Tax Foundation Calculates Costs of Tax Hike if ‘Bush’ Tax Cuts Expire

$1,200 Per Tax Filer, Increases to Nearly $2,200 Per Filer if AMT Patch Included

With “Taxmageddon” looming just 5 months away, the Tax Foundation is out with an analysis of how much the pending tax hikes would cost the nation’s tax filers.


With just five months to go until the largest tax increase since World War II, a.k.a. “Taxmageddon”, some people are getting concerned about the impact on the economy. This week the House will vote on a GOP proposal to extend through 2013 the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 and the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) patch, two of the largest components of Taxmageddon. 


The larger of these is actually the AMT patch, which would save middle- and high-income taxpayers about $193 billion, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT). Extension of the Bush tax cuts, which are more evenly distributed, would save taxpayers about $179 billion.The bill also extends for one year estate and gift tax provisions, saving taxpayers $31 billion, and small business expensing, worth $581 million. 

The total tax relief is estimated at $403 billion, or about 2.7 percent of the economy, and almost all of it would be immediately felt in 2013. As such, it would forestall many of the economy crushing aspects of Taxmageddon, while setting the stage for comprehensive tax reform next year. 

All 50 states would benefit from this bill, though some more than others. 
    

Here’s their breakdown for Wisconsin based on the latest IRS data on the distribution of income, tax credits, and deductions. The first column is total aggregate tax relief in millions of dollars, the next column is tax relief as a share of state income (AGI), and the last column is tax relief per tax filer.

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The Tax Foundation is a nonpartisan tax research group based in Washington, D.C. whose mission is to educate taxpayers about sound tax policy and the size of the tax burden borne by Americans at all levels of government.

Click here for more on the report.