Republican state lawmakers hope to introduce legislation this month that would cut Michigan’s income tax rate.
As The Michigan Public Radio Network’s Jake Neher reports, the plan would take the rate from 4 ¼% down to 3.9%.
Supporters of the idea say it would save Michigan taxpayers somewhere around $200 million a year. And with a projected budget surplus of more than a billion dollars over the next couple of years, they say the state can afford an election-year tax cut.
Republican state Representative Jeff Farrington chairs the House Tax Policy Committee.
“Now with the economy improving, I think it’s time to continue that roll-back to 3.9,” he says.
Farrington says he’d also like to draw the income tax rate down even lower than 3.9 percent if the state’s finances continue to improve.
Many Democrats in the state Legislature are also calling for a tax cut. But they say they’d rather repeal the state’s tax on retiree pensions and restore tax credits for low-income families.