Keary McCarthy · February 1, 2015

More tax shifting that favors those at the very top?

Budget Update: Chipping Away In advance of the release of his budget proposal, Governor Kasich is touting his new tax plan to eliminate income taxes on certain business profits. Individuals who report profits as income from certain types of corporations and partnerships — some of them passive investors and many living out of state — will see their state income tax liability drop to ZERO. But to allow him to claim his policies help everyone, Kasich also announced an increase in the personal exemption for Ohioans earning less than $80,000 per year. Sounds fair, right? Not so fast… The $1,800 increase in the exemption for workers making $40,000 reduces tax liability by $57 a year — about a $1.00 a week — or 6 percent of the worker’s overall tax bill.  And the proposed $900 increase in the exemption for someone earning $80,000 reduces their tax bill by $34 a year — .65 cents a week — or 1.4 percent. The bottom line is this: If you work for a living, your taxes will go down by 6%. If you profit from the work of others, your taxes go down by 100%.