WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall released the following statement after House Republicans released their tax proposal:
"New Mexicans want and deserve tax reform that helps working families and small businesses and makes Tax Day easier for all Americans. They want reform that makes the system more fair – that requires the ultra-wealthy to pay their share, that doesn’t add to the deficit, and that enables us to invest in roads and bridges, broadband internet and other infrastructure. Based on what I’ve seen, the Republicans have widely missed that mark. Instead, this bill would allow corporations and the richest 1 percent – people making over $733,000 a year – to continue to see the biggest benefits. And it would make the rest of the country pay for it.
“This Republican tax plan is full of inequity. It eliminates deductions for state and local income and sales taxes, a key provision for many middle-class families across the country, while repealing the estate tax for the super-wealthy. It gives big corporations a permanent tax break, while eliminating personal exemptions and the student loan deduction. And it was crafted without any consultation with Tribal leaders, even though it would almost certainly force major cuts to programs that Indian Country relies on, and that lie at the heart of the federal government’s trust responsibility to Tribes. This bill is also full of shady political gifts to special interests – from a backdoor measure to open the pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, to a provision that would eliminate longstanding campaign finance protections that have prevented secret political donors from abusing tax provisions intended to benefit charities.
“I’ll keep fighting for tax reform that really helps New Mexico’s working families and small businesses, but we can already see that this bill doesn’t do that.”
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