DENVER — While proposed changes to Medicaid have gotten a lot of attention, the Republican budget bill in Congress would also make other big changes, including changes to your taxes.
Denver7 dug deeper into the 1,100-page bill to find the impact other provisions could have on Coloradans.
Tax cuts
The bill extends the 2017 tax cuts passed during President Donald Trump’s first term, which are set to expire this year. It also makes permanent and temporarily increases the current child tax credit and standard deduction.
Supporters say it means more money in your pocket.
"If the Trump tax cuts expire, every single American will face, on average, a tax increase of 22%,” said U.S. Rep. Jason Smith, R-Missouri, chairman of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee. “Democrats who vote against this tax relief will be voting for the largest tax hike in American history.”
Democrats like Congresswoman Diana DeGette, who represents Colorado’s 1st District, described the bill as a massive giveaway to billionaires and big corporations at the expense of working-class Americans.
“It's a very insidious bill. It has a lot of cuts to it,” said DeGette. “And all of it is being done to offset the tax cuts for the wealthy."
Expanded SNAP work requirements
The bill would also make changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). It would require states to pick up more of the tab and expand work requirements for SNAP recipients, raising the upper age limit from 54 to 64.
Anya Rose, director of public policy for Hunger Free Colorado, said the additional work requirements will mean more paperwork for people to keep up with.
"My greatest fear is that it's going to mean a lot more hardship for Coloradans,” said Rose. “They will result in people getting kicked off of their benefits and losing access to food.”
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a left-leaning think tank, estimates as many as 131,000 Coloradans would be at risk for losing some of their SNAP benefits.
- The White House issued a statement about the bill on Friday. Read it below
“House Republicans are moving to block an estimated 1.4 million illegal aliens from receiving American taxpayer-funded Medicaid as Democrats struggle to message their support for the unpopular position.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee completed its markup of its portion of the budget reconciliation bill Wednesday morning after an all-night session which included a provision blocking anyone unable to verify citizenship, nationality, or satisfactory immigration status from coverage.
The committee projects 1.4 million illegal aliens will be removed from the program due to those requirements.”
Clean energy tax credits
The bill would also eliminate many of the clean energy tax credits passed under President Joe Biden, which Trump calls “a green new scam.” But some Republicans have warned against cutting the clean energy tax credits, including Colorado Congressmen Gabe Evans and Jeff Hurd.
Both signed on to statements with other Republican members of Congress, urging their colleagues to “ensure certainty for current and future energy investments.”
The U.S. House Budget Committee failed to advance the bill on Friday, with some hardline conservatives calling for deeper spending cuts. But Republicans promise to keep working to pass the bill and send it to the president by July 4.
