PRESS RELEASE
June 20, 2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Sharon Kayne, Communications Director, NM Voices for Children, 505-244-9505

ALBUQUERQUE—The New Mexicans who are struggling the most would also lose the most under the Republican plan for extending the Bush tax cuts. That’s according to new analysis from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) and Citizens for Tax Justice (CTJ).

The Republican plan would extend all of the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003, which overwhelmingly benefit the highest income earners. Their plan would end expansions of the refundable tax credits for the lowest income earners that were passed in 2009 as part of the stimulus package. President Obama’s proposal, which would extend some of the Bush cuts, more evenly distributes the benefits of the tax cuts, and extends refundable credits for the very poor.

“Refundable tax credits are not only some of the best anti-poverty policies the nation has, they are also good for the economy because virtually all of that money will be spent right here at businesses in New Mexico,” said Gerry Bradley, Research Director for New Mexico Voices for Children. “If you’re looking for tax policy to help the economy, one of the last things you would do is cut back on low-income refundable credits,” he added.

The analysis shows that New Mexicans in the lowest income bracket—those with an average income of about $12,000—would see a benefit of $130 in 2013 under the GOP plan. This group would see a benefit of $310 under the Obama plan. New Mexicans in the top 1 percent of income earners—with an average income of almost $900,000—would see a benefit of almost $40,000 under the GOP plan, or just over $14,000 under the Obama plan.

The report also concludes that the President’s plan would cost $1 trillion less over the next decade than the GOP plan, and shows that the Bush tax cuts were ineffective as a means of growing the economy.

The entire report, as well as the figures for New Mexico, is available online at www.ctj.org/bushtaxcuts2012.php

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New Mexico Voices for Children is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization advocating for policies to improve the health and well-being of New Mexico’s children, families and communities.
2340 Alamo SE, Suite 120, Albuquerque, NM 87106-3523; 505-244-9505 (p); www.nmvoices.org