Defend My Dividend commercial

[SoutherDem]

I keep seeing a commercial where a group called Defend My Dividend states there is soon going to be a doubling in dividend tax. It of course makes it sound as if this is going to hurt the middle class. I know a lot of people own some stock which pays dividends, but generally I think of dividends as impacting the rich more than the poor.
I went to the website and no surprise it didn't give me but one side. I did notice the following in the "about" area of the website

The Defend My Dividend Web site is maintained by the Edison Electric Institute, in partnership with the Alliance for Savings & Investment and the American Gas Association.

Can someone who understands what is going on help me on what is this really about? Why is this important to the Edison Electric Institute and the American Gas Association?

[Fresh_Start]

1. Oh heck, I agree we should defend dividend income upto $1000 per year.

after that, full income tax rate.

[russspeakeasy]

2. I can only supply that imformation to you if you can verify that

you receive at least 98% of your income from dividends.

[1StrongBlackMan]

3. What amazes me ...

about this "protect my Dividends" discussion is that few, if any, understand that the taxation of dividends would be barely be noticed by most people that own dividend bearing stocks.

I have a couple such stocks and know how many one must own in order to reap appreciable income from them. My last year's dividend payments wouldn't buy a big-screen TV ... on sale.

[rufus dog]

4. Congrats

my dividends would be enough to buy a decent programable remote.

[Mojorabbit]

5. My mom lives off interest income and dividends

from investments she made with my dad's life insurance when he passed and social security. Lots of elderly folks are following this topic closely. Big topic at the senior center where she goes. She is not wealthy by any means.

[JoePhilly]

6. If mom lives off dividends and interest, her net worth has to be pretty high.

Let's say she gets a measly $500 a month in interest and dividends. The investments needed to generate that $500 each month would be substantial.

I'd be curious to hear how much her monthly interest and dividends are against the total investment.

[Mojorabbit]

9. It isn't. It supplements her SS

She does not get five hundred a month. Her money used to be in CDs but they pay almost nothing now.

[JoePhilly]

10. Then she also isn't living off her interest and dividends.

Which is what you said.

The rich can actually live off their dividends and interest.

And if your mom uses them to supplement her SS, her taxes won't go up because her income is too low.

In her later years, my grandmother lived off SS and some dividends and interest from CDs, and her taxable income was too low to tax.

The GOP uses the scare tactic about dividends to scare old people.

[Mojorabbit]

11. That is good to know but someone needs to reassure the seniors out there

as it is a big topic of conversation and worry.

[JoePhilly]

15. We all need to be doing that. These are older people, often not connected to the internet.

All they hear are the lies and distortions on the TV.

[LiberalFighter]

8. Which is why we need more details about the impact

What are the income groups that have direct investment and those that use 401k or IRA's?

How much in dividends do retirees receive on average? About 1/2 of mine has dividends and it amounts to just over $600 for the year so far. If it wasn't in a 401k I would probably have about $180 dividend tax at end of year.

So I wonder exactly what sort of income a retiree has that would cause this to be an issue? I would think anyone that is not wealthy would not be seriously impacted.

[mnhtnbb]

7. Utility stocks--generally gas and electric companies--tend to pay higher dividends.

[ProgressiveEconomist]

13. And utility stock prices depend on the annual dividend multiple

investors in electric and gas power stocks are willing to pay.

Investors who faced higher marginal tax rates on dividends would only pay a lower multiple compared to what they pay under Bush tax rates. So stock prices would slump, the value of stock options utility executives own would plummet, it would become more expensive to finance plant maintenance and expansion, etc.

[Raine1967]

12. It's a lobbying group:

Edison Electric Institute
701 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20004-2696
202-508-5000


The Edison Electric Institute (EEI) is the association of U.S. Shareholder-Owned Electric Companies. Our members serve 95 percent of the ultimate customers in the shareholder-owned segment of the industry, and represent approximately 70 percent of the U.S. electric power industry.

We also have more than 80 international electric companies as Affiliate Members, and more than 240 industry suppliers and related organizations as Associate Members.

Organized in 1933, EEI works closely with all of its members, representing their interests and advocating equitable policies in legislative and regulatory arenas.

EEI provides public policy leadership, critical industry data, strategic business intelligence, one-of-a-kind conferences and forums, and top-notch products and services.


http://www.eei.org/whoweare/abouteei/Pages/default.aspx

[csziggy]

14. Some of the most basic investments are in utility funds

A lot of pensions, annuities, retirement accounts invest in utilities. It's a pretty high and stable rate of return. If taxes on dividends go up, the utilities are worried that investments in their bonds will go down.

This is just general information gathered from accumulated knowledge of my personal investments, not from any specific knowledge of the utility companies' involvement in this ad campaign.