By Guy Page

If the 2017 federal income tax cuts implemented by Congress at the request of President Donald Trump aren’t continued, the average Vermont family’s taxes will rise by over $2,000, Americans for Prosperty (AFP) stated at a Tuesday, March 25 press conference.

Representatives from several New England free-market policy groups discussed the negative impacts taxpayers in their states would face if Congress fails to renew the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). The tax cuts expire on January 1, 2025. Before then, Congress is likely to continue, amend, or end the tax cuts. 

“New England taxpayers already face higher costs of living and greater tax burdens at the state and local level compared to other regions across the nation. If the TCJA is not renewed, families would face tax hikes of more than $1,500, and small businesses would suffer tremendously from the expiration of these tax cuts,” AFP stated. 

A Vermont spokesman predicted political problems for lawmakers who support “letting these tax cuts fade into history.”

“My warning to everybody who is thinking about letting these tax cuts fade into history: if you hit households who are already struggling to make ends meet with an unexpected loss of household income, you are going to be in for a whirlwind of a surprise when 2026 comes around,” former Ethan Allen Institute president and current Behind the Lines columnist Rob Roper of Stowe said at the press conference. 

If allowed to expire, a typical Vermont family will pay $2,138 more in federal taxes – with $1,325 of that estimate in income tax hikes alone, an AFP statement said. 

Also, reversion to the pre-Trump tax rates will cost the average Vermont business an additional $1,038 in taxes. Most of these added taxes would be passed along to the business’s customers, many of whom are Vermonters. 

AFP estimates that inflation costs the average family $931/month, compared to the rate of inflation in January 2021. 

According to its own statement, “Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is driving long-term solutions to the country’s biggest problems. AFP activists engage friends and neighbors on key issues and encourage them to take an active role in building a culture of mutual benefit, where people succeed by helping one another. AFP recruits and unites Americans across all 50 states behind a common goal of advancing policies that will help people improve their lives. For more information, visit AmericansForProsperity.org.”

The  Vermont Congressional delegation is on record opposing the Trump tax cuts. 

“The tax cuts enacted under the first Trump administration were skewed to the very wealthy, “ Rep. Becca Balint said on the floor of the U.S. House Dec. 11, 2024.  “That’s the reality and this angers a lot of Americans who understand that we do not have tax fairness in this country.”

Sen. Peter Welch said in March, 2025 the Trump administration’s tax cut plan unfairly benefits billionaires. Sen. Bernie Sanders voted no on the tax cuts in 2017, which nonetheless passed 51-49.