Job creation is still a hot topic amongst lawmakers, as legislators are desperate for a way to lower the ever-increasing unemployment rate. One of the methods proposed by Democrats in Congress is to create a new stock market tax to pay for job creation. The move could generate the Federal government between $120 billion and $240, but is already facing strong opposition. Check out the following article on the new tax from CNN Money.com.
By levying a small fee when stocks, futures, swaps, options and other securities are bought and sold, supporters of the tax believe the government can take in between $120 billion and $240 billion annually. That money could be used to fund additional government stimulus to help put the nearly 16 million unemployed Americans to work.
"Financial transactions number in the many trillions of dollars every year, so if you take a small fraction of that, you are going to be raising a lot of money," said Ann Lee, economics professor at New York University. "That can be used for things like paying down debt or creating jobs."
But the idea faces staunch opposition among Republicans and even from some Democratic lawmakers. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has also voiced his disapproval of the idea.
There are handful of different proposals in play, and the first bill surfaced in mid-November from a group of seven House Democrats, led by Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore. The legislation is called "Let Wall Street Pay for the Restoration of Main Street Act."