U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) Monday discussed the importance of pro-growth tax reform to spur job creation and grow paychecks during visits to three local businesses. Walorski met with business owners, local chamber leaders, and employees at the Coca-Cola Kokomo bottling franchise, the Brass Rail restaurant, and Martin’s Super Market.
“These family-owned businesses in Plymouth are just the kinds of job creators that will be able to hire more workers and invest more in our communities with tax reform,” Congresswoman Walorski said. “Hoosiers deserve a fairer, simpler tax code that makes America more competitive, helps businesses grow and create jobs, and allows families to keep more of their hard-earned paychecks. That’s exactly what we’re going to deliver with tax reform.”
BACKGROUND
The Trump administration, House Ways and Means Committee, and Senate Finance Committee recently announced a unified framework for pro-growth tax reform. Walorski joined President Trump in Indianapolis for his announcement of the framework.
The framework will serve as a template for the committees to develop legislation to simplify and modernize the tax code, provide tax relief to middle class families and small businesses, boost job creation, and make the U.S. more competitive in the global economy.
Middle-Class Tax Relief
• The framework lowers middle-class families’ tax burden by roughly doubling the standard deduction, expanding the Child Tax Credit, and creating a non-refundable credit for non-child dependents.
• It simplifies the tax code and allows most individuals to file their taxes on a postcard by eliminating most itemized deductions, repealing the alternative minimum tax (AMT).
• It retains tax incentives for home mortgage interest and charitable contributions, as well as tax benefits that encourage work, higher education, and retirement security.
• It makes the tax code fairer by consolidating the current seven tax brackets into three brackets of 12, 25, and 35 percent, with a possible fourth bracket for the highest-income taxpayers.
• It protects family farms and businesses from the onerous death tax.
Jobs and Economic Growth
• The framework lowers the tax rate on small and family-owned businesses to 25 percent while calling for measures to prevent wealthy individuals from recharacterizing personal income as business income.
• It lowers the corporate tax rate to 20 percent, below the 22.5 percent average among industrialized nations.
• It allows for full and immediate expensing of capital investments for at least five years so businesses can purchase new equipment.
• It eliminates special interest tax breaks and loopholes while maintaining the research and development and low-income housing credits.
• It ends the incentive to send jobs and capital overseas by transitioning to a territorial tax system and repatriating foreign earnings that have accumulated overseas.
Walorski represents the 2nd Congressional District of Indiana, serving as a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.
