tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718438092302331841.post8612103982859336330..comments2023-12-26T06:25:14.411-04:00Comments on The James McGregor Stewart Society: Paying for accessUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718438092302331841.post-63733562341132109572016-06-27T17:38:11.892-03:002016-06-27T17:38:11.892-03:00A reader rightly points out flaws in my argument.
...A reader rightly points out flaws in my argument.<br /><br /><i>The existing credit is a credit, not a deduction, which means it's not regressive.<br /><br />Since there is already a 100% deduction for expenses incurred in carrying out a business, which Jennifer's would qualify for if the prick would build a ramp, I guess you are asking a subsidy on top of that deduction.<br /><br />I'm not sure you have thought through the tax policy implications of this.</i><br /><br />I was looking for an analogy that makes the idea of a subsidy more palatable. Suppose you want to renovate and install an accessible bathroom for $25,000. This would be a depreciable capital cost. Depreciation seems to me to be a fictional concept, but it's accepted principle.<br /><br />But motivating a business to spend the $25k is the problem. Over the depreciated life of the bathroom the cost might be zero, but weighed against the lure of a trip to Disney World, it loses its appeal. <br /><br />The subsidy for charitable contributions is indisputable. And don't forget that charities generally pay few taxes otherwise - property and assets - I don't know all the details, but they're subsidized up the gump stump.<br /><br />So we've decided that's a good thing. The search for a cure for spinal cord injury is a vast industry, profiting researchers who have little to show for our generosity. But a paraplegic using an accessible washroom doesn't need a cure. If their lives are fulfilling, a cure will be far from their minds. <br /><br />The cure racket is for you, the accessible washroom is for me. Business incentives would have immediate and tangible results, so we should think practically and not be offended - we want to help with accessibility, by whatever means. We need to get over the idea that the only way to help people with disabilities is by curing them. Gus Reedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03689927960410512213noreply@blogger.com