As if we didn’t need further evidence that Congress is phoning it in these days … House Speaker Boehner (R-OH) backtracked Thursday afternoon and announced a “compromise” two-month extension of the payroll tax cut, two days after the House voted to reject it.
Let me break this down for you.
First, to the average taxpayer, that works out to about $83. Total. Merry Christmas.
Second, for most employers, that’s a major headache. For most employers, payroll taxes are calculated by quarters. For those in Congress that missed math class, that’s three months, not two months. So, for the first quarter of 2012, there’s going to be a bifurcated quarter. That means two different rates. Two different tax returns. Two different calculations.
Let me be clear: this is not a good thing for taxpayers. It will be unnecessarily complicated and expensive. It’s politics, pure and simple. It was do or die and the Democrats and Republicans both blinked.
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) summed up frustration about the stonewalling, saying:
The Republicans are losing this fight. We need to get back on track. A thousand dollars a year is a big amount of money to most Americans, and I think it’s very important. … I worry about the fact that we are continuing to increase the debt and the deficit, but now it’s become very symbolic, and I think it has to be done.
And apparently “done” equals two months.
(*shakes head*)
Two months.
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