*By Justin Chermol*
According to House Ways and Means Committee Member Judy Chu, the GOP "made false claims" about the tax bill that passed in December of 2017 and is taking effect this tax season.
"They said things like the American public would get on the average a $4,000 per person increase. Well, that is certainly not the case. There are many Americans that will not have enough, and will actually pay more in taxes than what they originally thought," Chu, a California Democrat, told Cheddar.
As the first tax season impacted by the reform legislation got underway, many Americans were surprised by receiving smaller refunds than expected ーor by getting tax bills. In many cases, the difference was due to a change in IRS withholding tables that left more money in people's paychecks while shrinking the size of their refunds. In other cases, the actual tax bill increased due to changes to the law like a new cap on property and local income tax deductions.
Chu blames the confusion on the rushedー and secretive ー nature of the legislation.
"I think that the tax bill was done haphazardly, in the dead of night. In fact, it was done in 51 days, there were virtually no hearings on this, and people didn't have a chance to even really look at it before it was passed by Republicans," she said. "So as a result, it was not planned for properly."
In response, the #GOPTaxScam hashtag has resurfaced on social media platforms in recent weeks.
Chu said she is also hearing that outrage directly from constituents.
"I've had letters from my constituents saying that they have to pay $3,000 more on their taxes ー something that really upsets them and really hurts their budget," Chu told Cheddar.
Now that Democrats have gained control of the House, Chu said there are plans to revisit the legislation.
"We want to have hearings right away about the true impact of tax law," she said.
President Joe Biden highlighted progress in chipping away at so-called junk fees as a “win for consumers” Thursday, as he met at the White House with executives from Live Nation, Airbnb and other companies that have taken steps to embrace more transparent pricing.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott sent a busload of migrants to downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday, prompting Mayor Karen Bass to respond to Abbott's move as a "despicable stunt."
The Supreme Court on Thursday preserved the system that gives preference to Native American families in foster care and adoption proceedings of Native children, rejecting a broad attack from some Republican-led states and white families who argued it is based on race.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Wednesday it hopes to weed out false or misleading animal-welfare claims on meat and poultry packaging with new guidance and testing.
New York City is paying to house newly-arrived migrants in hotel rooms. Cheddar News takes a closer look at one of the hotels, the Holiday Inn, which is housing about 15,000 migrants over the next 15 months.
We've been closely following the migrants that were sent to various cities across the United States. Now New York City is paying for hotel rooms for migrants who were sent there. Cheddar's own Ashley Mastronardi has a closer look at one of the hotels.
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a bill that stops public schools and libraries from banning books.
The Biden administration reached a deal to preserve a federal mandate requiring health insurers to cover preventive care at no extra cost for patients.
Former President Donald Trump arrives for his arraignment in Miami.
The government can keep enforcing “Obamacare” requirements that health insurance plans cover preventative care — such as HIV prevention, some types of cancer screenings and other illnesses — while a legal battle over the mandates plays out, under a court agreement approved Tuesday.
