One of the many ways in which the House GOP’s tax bill advantages wealthy Americans is by lowering the tax rate on so-called “pass-through” income. This is money that passes through a business to its owners and is currently taxed at the individual rate. Under the GOP proposal, taxes on pass-through income would top out at 25 percent, rather than 39.6 percent.
In a FAQ posted Thursday, the House Ways and Means Committee sought to illustrate the reason for this change. A lower pass-through rate specifically benefits business owners (even the extremely wealthy ones), and not individuals who make their money as wages. Need an example to better illustrate? Here’s the one they chose:
Our legislation will ensure this much-needed tax relief goes to the local job creators it’s designed to help by distinguishing between the individual wage income of NBA All-Star Stephen Curry and the pass-through business income of Steve’s Bike Shop.
Why single out Curry? It probably has something to do with him being a Trump-approved target. And maybe Ways and Means chairman Kevin Brady, who represents parts of suburban Houston, is trying to help out his boy James Harden and get in Curry’s head. Looks like it may have worked.
