Op-Ed: Democrats Pour SALT In Taxpayers Wounds With Vote For IRA

By Rosemary Becchi | Jersey1st, The Center Square New Jersey

October 6, 2022

For the past several years, New Jersey House Democrats including Josh Gottheimer, Tom Malinowski, and Mikie Sherrill said they wouldn’t support President Joe Biden’s spending package unless the SALT (state and local tax deduction) cap was lifted for New Jersey property taxpayers.In countless news releases and media interviews, “No SALT, no deal,” was their constant mantra. But this summer, these three pandering politicians broke their promise to New Jersey families to curry favor with Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi, with every one of them voting for a disastrous $488 billion spending package to worsen inflation and the economy – without lifting the SALT cap for New Jersey homeowners.

"As a current tax lawyer and a former IRS attorney, I can tell you the Inflation Reduction Act is a bad deal for New Jersey taxpayers and our economy. Make no mistake, this package will make inflation worse by increasing wasteful government spending and raising taxes on American families and businesses." According to a letter from 230 economists sent to House and Senate leadership last week, the “inaptly named ‘Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’ would do nothing of the sort and instead would perpetuate the same fiscal policy errors that have helped precipitate the current troubling economic climate.”

What’s even more shameful than Reps. Gottheimer, Malinowski and Sherrill turning their backs on New Jersey property taxpayers? They voted for a bill that goes after the finances of Garden State small business owners by funding an IRS army of 87,000 new agents. According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, "the Inflation Reduction Act will increase IRS audits on filers earning less than $400,000, raising $20 billion in new taxes over 10 years. It’s shameful Democrats are weaponizing the IRS to go after our small businesses and families in order to pay for billions of dollars in pet spending projects."

And to pour more salt in our economic wounds? Gottheimer, Malinowski, and Sherrill also voted for inhibiting pharmaceutical innovation in New Jersey by imposing price controls on Medicare drugs. Not only will this have a huge impact on one of our state’s biggest employers, putting critical research jobs at risk; this bill will also have the practical implication of limiting innovation for clinical trials for patients with chronic diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s. And realistically, price controls on Medicare will only raise prices in the commercial market higher than inflation.

The Inflation Reduction Act will make our economy and inflation worse while hurting New Jersey small businesses and families. We need to go in the opposite direction and cut spending in Washington. Our government doesn’t have a revenue problem. We've hit record tax revenue numbers, but politicians in DC are spending our money faster than taxes are coming in. We don’t need to Build Back Better – our government needs to Cut Back Better.

Representatives Gottheimer, Malinowski, and Sherrill broke their promise to New Jersey homeowners to support a bill that increases government spending, worsens inflation, hurts small businesses, and threatens healthcare innovation. New Jersey taxpayers deserve better than pandering politicians. Clearly, Gottheimer, Malinowski, and Sherrill aren’t worth their salt.

The focus of the work of The Center Square New Jersey is state and local-level government and economic reporting that approaches stories with a taxpayer sensibility.