Letter to the editor: Think about tax policy when voting

It appears that the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was a massive con game. Eighty percent of the gain from tax cuts flow to the top 10% of wage earners and only 20% flow to the bottom 90%. Because of tax cuts, 34% of large profitable corporations like Amazon, ExxonMobile, Coca-Cola and Microsoft pay little or nothing in federal income tax, as do 25 of the richest Americans like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk.

To add insult to injury, the tax benefits to the middle class will expire in December 2025, leading to a tax increase. Benefits for small business and self-employed will also sunset. However, the reduction in the corporate tax rate and most of their added deductions will not expire.

The corporate tax rate was cut from the top rate of 35% to a permanent flat 21% tax rate. No matter the amount of profit, corporations still pay only 21% minus the newly added deductions. This was a massive windfall to large corporations and the extremely wealthy few. It has cost our government and the middle class trillions of dollars.

The 2017 tax cut did not pay for itself, trickledown, boost growth or increase wages or jobs for the middle class.

The 2024 election will be very influential over U.S. tax policy for years to come. Will you vote for lawmakers who want to extend the corporate tax give-away or for lawmakers who want to rein it in?

Joannne Garing

North Huntingdon