AFP-MI: “Tax Bill is Nothing but Political Sleight-of-Hand”

Feb 16, 2023 by AFP

Lansing, Michigan—Barely a month into session, the new Democratic majority voted to raise taxes on families and small businesses by $700 million in the first year alone, passing House Bill 4001 in the afternoon on Thursday. Meanwhile, Governor Whitmer has proposed the largest state budget in Michigan history, weighing in at $79 billion, which spends all but $200 million of the state’s $9 billion budget surplus.

Americans for Prosperity-Michigan State Director Annie Patnaude made the following statement after the vote:

“The new majority in Lansing will use political sleight-of-hand to make middle-class Michiganders believe they aren’t raising taxes, but voters need to look at what they do, not what they say. The Governor has proposed the largest state budget in Michigan history; meanwhile, middle-class Michigan families and small businesses have to dip into their savings to make ends meet in the face of crushing inflation driven by government spending excess.

“Governor Whitmer’s so-called “inflation relief checks” attached to this plan demonstrate just how out-of-touch our policymakers have become—$180 doesn’t even cover a week’s worth of groceries for the average family on the USDA’s thrifty meal plan.

“These are the numbers voters need to know:

$700 million in higher personal income taxes for the first year alone
$0.49 cents-per-day in inflation relief (not even enough to purchase two gumballs at the barber shop!)
$9 billion state revenue surplus
$79 billion state budget, the largest in Michigan history”

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