The Obama administration's $787 billion economic stimulus package and the federal tax credit to encourage people to buy electric cars, has resulted in free or nearly free electric golf carts, paid for by the tax dollars of our children and grand children. The Wall Street Journal has issued a scathing editorial called "Cash for Clubbers/ Congress's fabulous golf cart stimulus" in which the details of this current waste of tax dollars is exposed to day light.
The federal program to buy high mileage cars also had a provision in it, to give a tax credit of 4,200 to 5,500 dollars to encourage the public to buy electric cars. When this credit is combined with similar incentive plans in many states, the tax credits can pay for nearly the cost of the entire golf cart.
The editorial says that even in states that don't have their own tax rebate plans, the federal credit is generous enough to pay for half or even two thirds of the average sticker price of a cart, which is typically in the range of 8,00 to 10,00 dollars. "The purchase of some models could be absolutely free," said Roger Gaddis of Ada Electric Cars in Oklahoma said earlier this year. "Is that about the coolest thing you've ever heard?"
The Wall Street Journal also says that the boom in golf cart sales has been the result of a recent IRS ruling that golf carts qualify for the electric car tax credit if they are road worthy. That means seat belts, signal lights, and rear view mirrors.
The IRS has also ruled that there is no limit to how many electric cars an individual can buy, so some "enterprising Profiteers" are stocking up while the federal credits last. Oklahoma, has caught on to the giveaway and is debating limiting, or eliminating state tax credits.
This has resulted in ads like the one being run by "The Golf Cart Man" in the Villages of Lady Lake, Florida which says "Get A Free Golf Cart or Make $2,000 doing absolutely nothing!". Another dealer in Evansville, Indiana has an ad that says "Receive a $5,335,60 Federal Tax Rebate! Click Here!".
The "Cash for Clunkers" program itself has a hidden price tag that makes the claims of it being "wildly successful" disingenuous at best. In a press release by the National Taxpayers Union&National Taxpayers Union Foundation, called "Cash for Clunkers Cost Billions More than Advertised, Taxpayer Group Finds" by Peter J. Sepp, the true cost is laid out for all to see.
"The true cost to taxpayers of the federal "Cash for Clunkers" program has soared billions above its supposed price tag, charged the 362,000 member National Taxpayers Union (NTU) on the day following the program's conclusion. NTU Vice President for Policy and Communications Pete Sepp offered the following statement about the program:
The Obama Administration is touting the Cash for Clunkers program as "wildly successful"--but its cost has been understated by billions of dollars. In fact, while taxpayers shelled out $3,500 to $4,500 per car directly, they were also forced to prop up both General Motors and Chrysler. Given that GM"s tab alone was $50.2 billion, the true cost of the Cash for Clunkers program is far higher than its advertised $3 billion sticker price." Sepp said.
The U.S debt is now at 11.6 trillion dollars. At $11.6 trillion, the U.S. Debt is the highest in the world. In a story called "The U.S. National Debt and How It Got So Big" by Kimberly Amadeo in the useconomy.about web site, she says "The only reason it was allowed to get this high is that the U.S. Economy had been so strong and so stable for so long that everyone reasonably expected they would be paid back. In other words, the U.S. has been such a large customer that it has been allowed to run a huge tab. She points out that this trend means a slower economy, higher taxes and a downward pressure on the dollar. The interest on this debt continues to rise every second.
Who would have dreamed that we needed free golf carts to save our economy? The wisdom and foresight of this administration is simply stunning.
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