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Washington, DC -- U.S. Rep. Ron Klein Friday voted in favor of a fiscally-responsible tax cut that prevents the Alternative Minimum Tax from hitting middle class families next year, while at the same time, expands critical tax breaks for middle-class Americans.
“My vote today represents my continued commitment to a balanced budget. One of the first votes that I took in Congress was to restore accountability by instituting Pay As You Go budget rules that require any spending cuts to be paid for out of current funds. The previous Congress’ policy of borrow and spend placed an unfair burden on future generations and is unacceptable,” Klein explained.
The Temporary Tax Relief Act of 2007 prevents more than 23 million families from paying an unfair tax increase under the alternative minimum tax (AMT), while also extending popular tax credits and deductions that expire at the end of the year. This tax relief is revenue neutral, and is fully offset by closing loopholes and eliminating narrowly targeted tax benefits that benefit a small percentage of high-income earners.
“I am committed to doing all I can to put money back in the pockets of millions of middle-class families, while not adding to our national debt. I held true to this commitment today by casing a vote in favor of the Temporary Tax Relief Act of 2007, a common-sense, targeted tax cut that benefits over 23 million middle class families,” said Klein.
Additionally, it is estimated that without this bill, over 51,000 families in Florida’s 22nd Congressional District alone will be unfairly burdened by the Alternative Minimum Tax – a tax that was never designed to harm middle class families, but unfortunately is. With the House passage of the Temporary Tax Relief Act of 2007 today, middle class families will finally get the relief they deserve this April.
Earlier this week, Klein introduced two key tax relief bills that will provide critical support and assistance to American families, teachers, members of the U.S. military. The Healthy Families and Dedicated Teachers Tax Relief Act, along with The Military Service Tax Relief Act ensured that the nation’s hardworking families and those who give back to society would be eligible for much-needed tax extensions. Provisions from those bills were adopted and passed as part of the Temporary Tax Relief Act of 2007, including:
* An extension of state and local general sales taxes. The IRS Code currently allows residents of states that charge an income tax to deduct their state income tax from their federal tax, but does not allow the same treatment of sales tax. This extension of the sales tax exemption is an issue that resonates in Florida since the state relies on the sales tax, rather than an income tax, to generate revenue.
* An extension of tax-free distributions from IRAs for charitable purposes. This would allow more flexibility for those looking to make charitable contributions by providing them with the ability to tap their IRAs without invoking a tax consequence.
* An extension of the deduction for certain expenses of elementary and secondary school teachers. This provision would allow teachers to deduct expenses incurred relating to their professional development.
* An extension of the above the line deduction for qualified tuition and related expenses. This provision allows for the deduction of qualified tuition expenses. Expenses could include items such as tuition, fees, books and supplies.
* An extension of penalty-free withdrawals from retirement plans for those called to active duty. This allows for any qualified reservist distributions that occur after September 11, 2001, to be excluded from the penalty.
* An extension of the election to include combat pay as earned income for purposes of the Earned Income Tax Credit. This extender would allow lower-income military members to capitalize on the earned income tax credit by allowing them to elect to include combat pay as a part of the EITC calculation.
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