2026年3月13日 / 美国东部时间上午10:57 / 哥伦比亚广播公司新闻
两名民主党议员正在提出税收改革方案，计划为数百万美国人减免联邦所得税。
这两项法案分别由新泽西州参议员科里·布克（Cory Booker）和马里兰州参议员克里斯·范霍伦（Chris Van Hollen）支持。与此同时，共和党人正大力宣传他们所谓的”庞大而美好的法案”中减税措施的成效。这些新的税收减免包括为老年人提供6000美元的扣除额，以及对小费和加班费免税，预计将使今年的平均退税金额增加约1000美元。
根据布克和范霍伦的提案，数百万低收入和中等收入家庭的大部分收入（已婚夫妇年收入从75,000美元到92,000美元不等）将无需缴纳联邦所得税。
一些政策专家批评去年特朗普总统签署成为法律的”庞大而美好的法案”主要惠及高收入家庭，同时削减了医疗补助（Medicaid）和食品券等帮助低收入美国人的项目支出。
“我们最终应该建立一个不会只惠及像特朗普税收计划那样的超级富豪的税收制度，而是为那些靠微薄工资努力维持生计的美国人提供一些救济，”范霍伦在周四宣布其提案的新闻发布会上表示。
共和党人则表示，”庞大而美好的法案”通过新增税收减免并将2017年《减税与就业法案》中的部分减税措施永久化，帮助了工薪家庭。
“就在过去一周，我在密苏里州东南部旅行时，直接听取了一位年轻女服务员的意见，她因为新法律中的各项条款，获得了创纪录的近12,000美元退税，”密苏里州共和党众议员杰森·史密斯（Jason Smith）在3月4日的国会听证会上表示，”这对那些仅能勉强维持生计的人来说意义重大，他们需要用这笔钱来购买食物、衣物和汽油。”
此外，2025年特朗普曾提出利用关税收入来削减甚至消除个人联邦所得税，尽管其政府尚未提供具体细节。
以下是关于布克和范霍伦两项法案的关键信息：
更多收入免税额
这两项法案都旨在让更多人的收入免于缴纳联邦所得税。范霍伦提议设立生活成本豁免额，而布克则提高标准扣除额。
约90%的家庭使用标准扣除额，纳税人可通过标准扣除额减少应纳税所得额。2026年的标准扣除额为：
- 单身纳税人：16,100美元
- 已婚夫妇联合申报：32,200美元
- 户主：24,150美元
例如，一对年收入合计60,000美元的已婚夫妇，可以使用标准扣除额将应纳税所得额降至27,000美元。
根据范霍伦的提案，美国人将获得至少46,000美元的生活成本豁免额，而布克则将已婚夫妇的标准扣除额提高一倍多，达到75,000美元。
范霍伦的计划：生活成本税收减免
范霍伦的法案名为《工薪美国人减税法案》（Working Americans’ Tax Cut Act），其设计依据是麻省理工学院（MIT）的生活工资研究。由于MIT计算显示，一名单身工人每年至少需要46,000美元收入才能负担基本生活开支，因此该计划将设立这一金额的生活成本豁免额。
根据参议员发布的情况说明书，已婚夫妇可获得高达92,000美元的生活成本豁免额。
在这一阈值以下的收入将不会被美国国税局（IRS）征税，这实际上使更多低收入和中等收入家庭免于纳税。范霍伦办公室表示，该计划将使约1.3亿人获得减税。
不过，这种豁免与一般的扣除不同——后者适用于所有收入水平的纳税人。范霍伦的生活成本豁免额将在单身工人年收入超过80,500美元时开始逐步取消。
根据无党派的税收与经济政策研究所3月12日的研究报告，中等收入家庭（年收入从27,000美元到约153,000美元）将获得平均1,000至1,300美元的减税。
布克的计划：更高的标准扣除额
布克的法案名为”保留你的工资”（Keep Your Pay）法案，将已婚夫妇联合申报的标准扣除额提高到75,000美元。
由于标准扣除额适用于所有纳税人，因此高收入家庭也将受益。例如，根据布克网站上的计算器，一对没有孩子、年收入合计300,000美元的已婚夫妇，每年将节省约10,000美元的联邦所得税。
“对家庭收入的前75,000美元不征收所得税，这将彻底改变工薪阶层的生活，”布克在一份声明中表示，”这一减税措施将立即让更多的钱每月进入你的口袋，用于应对日常高支出、意外紧急情况或为未来做规划。”
谁将受益？
大多数联邦所得税由该国最高收入群体缴纳。根据税收基金会的数据，美国最底层的50%家庭（年收入低于50,400美元）仅缴纳约3%的所得税，而收入最高的一半家庭则贡献了97%的美国税收收入。
“对美国人来说，负担能力始终是个问题。医疗保健成本高昂，住房费用昂贵，而特朗普加征的关税导致一系列商品价格上涨，”无党派的预算与政策优先中心联邦税收政策副主任查克·马尔（Chuck Marr）告诉哥伦比亚广播公司新闻。
他补充说：”政策制定者自然会思考如何应对这些问题。”
但他也指出，布克和范霍伦的计划都不会帮助那些收入已经低于当前标准扣除额的人群获得更大的减税效果。
“这些措施的目标性不强，”马尔表示，他补充说，提供税收抵免通常比提高扣除额更能有效帮助低收入家庭。
税收与经济政策研究所指出，最贫困的20%家庭不会从范霍伦的计划中获益，因为他们的联邦税负债已经为零。而最大的受益者将是中间60%的家庭。
减税资金将如何筹集？
布克的提案计划通过关闭漏洞和提高企业税率来支付减税费用，而范霍伦的计划则对年收入超过100万美元的人群增税。
耶鲁大学预算实验室3月12日的分析显示，范霍伦的计划在十年内将实现预算平衡，其减税措施将通过对百万富翁征税来支付。而无党派研究机构表示，布克的法案十年内将耗资5.3万亿美元。
马尔表示，考虑到目前国会参众两院均由共和党控制，这两项法案至少在现阶段不太可能推进。但他补充说，这些提案表明政策制定者正在重新思考税收制度，这可能为未来的改革铺平道路。
“这是健康的——这些人正在提出新的想法，这些想法将被讨论和辩论，人们将开始思考什么才是真正重要的，”他说。
