by Donald Eng
Homeowners could be in line for a but of income tax relief under a plan legislative Republicans unveiled Monday morning at a media briefing in Hartford.
Under the plan, homeowners earning up to $130,000 annually, or joint filers earning up to $200,000 in adjusted gross income would see their Connecticut state property tax credit roughly double. The credits would be targeted primarily at middle class wage earners, with those at the lower end of the income scale receiving a $650 credit, and the $130,000 filers receiving $200.
State Rep. Joe Poletta, R-Watertown, called property taxes “the most regressive tax that Connecticut residents pay” and said the increase in such local taxes was unfair and a strain on the economy. He said there was no bigger issue than property taxes.
“We need to do more for Connecticut taxpayers, but we need to send a message from Hartford that we hear local taxpayers that the unfunded mandates coming out of this building are impacting tax bills across the state,” he said.
Currently, the maximum property tax credit is $300. Polletta said the credits would be applied against the income tax and would not affect municipal revenue.
Polletta called the plan a work in progress, and reminded residents that the state’s finance and appropriations committees were scheduled to meet Tuesday to take up revenue and spending packages.
House Democrats, who declined to comment on the Republican plan, said their caucus would present its own plans Tuesday. Earlier this year, Gov. Ned Lamont and legislative Democrats had introduced the idea of rebate checks, although Republicans criticized such an action as a one-time effort in an election year.
The Republican proposal, though, did not include any plan to cover the resulting decrease in state revenue, which House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, said had been estimated at about $275 million.
However, the majority of the briefing focused on New York’s “convenience of the employer” rule that resulted in Connecticut residents who worked remotely for New York firms treated as New York workers, even if they never set foot in the state. New York then collects income tax from those residents at the higher New York tax rate of up to 10.9%, compared to CT’s top rate of 6.99%.
Though not connected, Republicans argued that the estimated $340 million in income tax revenue the state loses to New York would more than offset the property tax credits if Connecticut could take action to capture that revenue.