[Ohio-talk] FW: A Note from Brad

Fri Nov 17 19:02:54 UTC 2017

Hello all. I just received this response from the office of Rep. Brad Wenstrup of Ohio’s Second Congressional District regarding the new tax legislation which just passed the House. This was somewhat of a boiler plate response. Clearly, we need to do some educating about the importance of this deduction to offset the cost of basic work expenses for Blind Americans. Just wanted to share.

Chris 

From: Rep. Brad Wenstrup [mailto:wenstrup-no-reply at mail.house.gov] 
Sent: Friday, November 17, 2017 11:19 AM
To: Christopher R. Sabine
Subject: A Note from Brad

Brad Wenstrup
Second District, Ohio

www.Wenstrup.House.Gov

Committee on Armed
Services

Committee on Veterans'
Affairs

 Congress of the United States // House of Representatives // Washington, DC 20515 <https://wenstrup.house.gov/images/113-letterhead.jpg> 

2419 rAYBURN Building
washington, d.c. 20515
(202) 225-3164

7954 Beechmont Avenue
Suite 200
Cincinnati, Ohio 45255
(513) 474-7777

170 North Main Street
Peebles, Ohio 45660
(513) 605-1380

4350 Aicholtz Road
Cincinnati, Ohio 45245
(513) 605-1389 

November 17, 2017 

Dear Christopher,

Thank you for contacting me regarding changes to the standard deduction. Your thoughts are important to me as I work to effectively represent you in Congress. 

H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, recently passed the House on November 16, 2017. In an effort to simplify our complex and costly tax code - which currently takes up billions of hours in compliance and billions of dollars in compliance costs - H.R. 1 repeals a number of deductions and exemptions. Rather than forcing taxpayers to navigate a maze of deductions, H.R. 1 simplifies the tax code to eliminate confusing complexities and broaden benefits for hardworking taxpayers through a doubled standard deduction ($24,000 for couples), lower tax rates for middle class families, and an increased child tax credit, among other tax saving measures. With these tradeoffs, the Tax Foundation <https://taxfoundation.org/tax-cuts-jobs-act-state-impact/?>  projects the average Ohio middle-income family will see an after tax increase of $2,051 in their paychecks, and 33,736 new jobs for Ohioans over the next 10 years. As you know, the additional deduction for blind individuals is not retained in H.R. 1.

While not included in H.R. 1, the Senate's tax reform legislation does preserve an enhanced standard deduction for the blind and the elderly. The Senate bill passed through the Senate Finance Committee on November 16, 2017, and now awaits further consideration on the Senate floor. Following passage in the Senate, the House and Senate will go to conference to remedy the differences and discrepancies between the two bills. As we continue this process, please be assured that I will keep your support for this deduction in mind.  

Again, thank you for contacting me on this issue. I invite you to visit my website, http://www.wenstrup.house.gov, where you can email me your thoughts or concerns on this or any other issue important to you, and sign up for my regular email updates. 

Sincerely, 
 (signed) <https://wenstrup.house.gov/images/wenstrup-sig.jpg> 
Brad Wenstrup
Member of Congress

BW/JP 