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The estate tax, Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), and film tax credits were all major topics of debate in Maryland this year. Now that the state’s legislative session has ended, here’s a quick look at what happened on each of these issues.
Estate tax: Despite having the highest concentration of millionaires in the country, Maryland lawmakers say they’re very concerned the estate tax may be driving wealthy residents out of the state. Because of this, both the House and Senate approved a bill benefiting estates worth more than $1 million. Assuming the governor signs the bill, which seems likely, Maryland’s estate tax exemption will increase from $1 million to more than $5.3 million by the end of the decade. This is unfortunate since, as CTJ explained in testimony before both of Maryland’s tax-writing committees, an estate tax cut will reduce the adequacy and fairness of the state’s tax system without producing any economic benefit.
Earned Income Tax Credit: In better news, Maryland lawmakers unanimously agreed to expand the state’s EITC. Maryland currently allows taxpayers to choose between a refundable EITC equal to 25 percent of the federal credit, or a 50 percent nonrefundable EITC. Legislation approved on Monday will gradually increase the refundable portion of the credit to 28 percent, which means low-income taxpayers who earn too little to owe personal income taxes will receive a somewhat larger refund to help offset the significant amounts (PDF) of sales and property taxes they pay each year.
Film tax credit: A couple months ago, the producers of Netflix’s “House of Cards” threatened to leave the state unless lawmakers gave them more taxpayer dollars through the state’s film tax credit program. Despite trying mightily to comply with their demand, the legislature ultimately failed to reach an agreement on a bill that would have shelled out an extra $3.5 million to the filmmakers. Less encouraging, however, is that the show could still collect another $15 million in tax credits—on top of the millions it has already received.