Letter: GOP tax plan resembles Kansas’ failed policy

In his Nov. 13 column, Congressman Dan Newhouse touted the GOP’s “pro-growth” tax plan. Newhouse wrote that the tax cuts he voted for Nov. 16 should “spur economic development and increase wages in communities here at home.”

Unfortunately, the evidence says otherwise.

The GOP tax plan mirrors recent policy in Kansas that ravaged the state’s economy.

In 2012, Gov. Sam Brownback slashed personal and business tax rates, and his administration promised that thousands of jobs and larger incomes would result.

However, by 2016, the rates of job growth and disposable income growth in Kansas had actually shrunk. In only four years, Kansas was worse off than if it had stayed the course.

Newhouse makes the same promises as Brownback, but the stakes are much higher.

The plan Newhouse voted for will cost a staggering $1.5 trillion, spurring huge cuts to the services Eastern Washington families depend on.

Among other consequences, the tax plan could trigger a $25 billion cut from Medicare, a service that benefits more than 100,000 people in Newhouse’s district.

Newhouse and his party leaders should have learned from the Kansas experiment. Instead, our Congressman puts the prosperity of hardworking Eastern Washington families at risk.

This story was originally published November 24, 2017 at 1:19 PM with the headline "Letter: GOP tax plan resembles Kansas’ failed policy."