Engel on Reports of Lower Tax Refunds Due to GOP Tax Scam

  “Tax season is just getting underway and already people are feeling the pain from the GOP Tax Scam. According to the IRS, refunds are down in spite of President Trump’s massive trillion dollar tax cut. The reason is obvious: the tax overhaul was designed to further enrich big corporations and the wealthiest one percent, almost exclusively at the expense of working class Americans. In our area, the tax hit will be particularly jarring due to the caps on state and local tax, or SALT deductions. I’ve already heard from some people that their tax bill will go up thousands of dollars this year, a stunningly painful turn for many New Yorkers.

“Not only is the GOP Tax Scam taking money out of the pockets of most Americans, it has also in no way led to the sweeping economic expansion they sold it on. Many big businesses claimed this tax overhaul would mean higher wages for their workers, greater hiring, and more shared prosperity. The exact opposite has happened. To no one’s surprise, most corporations are using the money saved from the tax scam on stock buybacks meant to boost returns for stockholders, while laying off workers and keeping wages stagnant for those retained.

“I said many times this GOP Tax Scam was one of the worst bills I’ve ever seen come to the floor of the House. Now the data supports that assessment. We need to start unraveling this mess, and the place to start is the cap on SALT deductions that disproportionately hurt donor states likes New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California and Pennsylvania. I’ve introduced legislation to repeal these caps that would retroactively apply to this year’s tax return when passed. Similar legislation has been introduced in the Senate and it is my hope that we can work together expeditiously to move these bills along. This needs to be a priority in the 116^th Congress.”