As Senator Collins tries to claim credit for helping Maine’s military families, it’s important to remember that her vote for the GOP tax bill is responsible for increasing the tax burden on Gold Star families.
After the Collins-backed tax bill was signed into law, many Gold Star families were shocked to see the taxes on their survivor benefits skyrocket. The GOP tax law caused the average tax rate on those benefits to jump to 37%.
This new tax penalty left many Gold Star families scrambling to cover the unexpected expense. Our nation’s military families who had sacrificed so much were left waiting for months after a fix was promised. And without legislation to specifically fix the tax law Collins voted for, families will again be paying the increased rate for their 2019 and 2020 taxes.
“Gold Star families in Maine and across the nation deserve our respect and our gratitude, not increased financial burdens,” said Maine Democratic Party Executive Director Lisa Roberts. “Senator Collins rushed to vote for a reprehensible tax bill that was great for her corporate special interest donors but hurt the people she should actually be looking out for in Washington. While Senator Collins tries to pull the wool over Mainers’ eyes, she is failing to mention she’s responsible for this tax hike on Gold Star families in the first place.”
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