凱蒂的著作《21世紀(jì)資本論》(Capital in the Twenty-First Century)。這本685頁(yè)的著作出人意料地成為了暢銷書。皮凱蒂在書中分析了幾百年來(lái)全球的稅務(wù)記錄,最終發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個(gè)殘酷的現(xiàn)實(shí):有錢人的確變得越來(lái)越有錢。 ????很多人關(guān)注收入差距問(wèn)題,但正如皮凱蒂?gòu)?qiáng)調(diào)的,就財(cái)富而言,貧富鴻溝要寬得多。盡管他拓展了人們對(duì)于貧富差距的爭(zhēng)論,但書中的討論往往忽視了一點(diǎn):我們應(yīng)該如何解決這個(gè)問(wèn)題? ????至少在美國(guó),人們普遍認(rèn)為提高收入是出路。各路媒體幾乎每天都有報(bào)道稱,某市長(zhǎng)或華盛頓的立法者正在努力提高工人的最低工資。然而,這或許能夠讓收入差距減小,卻無(wú)助于幫助美國(guó)人積累財(cái)富。 ????皮凱蒂建議在全球征收財(cái)富稅,不過(guò)向富人征稅并不一定能夠解決問(wèn)題。能夠幫助普通美國(guó)人、尤其是低收入家庭的,是那些能夠協(xié)助人們?cè)黾觾?chǔ)蓄從而積累財(cái)富的政策。這是近期由我在新美國(guó)基金會(huì)(New America Foundation)的同事威廉?埃利奧特提出的方法。他在他自己的報(bào)告《利用財(cái)產(chǎn)打造經(jīng)濟(jì)流動(dòng)系統(tǒng)》中認(rèn)為,最富有的美國(guó)人已經(jīng)通過(guò)他們的儲(chǔ)蓄享受了大量政府補(bǔ)貼。根據(jù)美國(guó)國(guó)會(huì)預(yù)算辦公室(Congressional Budget Office)的估計(jì),今年美國(guó)1,400億美元的退休補(bǔ)貼中,有三分之二將由收入最多的那20%的人獲得。 ????收入較低的美國(guó)人則無(wú)法得到這種資助。實(shí)際上,如果去看看聯(lián)邦食品和收入援助項(xiàng)目的規(guī)定,你就會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn),窮人實(shí)際上并不被鼓勵(lì)存錢。銀行存款不到1,000美元的家庭都沒(méi)有資格參加這種項(xiàng)目。 ????結(jié)果,收入更高的家庭從長(zhǎng)期計(jì)劃和投資中獲得了好處,而低收入家庭這樣做則有弊無(wú)利。問(wèn)題的關(guān)鍵在于,錢生錢需要本錢,要如何保證每個(gè)人都能有些錢來(lái)走上致富之路呢? ????解決方式有許多:俄勒岡州的參議院羅恩?懷登最近表示,支持“立志法案”(ASPIRE Act,The America Saving for Personal Investment, Retirement, and Education Act)中提到的給全體兒童設(shè)立儲(chǔ)蓄賬戶的提議。立志法案將為每位在美國(guó)出生的兒童提供500美元的儲(chǔ)蓄賬戶,其中的資金可供上大學(xué)、買房或退休使用。人們每年可以向其中存入最多2,000美元而不用繳納稅款。低收入家庭也可以按照聯(lián)邦標(biāo)準(zhǔn),每年向其中最多存入500美元。紐約州的代表喬?克勞利也支持類似的方式。 ????當(dāng)然,還需要采用一些其他方法來(lái)保證這種方式能夠獲得成功,比如取消資產(chǎn)限制,讓低收入家庭將儲(chǔ)蓄看作可靠的手段,同時(shí)幫助家庭以靈活的儲(chǔ)蓄方式建立金融儲(chǔ)備,比如新美國(guó)基金會(huì)推出的金融安全信用制度(Financial Security Credit)。 |
????It's not often that a lengthy economics book gets very much attention, but by now, many have heard of French economist Thomas Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century.The 685-page book has unexpectedly become a bestseller; Piketty analyzes hundreds of years of tax records throughout the world and arrives at a harsh reality: The rich are indeed getting richer. ????A lot of attention has been paid to incomes, but as Piketty highlights, the divide is much wider when it comes to wealth. While he has broadened the debate about inequality, what's often been missing from the discussion is what should we do about it? ????At least in the U.S., the prescriptions have overwhelmingly focused on raising incomes; hardly a day goes by when the media, a city mayor, or Washington lawmakers make the case for raising workers' minimum wage. While that might help equalize incomes, it does nothing to help Americans build wealth. ????Piketty suggests levying a global wealth tax, but taxing the rich isn't necessarily the answer. What could help average Americans, particularly low-income households, are policies that help them build wealth by helping people to save more. This is an approach recently articulated by my New America Foundation colleague, William Elliott. In his report, "Harnessing Assets to Build an Economic Mobility System," he argues that the richest Americans already enjoy extensive government subsidies on their savings. This year, the top 20% of income earners will capture two-thirds of the $140 billion in subsidies for retirement, according to estimates by the Congressional Budget Office. ????Lower-income Americans don't have this type of support. In fact, they're explicitly discouraged from saving more if you look at rules over federal food and income assistance programs that can make families with less than $1,000 in the bank ineligible to participate. ????As a result, higher income families are rewarded for long-term planning and investment and low-income families are penalized for doing so. The point is that it takes money to make money, so how about making sure that everyone starts out with some? ????There are multiple ways: Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) has recently voiced his support for a universal savings accounts for children, modeled on the ASPIRE Act. ASPIRE would provide all children born in the U.S. with a $500 savings account that could be put toward the cost of college, buying a home, or retirement. Up to $2,000 could be deposited into the account annually on a tax-free basis, and lower-income families would qualify for a federal match of up to $500 a year. Representative Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.) has supported a similar approach. ????There are certainly other measures that need to take place to make sure that an approach like that is successful, such as getting rid of asset limits that cast savings as a liability in the minds of low-income families, as well as helping families build a financial cushion in the form of flexible savings, as the Financial Security Credit would do. |