State and Local Legislators Urge Congress to Eliminate State and Local Tax Deduction in Exchange for Pro-Growth Lower Rates

100+ State Legislators Sign Letter to Congress in Show of Grassroots Support

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Reduce Tax Rates for All Taxpayers by Eliminating Unproductive SALT Deduction An Open Letter to Congress:

States desperately need a return to robust national economic growth in addition to fiscal discipline on the spending side of the ledger. Eliminating the state and local tax (SALT) deduction would provide upwards of $1.5 trillion over the next decade to implement broad-based tax cuts nationally. This overhaul would spur the growth in economic output needed to jolt business investment, personal income growth, and job growth.

In addition to being a roadblock to broad federal tax reforms, the SALT deduction partially shifts the costs of mismanagement elsewhere. Thanks to SALT, income earners and businesses in lower-taxed states pay a higher effective federal income tax rate than their high-taxed counterparts since they deduct less from their taxable income. In effect, citizens in more fiscally responsible regions subsidize the malfeasance of politicians thousands of miles away.

Adding to the innate unfairness of the current SALT deduction, only a small fraction of those paying state and local taxes realize any federal tax benefit from the deduction. Only 30 percent of tax filers itemize at all for the simple fact that individuals must choose between the “standard deduction” of either $6,300 or the total of all other allowable deductions. In other words, all workers pay state and local taxes; but only the minority of workers who itemize deductions see a partial “refund” of those taxes paid. A far lower percentage of middle-class workers itemize compared to their higher-earning counterparts. As a result, the SALT deduction operates very similarly to a regressive tax by rebating a relatively higher portion of state and local taxes as one earns more income. Lowering the tax rates on all by eliminating the SALT deduction will benefit all Americans—wealthy and poor alike—by incentivizing the investments in business enterprises and technology needed to accelerate national economic growth.

For many taxpayers outside of the high-tax locales, the savings from lower federal rates will outweigh the loss of the federal deduction even without positive changes at the state and local level. Abolishing SALT would force residents to take a much harder look at their state and local tax rates. Especially in the highest taxed states, the loss of the deduction will increase community demands for more responsible management of government resources. But even taxpayers in high-tax areas disproportionately benefiting from the existing SALT deduction will benefit from its elimination. The larger tax base resulting from accelerated growth will alleviate some of the impetus for higher state and local rates.

The hardworking men and women of America need pro-growth tax reform to ensure a healthy economy in the months and years ahead. Incentivizing investment and business expansion by lowering the penalty on success (the income tax) produces far more growth than subsidizing state and local government spending through the SALT deduction. For these reasons, we support efforts to eliminate the state and local income tax deduction in exchange for lower federal income tax rates across the board.


The state legislators listed below come from all regions of the country and represent millions of people.

Alabama

Representative Jack Williams

Arizona

Councilman Sal DiCiccio

Representative Benjamin Toma

Representative Mark Finchem

Representative Vince Leach

Senate President Steve Yarbrough

Senator John Kavanagh

Senator Sylvia Allen

Senator Debbie Lesko

Arkansas

Representative Karilyn Brown

 Colorado

Representative Lori Saine

Representative Dave Williams

Representative Susan Beckman

Senator Kevin Lundberg

Connecticut

Representative Joe Piscopo

Florida

Representative Ralph Massullo

Representative Mike Hill

Representative Neil Combee

Georgia

Representative Matt Dollar

Representative Bruce Williamson

Hawaii

Representative Gene Ward

Idaho

Representative Eric Redman

Representative Jeff Thompson

Senator Steve Vick

Indiana

Councilman Brian Jessen

Councilman Fred Glynn

Representative David Wolkins

Representative Sean Eberhart

Senator Luke Kenley

Representative David Frizzell

Representative Mike Speedy

Representative Woody Burton

Representative Heath VanNatter

Representative Gregory Steuerwald

Senator Brandt Hershman

Senator Mike Young

Senator Jim Buck

Senator Mark Messmer

Iowa

Representative Rob Taylor

Kansas

Representative John Barker

Senator Mary Pilcher-Cook

Senator Ty Masterson

Senator Gene Sullentrop

Kentucky

Senator Ernie Harris

Representative C.Wesley Morgan

Maine

Representative Trey Stewart

Representative Matthew Harrington

Representative Nathan Wadsworth

Senator Andre Cushing

Maryland

Delegate Susan Krebs

Senator Robert Cassilly

Senator Gail Bates

Delegate Ric Metzgar

Michigan

Representative Michael Webber

Representative Tim Kelly

Senator Phil Pavlov

Minnesota

Representative Sondra Erickson

Representative Cindy Pugh

Representative Pat Garofalo

Senator Mary Kiffmeyer

Senator Roger Chamberlain

Mississippi

Speaker Phil Gunn

Senator Josh Harkins

Missouri

Representative Donna Lichtenegger

Representative Charlie Davis

Representative Cody Smith

Representative Kurt Bahr

Representative Justin Hill

Representative Keith Frederick

Representative T.J. Berry

Representative Bruce DeGroot

Representative Nick Schroer

Representative Scott Fitzpatrick

Representative Jared Taylor

Senator Wayne Wallingford

Senator Ed Emery

Montana

Senator Roger Webb

Nebraska

Senator John Lowe

Senator Jim Smith

New Hampshire

Representative Jesse Edwards

Representative Gary Daniels

Representative Ken Weyler

New Mexico

Representative Yvette Herrell

North Carolina

Representative Jason Saine

North Dakota

Representative Craig Headland

Representative Karen Rohr

Ohio

Councilman Ethan Reynolds

Senator Bill Coley

Representative Gary Scherer

Speaker Cliff Rosenberger

Senator Lou Terhar

Representative Tom Brinkman

Representative Andrew Brenner

Representative Andy Thompson

Representative Wes Goodman

Representative Bill Seitz

Representative Ronald Young

Representative Wes Retherford

Oklahoma

Representative Kevin Calvey

Pennsylvania

Representative Brian Ellis

Representative Eric Nelson

Representative Seth Grove

Representative Stan Saylor

Senator Richard Alloway

South Carolina

Representative Garry Smith

Representative Alan Clemmons

South Dakota

Representative John Mills

Representative Taffy Howard

Representative Hal Wick

Representative Tim Goodwin

Senator Jim Stalzer

Tennessee

Representative Martin Daniel

Representative Dan Howell

Senator Bill Ketrom

Senator Brian Kelsey

Texas

Representative Ron Simmons

Representative Kevin Roberts

Representative Rick Miller

Collin County Judge Keith Self

Utah

Senate President Wayne Niederhauser

Senator J. Stuart Adams

Representative Brian Greene

Virginia

Councilman Jon Russell

Delegate Kathy Byron

Speaker Bill Howell

West Virginia

Delegate Kelli Sobonya

Delegate Eric Householder

Delegate Gary Howell

Wisconsin

Senator Leah Vukmir

Senator Alberta Darling

Senator Devin LeMahieu

Representative John Nygren

Representative John Macco

Representative Mike Kuglitsch

Wyoming

Representative Dan Laursen

Councilman Dicky Shanor

Representative Donald Burkhart

Representative Dr. Timothy Hallinan

Senator Jeff Wasserberger

Representative Danny Eyre