Big Breaks

While personal income tax reform sounds great, lower rates necessitate eliminating or reducing tax breaks. The biggest is the $207 billion exclusion for employer-sponsored healthcare plans. The next four are the $103 billion exclusion for employer-sponsored retirement plans, the $74 billion mortgage interest deduction, the $69 billion from lower taxes on capital gains and the $57 billion deduction for charitable donations. We love them all, and that’s the problem.