Romney’s Tax Plan Gives Millionaires A $150K Tax Cut, Raises Taxes On Low-Income Families

By Pat Garofalo/Think Progress

ThinkProgress has already found that 2012 GOP presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney’s economic plan would explode the deficit to the tune of more than $6.5 trillion over the next decade, while doing next to nothing to help middle class or low-income Americans. In fact, Romney’s tax cut that is supposedly “focused” on the middle class gives literally no benefit to most middle class households.

The Tax Policy Center released an analysis today showing that, contrary to Romney’s rhetoric, the overwhelming majority of the benefits under the plan would go to the wealthy. In fact, compared to the policy in place today, Romney’s plan would give millionaires a $150,000 tax cut, while raising taxes on many low-income families:

A sizable number of low-income families would see their taxes go up. For instance, about 15 percent of those in the $10,000 to $20,000 income group would get an average tax cut of about $140, but 20 percent would get hit with an average tax increase of $1,000, mostly because Romney would bring back the less generous versions of those refundable credits.

About one-third of those in $40,000 to $50,000 group would get a tax cut that would average about $400, but about one-six would face a tax increase of nearly twice as much.

Almost every millionaire would get a tax cut averaging roughly $150,000. As a group, those making $1 million or more would receive nearly half the benefit of Romney’s tax plan.

Romney plan hits hardest those making less than $40,000, and primarily those households with children, as he would undo President Obama’s expansion of the child tax credit.

And Romney’s proposal only gets more lucrative for those at the very top of the income scale, giving those in the richest 0.1 percent an annual tax cut of nearly half a million dollars. In 2015 alone, the plan would add $600 billion to the deficit.

This flies directly in the face of Romney’s assertion that he isn’t focused on helping the rich. “If I’m going to use precious dollars to reduce taxes, I want to focus on where the people are hurting the most, and that’s the middle class. I’m not worried about rich people,” Romney said in an October debate. If that is the case, why do the ultra-wealthy receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax cuts annually under his plan, while a middle class family could very well see its taxes go up?