In Arkansas the poor pay twice as much of their incomes in taxes as do the wealthy. When you factor in all state taxes, the bottom 60 percent pay 12 cents of every dollar to the state; the richest 1 percent pay less than 6 cents per dollar, according to Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families.
Since 1979 the richest 1 percent have seen their incomes grow 10 times faster than the 99 percent.
Jesus and the Hebrew prophets insist the wealthy and comfortable have a responsibility toward the poor. Jesus and the prophets also insist government is responsible for caring for the poor and vulnerable.
Jesus told a story of a rich man whose fate is directly linked to the poverty of poor Lazarus living outside his gates. In another parable, Jesus imagined all the nations gathered before the divine throne to be judged. The criteria: Did you feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, care for the sick, befriend those in prison?
Hebrew prophets like Moses, Elijah, Amos, Micah, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel spoke directly to kings and wealthy leaders demanding they use their power to create economic justice for the poor. Psalm 72 describes the good ruler as one who "shall have pity on the lowly and poor; he shall deliver the lives of the needy."
When Christians consider the priorities of government, we start with the priorities of Jesus and the prophets. It is government's responsibility to create economic justice and to do so with particular concern for the poor and vulnerable. The circumstances of the wealthy and the poor are interrelated.
So as our state Legislature begins a new term and as a new president is inaugurated and Congress resumes, what should we expect them to support for a healthy and just society?
Arkansas' previous legislative session did not do so well. They passed a significant tax cut for the wealthy and middle class, ignoring low-income taxpayers making less than $21,000. They passed a huge capital gains tax cut for people wealthy enough to hold stocks.
This year the governor has proposed an income tax cut of $50 million for the under-$21,000 taxpayers. That is minimally helpful, because the poorest 20 percent of taxpayers actually pay little income tax. Their high tax burdens are from sales tax, auto tags and property taxes passed down from landlords -- enough that their rate of taxation is double that of the wealthiest.
There is a better way. An earned income tax credit subsidizes low-income working families, particularly those with children. Benefits are concentrated among the lowest wage earners. President Reagan called the earned income tax credit the best federal policy to reduce poverty. At the national level, it has enjoyed support from both parties. A state credit would benefit those who need it the most, by putting money into working people's pockets. It serves as an investment to help the working poor move up the economic ladder. EITC is also an economic stimulus as the dollars turn over quickly. There is a bi-partisan bill to create a state EITC, and it would cost the state $10 million less than the proposed tax cut.
Some other choices that seem consistent with the Biblical mandate to prioritize policies that help the poor and vulnerable:
• Continue the scheduled grocery tax cuts
• Improve and expand access to healthcare in any repeal or reform of Arkansas Works
• Increase funding so every child can access pre-K education
• Fully support our understaffed and under-resourced foster care system
• Create community-based systems for juvenile justice instead of expensive state residential centers
• Fund after-school and summer school programs that accelerate student development
• Remove people with mental illness from jails and the justice system, and treat them in a behavioral health system
Some of these proposals save money now. Others create savings in the long run. Studies show return on investment in pre-K is from $6 to $16 for each dollar invested. Last year the Arkansas Hospital Association showed expanded Medicaid coverage in 2014 created nearly $1 billion in Arkansas economic energy. Those economic benefits will grow greater each year, unless law makers gut the healthcare program.
To do all of these good things that present themselves to us today, we need to ask the top 5 percent and the top 25 percent to give a little more, like their poorer Arkansas neighbors already do. And we need to close loopholes and corporate welfare.
It doesn't seem too hard if we adopt the spirit of Jesus and the prophets.
Commentary on 01/17/2017