Loss of Renters Credit

We hear about the upcoming cuts to the tax credit that renters get from the State of Minnesota. The following is some information that helps explain what happened.

In 2011, the Republicans slashed the Renters’ Credit for nearly 300,000 renters – including 82,000 seniors and disabled. The initial Republican proposal that passed off the House Floor would have meant an average cut of $300 per renter but the Special Session bill pared the cut down to an average of $87 – still significant for seniors and others on a fixed income.

Additionally, the Republicans' elimination of the Homestead Credit will lead to significantly higher property taxes on rental properties, which will in turn almost certainly lead to higher rent just as the Renters' Credit is being cut.

Legislators often hear testimony in committee that seniors use the Renters' Credit for larger one-time annual purchases, like a new pair of prescription glasses. Is this really how we want to balance the budget?

This is troublesome for me. Why is it that the Republicans in the State legislature ask seniors, students and other rents to give up their tax credits and pay more in rent instead of asking the richest of the rich to give up some of their tax breaks and pay the same as middle class families do?