National sales tax would hit working families with 30 percent cost increase on groceries, gas, clothing and more
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet joined their colleagues in a Senate resolution opposing Republicans’ plan to implement a national sales tax that would increase prices on all goods and services by 30 percent. The resolution instead calls for a tax cut to help families shoulder the cost of inflation and grow the middle class.
“We need to lower costs for working families, not raise their taxes,” said Senator Hickenlooper. “Supply chain issues have raised costs for all kinds of goods and services; let’s not add to it with a tax hike.”
“The last thing Americans need right now is a tax increase every time they go to the grocery store, buy school supplies, or fill up their gas tank. Instead of raising taxes on working families, as my Republican colleagues have suggested, let’s cut their taxes by reinstating the expanded Child Tax and Earned Income Tax Credits that lifted millions out of poverty. That’s how we support hardworking Americans – not by raising their taxes by 30%,” said Senator Bennet.
The Senate resolution comes in response to the Fair Tax Act, a Republican House bill which proposes a complete restructuring of the nation’s tax system.
If passed, the bill would replace federal income, estate, and payroll taxes with a national sales tax, depleting federal revenues while providing major tax breaks to the ultra wealthy. The new tax would raise prices on nearly everything Americans buy including housing, health care, and groceries, at a time when working families are still battling inflation and the pandemic.
The senators’ resolution calls for the passage of a tax cut to benefit seniors and the middle class, with provisions that close tax loop-holes for corporations and the ultra wealthy. The resolution stipulates that the proposed tax cut would not be financed by cuts to essential safety net programs like Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid.
Text of the full resolution can be found HERE.
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