Inflation is high, interest rates are high, and life feels unaffordable. Yet, paychecks for regular Americans are set to be slashed. Taxes will rise on January 1, 2026, for virtually every taxpayer if Congress does not extend or make the 2017 tax cuts permanent.

 

How the 2017 Tax Cuts Helped You 

Congress passed the historic Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) during the first Trump administration. The TCJA delivered major wins for women, workers, households, and businesses of all sizes.

Households Prospered

  • Median household income reached an all-time high of $68,703 in 2019.
  • Real median household incomes grew by more than $5,000.
  • The poverty rate fell to a record low.
  • 4.2 million Americans were lifted out of poverty.
  • Taxpayers spent 2 billion fewer hours on paperwork in 2020 compared to 2017—a time savings worth over $50 billion.

Workers Won

  • U.S. companies added 4.7 million new jobs within the first two years.
  • The unemployment rate reached a 50-year low of 3.5%.
  • Black unemployment reached a historic low.
  • Hispanic unemployment reached historic lows.
  • Real wages rose by 4.9%—the fastest growth in twenty years.

Thousands of businesses nationwide gave bonuses, pay increases, and new benefits such as health care. Many women also enjoyed new family benefits, particularly paid family leave.

The Economy Boomed

  • Total corporate investment rose by about 11%.
  • Gross Domestic Product rose by nearly 1% (for a $27 trillion economy, that’s at least $270 billion).
  • Zero American businesses moved abroad.
  • By FY 2022, tax revenues reached a record high of $4.9 trillion—beating expectations.

 

A Tax-Mageddon Is Coming

Many provisions in the 2017 tax cuts were temporary and set to expire at the end of 2025. If these provisions are not made permanent, workers, households, and small businesses will be hit financially. 

  • The average taxpayer will see a 22% tax hike.
  • A family of four making $80,610 (the median U.S. income) would see a $1,695 tax increase.
  • More than 62% of tax filers will experience tax increases in 2026.
  • In TCJA, a 20% deduction for small businesses was created but will expire this year.
  • The Child Tax Credit will be slashed in half from $2,000 to $1,000 for 40 million families.
  • 91% of all taxpayers would see their guaranteed deduction slashed in half.
  • 26 million small businesses will face a 43.4% top tax rate. 
  • 2 million family-owned small businesses, farms, and ranches would be hit by the death tax (forced to sell land and other assets to pay a big tax bill).

Congress must make the expiring provisions of the 2017 tax cuts permanent. Congress can also build on these tax cuts to defund wasteful government programs, cut spending, and set America onto a surer fiscal footing.

Americans overwhelmingly say they do not want a tax hike. This issue is not red or blue but green.

 

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