Connolly holds roundtable on congressional tax plan.
Speaking at a roundtable gathering that the congressman hosted at the offices of the
"
Connolly reported that by using "dynamic scoring" - a method of analysis that includes the potential feedback effect certain tax cuts can have, and that he said
An assessment of the tax plans by
Connolly likened the plans to previously failed "trickle-down" attempts at tax reform and economic stimulus.
"1981, 2001, 2003. The Reagan and Bush tax cuts. So disastrous that they had to enact tax increases in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987 and 1990" to raise the needed funds. "Then in the early 2000s, President
TO DISCUSS THE IMPACT of the proposed legislation on the
Connolly set the stage for the discussion with a few more facts and figures, although he cautioned that "we still haven't seen the whole of either proposed legislation."
* The plans either repeal or limit several tax breaks that are crucial to Northern Virginians, including medical and dental expense deductions, premiums for long-term care insurance, in-home and nursing home care, and mortgage interest deductions.
* The state and local income tax (SALT) deductions would be limited or even repealed. In Connolly's
* The plans call for the repeal of Estate Tax, which only applies to about the wealthiest 5,000 decedents each year, while cutting adoption tax credits and credits for small businesses that invest in accessibility improvements for persons with disabilities.
* According to the Tax Policy Center, after-tax income for the top 1 percent of earners would rise by about 2.6 percent by 2027, while those at the bottom 80 percent would see after-tax increase of between 0.0 percent and 0.6 percent.
After Connolly's remarks,
Representing some 12,000 Realtors in the region, Adamson stated that the NVAR "wants to be part of the solution," but finds the proposed legislation to be "unfair to homeowners," disproportionately placing the burden of "filling in the financial gaps" directly on them.
NVAR Chair-elect
The Realtors at the table also worried that the proposed tax reform will actually lower existing house values. NVAR CEO
ADDITIONALLY, THE REALTORS foresee a decrease in housing stock that is already an issue, and even see
Continuing the "ripple effect" theme,
"Eliminating Private Activity Bonds and causing cuts to 'advance refinancing,'" said Carter is severely hampering the ability to finance the basics, like "schools, roads, hospitals, transportation, airports, sea ports, all of it."
That in turn "increases the burden on the counties," said Adamson, while potentially depleting their main source of revenue. For municipalities like
"And if we damage our
Multop "put a face" on the discussion, speaking about an economist friend. "He's 85 years old, on a fixed income, in assisted living. He looked at how these bills would impact him based on his 2016 tax filing and said it would raise his taxes by more than
Eliminating tax deductions for medical expenses and long-term care would be harmful to seniors, Multop said, possibly forcing more into custodial care and placing an additional burden on municipalities and nonprofits. "We are cutting our social safety network, one strand at a time," said Mercer.
Multop donned his economist's hat once more to also note that so far he had heard no mention from the
Another personalized example of the the proposed reforms was offered by attendee
"He works, he goes to school, he lives frugally. We provided him with a cheap car." Kelleher says that if a tax on the modest teacher's assistant stipend is adopted, "that's
Connolly responded to this story by saying the need to educate for competitiveness in the world's marketplace is greater than ever. The congressman said that making getting an education even more difficult means "some will have to leave school. That's hardly 'making America great again.'"
As the session came to a close, NVAR CEO Conrad asked Connolly, "What's your advice? What do we do next?"
In addition to the rally call to NVAR membership and AARP members, Connolly replied, "Run, don't walk and immediately express your concerns to your representatives" at every level of government, and "tell everyone you know. This plan does not reflect our values and priorities.
We can and should do better than this."
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Read this original document at: https://connolly.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1202
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