Tax 'cut' is a loser for those of us with dependent children

To The Daily Sun,

I've seen numerous letters and comments about the impact of the Trump tax cuts. Many people will swear that their tax return is better, or that their paycheck is bigger, or that folks didn't adjust their withholding appropriately.

All of that may be true. However, here is something else to consider: if you are a family with dependent children and a mortgage, you will probably see a smaller return. EVEN if your withholding is correct. In my case, I saw a $245 per month increase in my paycheck. Yes — that is quite nice indeed. I paid just shy of three thousand dollars LESS in taxes last year. I have always chosen the "Married But At The Higher Single Rate" on my W-4 form as a way to use the government as my personal savings account. You learn to live without the monthly income, and then you get a nice fat check in the spring. At least we used to.

With the new tax laws, the personal exemptions for parents and children disappeared. and while the standard deductions did indeed increase, IF a family has real estate taxes, mortgage interest, and other deductions that have always had them well above the old standard deduction, then the new standard deduction — while indeed being higher, coupled with a loss of the personal exemptions, can find a family getting back a return that is STILL smaller. Theoretically, if you took your return from last year and then deducted the sum total of the increases in your paychecks, that should approximately equal the return you get this year. UNLESS you have dependent children.

So, while I got nearly three thousand dollars more in my paycheck this year, we got back four thousand less than last year. That is a net LOSS of one thousand dollars. Many of the older crowd that is very vocally supportive of the president and his policies haven't had a dependent child in quite some time, so they aren't seeing it.

THIS is exactly why tax preparers across the country are reporting an average 8-percent decrease in refunds. Most families don't fall in that One Percent Club that truly benefits from Trump's Tax Giveaway and Meat Raffle. Most aren't even in the Ten Percent Club. I've done my own taxes for 35 years and have even been a tax preparer for my fellow shipmates when I was in the Navy. And other than the massive tax cuts the hurt the middle class during the Reagan administration, this is the first one since then to deliberately go after the middle class again.

This is what happens when Congress does not debate legislation. This is what happens when voters don't get to see the impact of a change because it hasn't been modeled during hearings. No — we heard a lot of fluff and rhetoric and then the bill was passed with nary a debate. This is the Republican Party at work — counting on the rich and ignorant to help them beat up the middle class. Well — my "black eye" will be remembered when the next election rolls around.

Alan Vervaeke

Gilford