Through cost-effective solutions to the nationıs problems, responsible tax reduction, and proven programs to boost national intelligence and creativity, the Natural Law Party will propel the economy into a sustained growth phase. This pro-growth policy will simultaneously create jobs, reduce unemployment, balance the budget through increased government revenues, and retire the national debt. Only the Natural Law Party offers a comprehensive, viable strategy to accomplish these goals.
(a) Boost national creativityIn todayıs information-based economy, intelligence and creativity (i.e., innovation and ideas) drive economic growth. Clearly, Americaıs most precious natural resource is our human resource--the unlimited creative potential of our 260 million citizens. Given todayıs low test scores and high dropout rates, the most crucial economic strategy that government can adopt is to harness Americaıs untapped creativity. The Natural Law Party strongly advocates proven educational, job training, and apprenticeship programs that develop intelligence and creativity, prevent school dropouts, and bring life into accord with natural law. Only the full utilization of our human resource through the Natural Law Partyıs fundamental commitment to education will ensure Americaıs competitiveness and future leadership in the family of nations.
(b) Lower taxes
The most powerful fiscal action our government can take to stimulate the economy is to lower taxes. The Natural Law Party can cut taxes deeply--and responsibly--without adding to the deficit or cutting essential services. Many parties have promised lower taxes, but have been unable to fulfill these promises due to the depth and complexity of problems faced by government. The Natural Law Party, through its cost-effective solutions to crime, spiraling health costs, and other costly social problems, will save the nation hundreds of billions of dollars annually. On this basis, the Natural Law Party can offer a realistic strategy for significant tax reduction that protects the integrity of our important social programs.
One simple and viable way to implement across-the-board tax cuts is through a low flat tax. The Natural Law Party has designed a low flat tax beginning at 18% in 1997 and falling to 10% by 2002 as the Natural Law Partyıs cost-effective solutions to the nationıs problems began to bear fruit. (Our tax model includes an exemption for everyone--married filing jointly, single, and dependents--while individuals and families below the poverty level pay no income taxes.) The Natural Law Partyıs low flat tax would propel the economy into a growth phase. This strong economic growth, with its associated increase in government revenues, combined with the savings from our cost-effective solutions, would balance the budget by 1999. This proposal would also reduce the size and scope of the IRS, eliminate loopholes for the wealthy, and put an end to corporate welfare.
In addition to our flat tax proposal, the Natural Law Party is also continuing to study alternative tax options, such as a consumption tax, that might decrease the tax burden for Americans. We concur with the Kemp commissionıs fundamental requirements for a new tax code: fairness, simplicity, neutrality, visibility, and stability.
(c) Overhaul the Federal Reserve Board
Since recent administrations have been unwilling to employ meaningful fiscal policy through tax cuts and reduced spending, monetary policy has been the only available means of controlling both economic growth and inflation. Thus, in an effort to control inflation, the Federal Reserve Board has used monetary policy (primarily the manipulation of interest rates) to prevent economic growth of more than 2.5% per year. This sluggish growth rate contributes to economic stagnation, unemployment, and the declining real wage for most American workers. By cutting taxes, the Natural Law Party offers a strong fiscal stimulus to economic growth while keeping inflation in check with appropriate monetary policy, thereby ensuring price stability. Unaccustomed to meaningful fiscal policy, the Fed will have to be overhauled in order to allow the economy to grow at a rate greater than 2.5%, which is crucial to the prosperity and economic security of all Americans. Creating new jobs through economic growth is the most effective way to put America to work again.
(d) Cut corporate health costs
The enormous burden of corporate health care expenditures can best be reduced by improving employee health. Research shows that appropriate preventive health care programs improve health and reduce health care costs, thereby freeing financial resources for greater productivity, profit, and investment. Therefore, a Natural Law Party government would encourage businesses to implement such programs to improve corporate health and productivity and to reduce employee stress and substance abuse.
(e) Create macroeconomic stability through increased social coherence The Natural Law Party also supports programs that have been shown to dissolve social stress and conflict, thereby providing a more positive and stable environment for economic growth and prosperity. Most analysts are aware of how businesses are influenced by macroeconomic factors such as inflation, unemployment, economic cycles, and the threat of international conflict. However, businesses are also in a position to change macro- economic trends in a positive direction for the benefit of the organization and society as a whole. For example, research has found that even a single group of 7,000 to 10,000 practitioners of Transcendental Meditation and its advanced programs can produce a significant decrease in inflation and unemployment rates, as well as improvements in other economic indicators. Businesses that incorporate such programs into their employee benefits packages help ensure economic stability by creating a more coherent and stable society.
(f) Share the benefit
As the economy improves, we anticipate higher pay, better working conditions, shorter work hours, and a shorter work week. We believe that the American work force should reap the benefits of a powerful economy through a higher standard of living.