By Steve Cairns
I have been following the VT Legislature and specifically the Ways & Means and Finance Committees for the last 25 years. I can confidently state that they have lost their collective minds.
The progressive/socialists in the legislature have just introduced H.510, an insanely expensive VT Child Tax Credit to grant $1,200 per child to parents making up to $400,000 and to adopt the incredibly complex federal advance payment scheme which has yet to experience it’s first tax season.
The VT Tax code is being bastardized to include non-taxable welfare payments to taxpayers with children. who make 4 times what many retirees make. This is a cruel hoax to those retired Vermonters that the legislature has expressed so much concern about for decades. At the federal level, a married couple with $100,000 of income ($60K taxable pension, $40K SS) in 2020 paid $7600 in federal income tax, which happens to be the same amount that a couple with 4 children under 18 receives in tax free income. Now VT wants to still tax residents with social security income and give that money to the other residents who did not earn it.
This is a travesty. Certain VT Taxpayers are being deliberately screwed by the legislature. They have done it in the past and are continuing to pick losers in the VT tax code.
The author is a Stowe resident and operator of Advisor Tax Services.
Categories: Commentary
I agree this tax credit makes no sense. It is particularly disturbing, as Social Security and Medicare are on the verge of insolvency. Why are our leaders not discussing this issue.
https://www.npr.org/2021/09/01/1033151631/a-new-report-says-the-covid-recession-has-pushed-social-security-insolvency-up-a
It is meant to buy votes, plain & simple. The elderly/retired are nothing to VT but a drain on the system to them – they deserve no honor, no respect, & no tax assist; they are on their “way out”, the Covid culling has murdered many, & their largely conservative/traditional views cannot be swayed at this point so let them eat sh**….I mean “cake”.
I can of course only speak for myself, but for the last 47 years I have been paying taxes. I have no children, and never have had any children, but I have been allowed to pay 2/3 of my yearly property tax (now about $4,000 a year) to help others afford to put their little tax exemptions through school, and now the powers be are going to allow those of us without those little exemptions to pay more ? Wow ! Yes Sir, Thank you Sir, May I please have another Sir ?
Time to leave socialist progressive vt.
It’s time to leave Vermont!
Time to kick these idiots to the curb and take this state back !!
This is a regressive tax measure. How can a progressive sign on to it? Why do couples making $400,000/yr. need a child tax credit? This defeats the problem that the child tax credit was initially intended to address. Maybe the social planers have repurposed the child tax credit, because of the birth rate crisis, to encourage wealthy people to have more children. Maybe it’s an admission that the child tax credits never had their intended effect (any studies done on this question?) We should recognize the child tax credits (as well as the progressive income tax) for what they are, wealth redistribution schemes.
Except they are distributing middle class taxes to the wealthy!
This is a tactic which will further collapse the State economy, which is the goal.
Why don’t my comments get posted?
Trust funders want all the benefits too!
Hey Liberals get your head out of your ass period
Its starting to stink !!
As part of BBB, Bernie tried to get his $1,600 BILLION federal Child Tax Credit passed, but no luck, thus far
All households with incomes up to $150,000 would get a tax credit of $3000, per child, per year
Households making more, would get up to $167, per child, per year