"This week, Congress will consider extending tax relief that is critically important to low and middle-income families throughout the nation, including hundreds of thousands of Maine's working families. It is of paramount importance that we act to prevent increased taxes for the families who need tax relief most.
"During the recent budget debate in the Senate, I backed budget rules that require a super-majority vote or offsets for new tax cuts and entitlement spending. I continue to support those rules. I have made clear since the beginning of the debate on ‘pay-go' rules that I believe these expiring tax provisions benefiting working Americans must be extended and deserve the super-majority vote that pay-go would have required.
"In 2003, Congress passed tax relief legislation that has made a real difference to the American economy and to the lives of millions of working American families. This legislation provided working couples with relief from the marriage tax penalty; it provided a per child tax credit of $1,000, and it expanded the 10 percent tax bracket to provide more relief to hard-working families. But unless these important tax provisions are extended this year, working families will see their taxes increase next year.
"Let me emphasize that while I support the extension of these tax provisions, I will not support a bill that includes unfair provisions that would expand tax cuts to upper-income individuals such as the recent proposal to extend the child credit to very wealthy individuals earning $300,000 a year.
"More than 300,000 Mainers benefit from maintaining the 10% tax bracket at the current income levels of $14,300 per family, and $7,150 per single taxpayer. If we fail to pass legislation extending the 10% tax bracket, taxpayers with incomes beneath these levels will be subject to a 15 percent tax. That would be irresponsible, and unfair to very low-income taxpayers who are already struggling to make ends meet.
"It would also be unfair to allow relief from the marriage tax penalty to be eroded. Over 170,000 Maine couples benefit from the marriage tax penalty relief we passed last year. If we fail to act now to continue that relief, these couples will lose 10% of the benefit they deserve - an unnecessary and unfair penalty on working couples.
"Likewise, we cannot allow the increase in the child tax credit to expire. Nearly 120,000 Maine families claim the child tax credit, and stand to lose $300 per child if we do not act.
"Continuing this imperative tax relief is important to low and middle-income families in Maine and throughout the nation. These provisions promote a fair and progressive tax policy. We should act now to extend them to avoid jeopardizing tax relief for working families."
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