California Democrats block Republican attempt to exempt tips from tax

California’s Democratic-controlled legislature has rejected a Republican bill that would have exempted tip income from state income taxes, rejecting a policy proposal similar to those advanced by Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.

“It is deeply disappointing that the Legislature chose not to consider a proposal that could have provided much-needed relief to California’s workers,” Republican Senator Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, who introduced the proposal, said in a press release after its rejection.

Ochoa Bogh introduced an amendment in the California Senate on Thursday that would have exempted tips for service sector workers from state taxes, but the proposal was rejected by the Democratic majority without discussion or debate in a vote that was mostly along party lines.

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“With the cost of living in California among the highest in the country, our service and hospitality workers are particularly burdened by a tax system that leaves them struggling to survive,” said Ochoa Bogh. “They deserve better, and today’s decision is a missed opportunity to support those who need it most.”

The move to exempt tips in the state comes after both Trump and Harris expressed support during the campaign for federal tax legislation that would exempt tip income from taxes. Trump was the first to support the proposal during a June rally in Nevada, while Harris, who began her political career in California, expressed a similar sentiment during an August rally in Las Vegas.

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According to a press release from California Senate Republicans, the bill was aimed at helping California’s service workers cope with the state’s “unsustainable tax burden” by providing higher take-home pay for employees who rely heavily on tips.

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All nine Republican senators supported the amendment, while nearly all of the state’s Democratic senators, with the exception of Senate President pro tempore Mike McGuire and Senator Nancy Skinner, voted against it. McGuire and Skinner abstained.

“The negligence inherent in refusing to even discuss a political issue of this magnitude cannot be overstated,” said Senate Republican Minority Leader Brian W. Jones in the release. “Legislative Democrats knew they were on the wrong side of this important issue, so instead of doing what’s right for working Californians, they swept it under the rug. The push to repeal the federal tip tax has made its way onto the campaign trail of both major parties this year, yet California Democratic politicians don’t even believe it’s worth discussing at the state level for residents here.”

McGuire’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the Democratic majority’s opposition to the amendment.

Source of the original article: California Democrats block Republican attempt to exempt tips from tax