Kamala Harris proposes bill to repeal GOP tax cuts, give money to working class families

Amid speculation of a 2020 presidential run, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., has introduced a bill that would replace GOP tax cuts with new tax credits for working class and middle class families.

The bill would allow families making less than $100,000 a year to receive a $6,000 annual tax credit, and for single filers making less than $50,000 a year to receive a $3,000 annual tax credit.

In a Thursday press release, Harris unveiled LIFT (Livable Incomes for Families Today) the Middle Class Act, a bill that has almost no chance of becoming law with a Republican-led House, Senate and White House.

“Americans are working harder than ever but stagnant wages mean they can’t keep up with cost of living increases,” Harris said. “We should put money back into the pockets of American families to address rising costs of childcare, housing, tuition, and other expenses. Our tax code should reflect our values and instead of more tax breaks for the top 1 percent and corporations, we should be lifting up millions of American families.”

Under the bill, people would be able to choose whether to receive the tax credit on either a yearly or monthly basis. Under the monthly plan, families would receive a tax credit of $500 a month, and individuals would receive a tax credit of $250 a month.

An analysis from The Atlantic found that this proposal would cost roughly $200 billion a year, which is similar to what the GOP’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act cost.

It was unclear how much of the GOP tax cut legislation Harris would repeal, although it’s probably a safe bet to assume the bill would include tax increases for the highest earners and an increase in the corporate tax rate.

“It is absolutely unconscionable that while many families continue to struggle, President Trump and Republicans in Congress are giving tax cuts to the top 1 percent and corporations while threatening Social Security and Medicare,” Harris tweeted. “It’s time to change that.”

In the GOP tax bill, the top rate (for individuals making over $500,000 a year and families making over $600,00 a year) was reduced from 39.6 percent to 37 percent. The corporate tax rate was reduced from 35 percent to 20 percent.

If the entirety of the tax cuts are repealed, then families may not receive the full intended tax credits, since the rate for every tax bracket was reduced in the GOP bill.

For example, individuals making $40,000 a year used to owe $10,000 in federal taxes (prior to deductions), but after the GOP tax cuts, now owe $8,880 since their rate was cut from 25 percent to 22 percent. A full repeal of the GOP bill would force these individuals to pay an additional $1,120 annually, which would eat into the $3,000 tax credit Harris proposes.

Harris has long been rumored to be mulling a presidential run in 2020, and this is a bill that likely won’t get serious consideration unless a Democrat is occupying the White House.

Eric Ting is an SFGATE staff writer. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter

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