Pro-Family Tax Reform [General Assembly Update Part 5]
For our final edition of the 2019 General Assembly recap, The Family Foundation is thrilled to report on the successful tax reform that passed this year and was signed by the Governor.
After the Trump administration signed the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that went into effect in 2018, Virginia soon realized it was set to receive an unanticipated windfall in state revenues of nearly one billion dollars. Leading up to the 2019 General Assembly session, the legislature had to decide what to do with all that extra money.
Thankfully, they chose to give the $1 billion back to the taxpayers. In what marks one of the biggest state tax reform measures in modern memory, the legislature worked out a plan that would return that revenue to the people who were actually paying it. HB 2529 (R-Hugo) made a number of positive family-friendly changes to Virginia’s tax code, including:
Increasing the state standard deduction from $3,000 to $4,500 for individuals and from $6,000 to $9,000 for couples, which will take effect with next year’s tax filings;
Retaining the current deduction on state and local taxes, instead of adopting the $10,000 cap in last year’s federal tax changes; and
Providing taxpayers a credit of $110 for individuals and $220 for couples filing jointly to be distributed in October
During the year leading up to the 2019 session, The Family Foundation was apart of a workgroup coordinated by the Thomas Jefferson Institute to put forward a proposal for what to do about the windfall in revenue that was coming to the state. Along with several other conservative groups, we helped craft and jointly endorsed a tax reform plan that looked a lot like the one that ultimately passed.
This was a very big deal, even as it didn't get nearly as much attention in light of all the other issues during the session. By keeping taxes low, we help keep government small, limited, and thereby less likely to infringe upon the liberties we hold so dear. This was a major highlight of the 2019 session and we were proud to play a part in its success.
This is Part 5 of a multi-part General Assembly Recap Blog Series.
Read Part 1 Here
Read Part 2 Here
Read Part 3 Here
Read Part 4 Here
