An RIF solution would permanently increase US economic growth by a couple of percent. For more growth, one would combine this with other solutions.
RIF stands for Required Investment Fee. If it is necessary to force something, it is best to force investments.
The Required Investment Fee would be levied in a way similar to a sales tax, and would be set at five percent, unless the voters wanted a different number. The fee amounts would not go to the government budget like a tax, however. The original manufacturer, domestic or foreign, of a product would be provided with an RIF credit for the fees collected on the products manufactured. The fee would then be changed into federal government Required Investment Fee bonds. The bonds could only be cashed in to fund the building of a new manufacturing plant in the United States, providing new manufacturing jobs. The jobs would have to be genuinely new. The bonds could not be cashed in to just shift jobs from an older American plant to a new one, for example.
Companies which didn't want to build plants in America could sell their bonds to companies which did want to build plants, probably at a discount because that is the way markets work.
The bonds would not pay interest, so would immediately also reduce the interest payment portion of the federal budget.
There would be a modest cost for customers. However, the increased economic growth would quickly raise the incomes of the customers to more than they were paying extra. Therefore, this would also be a form of indirect investment by the customers which would begin paying off for them in a few years.
Jim
RIF stands for Required Investment Fee. If it is necessary to force something, it is best to force investments.
The Required Investment Fee would be levied in a way similar to a sales tax, and would be set at five percent, unless the voters wanted a different number. The fee amounts would not go to the government budget like a tax, however. The original manufacturer, domestic or foreign, of a product would be provided with an RIF credit for the fees collected on the products manufactured. The fee would then be changed into federal government Required Investment Fee bonds. The bonds could only be cashed in to fund the building of a new manufacturing plant in the United States, providing new manufacturing jobs. The jobs would have to be genuinely new. The bonds could not be cashed in to just shift jobs from an older American plant to a new one, for example.
Companies which didn't want to build plants in America could sell their bonds to companies which did want to build plants, probably at a discount because that is the way markets work.
The bonds would not pay interest, so would immediately also reduce the interest payment portion of the federal budget.
There would be a modest cost for customers. However, the increased economic growth would quickly raise the incomes of the customers to more than they were paying extra. Therefore, this would also be a form of indirect investment by the customers which would begin paying off for them in a few years.
Jim
