Rep. Calley backs plan cutting taxes for everyone in Michigan

Measures offer additional exemptions for seniors, protect pensions

State Rep. Julie Calley today helped advance a new House plan giving all Michiganders a tax break.

Calley, of Portland, said the plan will reduce the state’s income tax rate to 3.9 percent and offer additional individual and retirement income exemptions for Michigan seniors.

“People in our community are feeling the pain of inflation every day at the gas pump and the grocery store,” Calley said. “This plan offers real relief in the form of a tax cut that puts more money back into the wallets of hard-working people and seniors on fixed incomes.”

Details of the plan include:

• Reducing the personal income tax rate to 3.9 percent from the current 4.25 percent starting in the 2022 tax year. This would return nearly $1.1 billion to Michigan taxpayers in the first year.

• Increasing the income tax exemption for seniors. Currently, residents age 67 and older are eligible to receive a tax exemption for their first $20,000 in total income, or $40,000 for those filing jointly. This plan lowers the age of eligibility to 62 and adds an additional exemption for retirement income. With the two exemptions under the plan, a person 62 or older with retirement income is eligible for $40,000 for single filers or $80,000 for joint filers.

• A $1.5 billion investment to reduce debt and improve the finances of public employee retirement systems. Most of the one-time funding would go to pension plans for local governments and road commissions, with an additional $350 million to improve financing in the Michigan State Police retirement system.

A member of the House Tax Policy Committee, Calley voted to advance the plan to the full House, where it will receive further consideration.