CRAPO BILL CUTS TAXES ON GOLD, SILVER INVESTMENTS

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Washington, DC â?? Citing inequities that now exist in federal tax code, Idaho Senator Mike Crapo has introduced legislation to lower the tax liabilities for people who invest in precious metals such as gold and silver. The â??Fair Treatment for Precious Metals Actâ?? would treat the investment of investments made of gold, silver, and platinum, such as bullion coins and bars more like equities or mutual funds.â??Precious metals bullion investments should be treated like equities and mutual funds under the tax code because they trade like equities and mutual funds,â?? Crapo said in a letter written to colleagues in the Senate. â??Gold, silver and platinum are mediums of exchange that trade in a liquid market, around the world and around the clock.â??Crapoâ??s bill would remove these investment products from the collectible tax category, making them eligible for the 15 percent capital gains treatment currently allowed to investments such as mutual funds. At present, gold and silver investments are taxed at a rate of 28 percent.â??This is a critical bill for Idahoâ??s mining industry, our workers, and all investors,â?? said Jack Lyman, Executive Director of the Idaho Mining Association. â??If approved, this change could open the sale of Idaho gold and silver to a brand new market of investors who may have been reluctant to purchase metals in the past based on the tax situation.â??â??Congress also recognized the investment nature of precious metals when it amended the tax code to allow Individual Retirement Account investors the opportunity to include physical precious metals bullion investment products,â?? Crapo concluded. â??The Fair Treatment Act merely parallels efforts we took in 1997 to offer benefits to people who wanted to create their own IRAs.â??Idaho Senator Larry Craig and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid are co-sponsors of Crapoâ??s â??Fair Treatment for Precious Metals Act.â?? Other co-sponsors include Senators Max Baucus (D-Montana), John Ensign (R-Nevada) and Wayne Allard (R-Colorado).