By Paul Dame, GOP Chairman
Democrats and their Allies took a swing at Republicans last week regarding tax relief and today we are swinging back.
During his budget address Gov. Phil Scott outlines his proposal to provide tax relief to families using a child tax credit, seniors and veterans by reducing the amount of their taxable retirement income and nurses by providing a tax credit for more training.
Democrats who were unwilling to give so much money back to Vermonters completely removed the tax relief for nurses and veterans, drastically cut the caps for relief on social security, and put everything into child tax credits in bill H.510.
When Republicans saw that Democrats had cut out so many Vermonters, and were subsidizing the childcare of families making more than 90% more than their fellow Vermonters, our Republicans fought to get the bill recommitted to provide tax relief for everyone.
Rep. Casey Toof (who is one of the very few legislators who has young children of his own) moved to send the bill back to committee to share the tax relief. When that didn’t work, Republicans tried to cut the tax relief given to families that make over six figures and instead redirect that money by providing tax incentives that might draw more nurses to Vermont to help address our severely understaffed hospitals.
While Republicans have always supported child tax credits (which were an important part of the Trump Tax Cuts in 2017) the Vermont economy has some critical needs that are even more urgent given the strain COVID and foolish COVID-related policies have put on our health care workforce.
In addition to that, many seniors are getting squeezed terribly due to Biden’s rampant inflation, and those who rely on social security need the kind of breathing room that would have been provided by Gov. Scott and the Republicans.
The reality is that Democrats are doing this because they know they have awakened a sleeping giant with their overreach into our education system. Parents are fuming about nonsensical COVID policies, objectionable content in the classroom and the intensifying politicization of our schools. Democrats may be trying to buy some appeasement from the suburban moms who voted against Trump in 2020, but are now turning against Democrats in 2022.
Republicans will be here fighting to give back to Vermonters what is theirs. To the parents of school children, we support your right to reclaim your role in your child’s education. To the senior citizens and veterans who were taxes for years to earn a benefit, Republicans support your right to reclaim your purchasing power being eroded by the Federal government. To the nurses who worked on the front lines in the most dangerous situations when any kind of protection was limited, we support your right to claim the reward due to you as our most essential workers and reclaim the safer, better staffed working environment that has shrunk if not disappeared over the past 2 years.
Republicans in the House are committed to working for all Vermonters where we can, and not showing favoritism to one particular group and a token gesture to another.
Categories: Commentary
As a married couple with multiple children and with an income over 6 figures, this is disappointing. We have pulled our children out of public school and are homeschooling, our food costs are almost as much as our mortgage (which is equal to the rent we were paying on our dinky two bedroom VT condo we lived in less than 10 years ago), our property tax climbs every year. We commute for work so we’re feeling the pain at the pump too. We are getting squeezed in VT along with the rest of the population, we live frugally and work hard. Just because we have a good income, doesn’t mean much in VT when you’re raising a family. My husband is a veteran as well.
Vermont leaders have a spending problem. Year after year, they can’t balance the budget. Why should we be expected to reduce OUR spending while our cavalier leaders look for ways to borrow from Peter to pay Paul? Without the federal grant money, our state would be running a huge deficit. We’re losing our farmers. I’m worried for our VT economy. I’m worried for my children’s future here. VT leaders have champagne taste on a beer budget and they should all be ashamed of themselves. Our hard-working people are tired and deserve better, and that isn’t limited to just people of certain races and backgrounds.
The definition of insanity is voting for the same people over and over and expecting different results.
How are we supposed to effect change when you have the likes of Bernie Sanders running unopposed? Conservatives haven’t had proper representation for quite some time and few are brave enough to dare challenge the progressive/modern liberal movement.