This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2010, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
What is the impact of various tax cuts on our federal budget? Which programs should be cut, and how would that affect the deficit? In an informative new online exercise, you can decide. Go online, and do the exercise "Stabilize the Debt: An Online Exercise in Hard Choices" at http://crfb.org/stabilizethedebt/#. This budget calculator was created by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a bipartisan, nonprofit organization committed to educating the public about issues that have a significant fiscal policy impact.
The committee is made up of some of the nation's leading budget experts, including many past heads of congressional budget committees, the Congressional Budget Office, the Office of Management and Budget and the Federal Reserve Board.
I wish all our federal elected officials would complete this exercise. It only takes a few minutes. Give it a try. The exercise shows that it is not easy to get the federal budget under control, even without lobbyists breathing down your neck.
Mark Rothacher
Salt Lake City