By Office of U.S. Sen. John Kennedy
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) was among those voting Dec. 2 for H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. According to the non-partisan group the Tax Foundation, under the Senate tax bill, Louisiana will see an increase of 12,611 new jobs and the average family will gain $1,857 in after-tax income.
“This bill is about three things: tax cuts, jobs, and more jobs,” said Sen. John Kennedy. “It doesn’t take an expert to see what’s stalling the American economy: middle-class families need to see more of their hard-earned dollars in their bank accounts. This bill gives them that while allowing American job creators the freedom and flexibility they need to increase wages and create jobs.”
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will:
- Double the standard deduction: For an individual, the standard deduction goes from $6,350 to $12,000. For a married couple, it goes from $12,700 to $24,000.
- Double the child tax credit: The child tax credit is doubled from the current $1,000 to $2,000, and more parents are allowed to claim the credit.
- Lower tax rates: Individual tax rates for middle-income Americans are reduced from 22.5 percent to 22 percent, 25 percent to 24 percent, and 32.5 percent to 32 percent, which will help taxpayers keep even more of their hard-earned money.
- Repeal Obamacare’s individual mandate: Repealing this unpopular tax will help provide additional relief to low- and middle-income families.
- 135,510 people in Louisiana paid the individual mandate tax penalty in 2014 rather than purchase insurance.
- 83.5 percent of those people had incomes under $50,000.
