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Mass. Tax Refund Could Yield Wealthy Families $20,000, Low-Income Households $9

by
Rebekah Barton
on
10/3/2022
Mass. Tax Refund Could Yield Wealthy Families $20,000, Low-Income Households $9

The long-awaited $3 billion Massachusetts tax refund is now being debated again, as it has emerged that wealthy families could receive as much as $20,000, while low-income households could get only $9.

Eligible taxpayers are set to receive a check for approximately 13% of their Massachusetts personal income tax liability for 2021. There is an online tool that can help residents calculate how much money they should receive. 

Now, however, there are mounting concerns about how the system could disproportionately benefit the state's wealthiest residents. 

In a recent analysis from the Massachusetts Budget & Policy Center, Jason Wright pointed out that households in the bottom 20% of earners are set to receive a credit of about $9. Households falling into the top 0.57%, though -- all of whom earn over $1 million annually -- are expected to be given payouts of nearly $22,000.

Wright noted that this is like "giving millionaires the equivalent of a Rolex or more than a semester at UMass!"

In July and early August, state Congressional leaders found themselves at odds over a bill that would have provided middle-income households with $250 stimulus checks. Discussions were officially tabled the first week of August due to 62F, a holdover 1986 measure that was previously explained by Mass Live:

Beacon Hill, thrown a massive curveball by Gov. Charlie Baker and news of a 1986 ballot measure that would force the commonwealth to return nearly $3 billion to taxpayers this fall, could not manage to salvage its existing tax relief and economic development package within the final hours of formal lawmaking.

State Senate Ways and Means Chairman Michael Rodrigues spoke to the press, sharing that legislators simply needed time to address the 62F situation:

“We need more time to really figure out do we need to address 62F,” Rodrigues told reporters, referring to the tax cap law that will likely be triggered this fall as the commonwealth is awash in surplus revenues. “We don’t even know exactly what the impact is going to be. ... It’s a lot of money.”

Last month, however, Massachusetts Auditor Suzanne Bump confirmed that residents throughout the state could expect tax refunds from the surplus.

What do you think about how Massachusetts lawmakers set up their tax refund plan?

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Rebekah Barton

Rebekah Barton

Rebekah's search engine optimization career began completely by accident as a college student. Over the course of her career so far, she has "grown up" with the SEO industry, from writing content while juggling classes to managing her own teams of writers and overseeing SEO strategy in subsequent roles. She is excited to bring her passion for high-quality content to CountingWorks, Inc.

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