Friends—You may have seen an email from the Social Security Administration (SSA) claiming that Trump’s new tax and spending bill eliminates federal income taxes on Social Security benefits for most seniors. Here are the facts: The bill Republicans recently passed and Trump signed into law does not eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits. Instead, it introduces a temporary, income-based standard deduction for people over 65—regardless of income type. But more than half of social security recipients—low-income retirees, disabled workers, survivors—already pay no federal income tax on their benefits and thus will not benefit from this new deduction. Additionally, this policy will accelerates the depletion of the Social Security Trust Fund, putting Social Security even further at risk of insolvency for everyone. |
| But put aside the misleading information. More importantly, overall, policies in this bill are going to hurt everyday Americans and families. Just take healthcare, for instance. Trump’s bill makes the largest ever cut to Medicaid, and over 17 million people will lose their health care coverage in the coming years, including nearly 300,000 South Carolinians. Millions more who receive coverage through the Affordable Care Act will see their premiums increase by hundreds. In addition to healthcare cuts, this bill cuts some or all SNAP benefits for 22.5 million families, including nearly 300,000 families in South Carolina alone. And on top of all this, Trump’s bill gives so many tax breaks to the wealthy that it adds an estimated $3.4 trillion to debt and $700 billion in interest costs over a decade. This will hike interest costs on mortgages and car loans. Study after study shows that this bill hurts the working class while making the wealthy even richer. Households making less than $55,000 a year will see their incomes decrease as a result of this legislation. Meanwhile, the richest 1% of Americans will see nearly a trillion dollars in tax cuts, with an average tax break of $309,000. The right can claim they are lowering costs for everyday Americans all they want. But the facts are the facts: Trump and Republicans’ “Big Ugly Bill” betrays the American people. Sincerely, Jim |
The Truth About Trump’s Tax Bill—and Your Social Security
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