FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sarah Chaisson Warner, 603-225-2097, swarner@nhcitizensalliance.org
Report Shows Impact to New Hampshire Residents of Extending Bush Tax Cuts for Richest 2% of Americans
Wealthy Few Would Reap Huge Tax Breaks at Expense of Other N.H. Residents
(Concord, N.H. – July 31, 2012) If the U.S. House of Representatives passes the Republican plan this week to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for one year for households making over $250,000, the wealthiest 3.6 percent of New Hampshire taxpayers in that income group could get a disproportionate 43 percent of the total tax breaks in their state. Their average tax cut would be about $31,400.
In contrast, if Congress passed President Obama’s plan to extend the Bush tax cuts on the first $250,000 in household income, the average tax cut for New Hampshire taxpayers who make more than that amount would be about $13,300, or about 40 percent of what they would get under the GOP plan. And the nearly 16 percent of New Hampshire taxpayers with income up to $25,000 would get larger average tax cuts under the Obama plan than under the Republican plan.
Those are among the key findings of a new report released today by NH Citizens Alliance. “Time to Pay Their Fair Share: New Hampshire Can’t Afford to Extend the Bush-era Tax Cuts for the Wealthy Few.” The report is authored by Americans for Tax Fairness, Citizens for Tax Justice and the National Women’s Law Center.
The report is timely because this week the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on the Republican plan to extend all the Bush tax cuts, including for the richest 2 percent of U.S. households, while ending improvements in tax credits for low-end and moderate-income families. The Democrats will offer an alternative plan similar to President Obama’s, which the U.S. Senate passed last week by a 51 to 48 vote.
“We can’t afford to keep giving tax cuts to the richest people in America,” said Sarah Chaisson Warner, executive director of NH Citizens Alliance. “We can’t balance the budget on the backs of children, seniors, and families struggling to make ends meet, and we can’t keep borrowing from China. Those who have done well in America should do well by America and pay their fair share.”
Major findings of the report include:
- About 96 out of 100 New Hampshire residents would get about the same tax cut under the Obama plan as they have up until now.
- 3.6 percent of New Hampshire taxpayers have an average income of $634,000.
- The other 96.4 percent of the state’s taxpayers make about $69,000 on average.
- The average tax cut for those making between $50,000 and $100,000 would be roughly the same under both the Obama and GOP plans: about $1,380 and $1,370, respectively.
- New Hampshire taxpayers making less than $25,000 a year would get an average tax cut from the Obama plan roughly 20 percent larger than from the Republican plan: $230 from Obama, compared to $190 from the GOP, because the GOP plan would end improvements in the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit for lower-income working families while the Obama plan would extend them.
The additional tax cuts for the wealthiest 2 percent of U.S. households under the Republican plan will cost approximately $68 billion next year alone. That’s equal to what the federal government spends to repair highways, improve education and provide school breakfasts for low-income children, ensure clean drinking water, and deliver meals at home to frail seniors. The report breaks down what New Hampshire’s share of these funds means for its residents:
- Highway Planning and Construction: New Hampshire will receive $151.9 million in federal funds in FY 2012 to help it plan, build, and repair highways and bridges and support other transportation improvements. These investments in infrastructure help all New Hampshire residents travel more safely and efficiently and promote economic growth and job creation.
- Title 1 funding to support K-12 education: New Hampshire will receive $39.3 million in federal funds in FY 2012 for grants to local school districts serving disadvantaged children. In the 2009-2010 school year, 404 New Hampshire schools serving nearly 162,000 children were eligible for this funding.
- Head Start and Early Head Start preschool programs: New Hampshire will receive $15.6 million in federal funds in FY 2012 for Head Start, which helps preschool-age children in low-income families build the skills they need to succeed in school. Head Start and Early Head Start preschool programs served 1,632 children in low-income New Hampshire families in 2009.
- School Breakfast Program: New Hampshire will receive $5.2 million in federal funds in FY 2012 for the school breakfast program, which provides free or reduced price breakfasts to children from low- and moderate-income families. A nutritious breakfast improves children’s health and helps them start the day ready to learn. In 2011, the program served an average of 24,500 New Hampshire children each day.
- Make Drinking Water Safer: New Hampshire will receive $23.3 million in federal funds in FY 2012 to construct water treatment facilities and ensure clean drinking water.
- Provide Meals to Homebound Seniors: New Hampshire will receive $1.1 million in federal funds in FY 2012 to provide home-delivered meals to frail seniors. About 11,165 New Hampshire residents received meals through this program in 2010.
###