Poll shows strong resistance to tax on financial transactions or banks

March 13, 2010

The Hill

Jay Heflin

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday released results showing 70 percent of registered voters polled oppose a new tax on financial transactions and 61 percent say a tax on financial firms would worsen economic conditions.

The Lombardo Consulting Group conducted the survey between Mar. 5 – 9 and tapped the opinion of 800 U.S. registered voters.

“Taxing financial transactions will do nothing to create jobs. It will hurt average investors, reduce savings, and make it harder for America’s job creators to recover from the economic crisis.” said David Hirschmann, president and CEO of the Chamber’s Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness, in prepared remarks.

He added, “Today’s highly liquid markets make it possible for average investors to get the best price and pay dramatically lower transactions costs when they buy and sell stocks. And, with more investment, they fuel the capital needs of businesses of every size.”

Unions have recently pushed the idea of creating a tax on financial transactions to help pay for a plethora of Democratic legislative initiatives. President Obama has championed a tax on financial institutions to curb excessive risk-taking.

Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and acting House Ways and Means Chairman Sandy Levin (D-Mich.) have discussed the creation of a bank tax with their respective staffers, but no formal legislation has been introduced addressing the issue.

<- Go Back