“Build Back Better” plan could affect Arizonans’ personal finances

More from this show

President Biden’s “Build Back Better”  plan is in the hands of the U.S. Senate after having passed the House. The plan includes a variety of spending increases for social programs and it proposes a number of changes to tax laws. What could all this mean to “personal” finances? We asked Tom Wheelwright, CPA and author of the book “Tax-Free Wealth.”

Wheelwright said it is not as simple as the rich getting hit with higher taxes, but that small businesses are also at risk of potentially raised taxes.

“There’s this 3.8% net income tax that has never been assessed on small businesses that are in past entities or partnerships and now it is so that’s actually going to be a significant hit for anybody whose moderately successful in a small business,” Wheelwright said.

The state and local tax deduction limit has been rolled back in Build Back Better as well, and Wheelwright says it may be rolled back further.

“The House has said ‘We want it to be $80,000 instead of $10,000 for five more years, so it’s going to be $80,000 for ten years instead of $10,000 for five years,” Wheelwright said.

The bill could also include enhancements to earned income credit, which seems hard to argue against according to Wheelwright.

Solar credit will also be a factor of the bill, $500 billion is allocated towards this. We currently have a 26% credit for solar panels on houses, but this is about to go away after next year. The bill would extend it and increase it to 30%.

“I have not heard any fight on this, this is something that I think is going to happen, there’s also a credit for putting in a charging station,” Wheelwright said.

Tom Wheelwright, CPA, author of Tax-free wealth

Illustration of columns of a capitol building with text reading: Arizona PBS AZ Votes 2024
April 2

Arizona PBS to present candidate debates as part of ‘AZ Votes 2024’

A photo journalist walking a destroyed city
airs April 2

Frontline: 20 Days in Mariupol

A woman working on a project in an art studio
airs March 29

Violet Protest

The
aired March 25

Pulitzer on the Road: Small Town Shakedown

Subscribe to Arizona PBS Newsletters

STAY in touch
with azpbs.org!

Subscribe to Arizona PBS Newsletters: