Romney Plan: Bad For Iowans

Author Dave Bradley

An analysis of the Romney – Ryan Plan put out by the Center for American Progress shows that the Romney-Ryan Plan could hit most Iowans in the pocketbook extremely hard. Considering that most are far from recovered from the most recent Republican Depression, I doubt many would want to look forward to the personal costs of Romney-Ryan.
CAP Action Releases New Report: “The True Cost of Romney-Ryan Plan to Iowans”
Washington, D.C. —The Center for American Progress Action Fund launched Romney University this summer to inject facts and policy into the national debate. Over the past month, CAP Action has been touring the country – traveling to 9 states, reaching over 25 cities and meeting with community leaders – releasing state specific reports taking a close look at the costs each American will pay for Gov. Mitt Romney and Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) policies that ask the middle class to pay more so the wealthiest Americans and huge corporations can pay less.
“Iowans are tired of the ads and hungry for facts, and this report lays out the evidence behind the fact that Romney’s plan would mean higher taxes, tuition, and health care costs for middle class families,” said Tom Perriello, President of the Center for American Progress Action Fund. “This report highlights the fact that the Romney-Ryan plan will under-fund transportation and research, reward outsourcing, and ask struggling families and seniors to pick up the tab. Iowans deserve a just-the-facts tour that avoids the personality debates to focus on the practical impacts at the kitchen table.”
CAP Action today released “The True Cost of Romney-Ryan To Iowans.” Key findings of the report include:
Middle-class Iowans would pay more in taxes while millionaires pay less. Millionaires in the state would receive an additional $87,000 in tax breaks under the tax plans of Gov. Romney and Rep. Ryan while middle-class families would pay up to $1,900 more in health care taxes and $1,066 more in taxes on their mortgages.
Jobs would decline across Iowa. Gov. Romney and Rep. Ryan plan to provide extra tax incentives for corporations to outsource jobs and are pushing policy proposals to cripple the clean energy industry, jeopardizing 40,000 jobs across the state.
Drastic cuts to federal spending would shrink Iowa’s middle class. The state stands to lose more than $23.6 billion in federal funding from 2013 through 2022, an average of more than $2.3 billion a year, from cuts to schools, law enforcement, highway repairs, job-training programs and more.
These cuts would fall predominantly on middle-class and low-income families, especially cuts to education programs that would result in nearly $73 million in reduced federal support for education and job training in the state in 2013 and $169 million in 2014 alone.
Seniors in Iowa would lose health care benefits and pay more. Gov. Romney and Rep. Ryan would force seniors in the state to pay at least $585 more
for their prescription drugs each year. At the same time, the Romney-Ryan plan to turn Medicare into a voucher would cost current seniors at least $11,000 more out of pocket.
Women in Iowa would pay more for health care but receive less. Gov. Romney and Rep. Ryan would once again allow insurance companies to charge women more than men while taking away preventive care from 520,000 women in the state.
Young adults in Iowa would lose access to their families’ health insurance. Gov. Romney and Rep. Ryan promise to dismantle Obamacare, which would directly result in 20,000 young adults in Iowa losing the insurance they have today due to the Affordable Care Act.
CAP Action will be traveling to Des Moines, Mason City, Waterloo, Cedar Rapids and Iowa City on the “True Cost of Romney-Ryan to Iowans” Tour.