编辑：Alain Sherter
2 bills would erase income taxes for many Americans. Here’s what to know.
March 13, 2026 / 10:57 AM EDT / CBS News
Two Democratic lawmakers are proposing tax overhauls that would eliminate federal income taxes for millions of Americans.
The two bills — one backed by Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, and the other from Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland — are rolling out as Republicans tout the impact of the tax cuts enacted under the “big, beautiful bill.” Those new tax breaks, which include a $6,000 deduction for senior citizens and no taxes on tips and overtime, are projected to lift the average tax refund by about $1,000 this year.
Under Booker’s and Van Hollen’s proposals, millions of low- and middle-income households could shield much of their income, ranging from $75,000 to $92,000 for married couples, from federal taxes.
Some policy experts have criticized the “big, beautiful bill,” which President Trump signed into law last year, for primarily helping high-income households, while also cutting spending on programs that help low-income Americans, such as Medicaid and food stamps.
“We should finally have a tax code that doesn’t just benefit the very wealthy like the Trump tax plan, but provides some relief to Americans who are working very hard to just make ends meet with the paycheck they’ve got,” Van Hollen said at a press conference on Thursday to announce his proposal.
Republicans say the “big, beautiful bill” helps working families by adding new tax breaks and making permanent some cuts from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
“Just in the past week, traveling through Southeast Missouri, I heard directly from a young lady who’s a waitress who had a record refund of nearly $12,000 because of all the different provisions” in the new law, said Rep. Jason Smith, a Republican from Missouri, at a March 4 congressional hearing. “This makes a difference for people who are just living from paycheck to paycheck, trying to put food on their table, clothes on their backs and gasoline on their cars.”
Separately, in 2025 President Trump floated the idea of using tariff revenue to reduce, or even eliminate, individual federal income taxes, although his administration has not provided details.
Here’s what to know about the Booker and Van Hollen bills.
Shielding more income from taxes
Both measures would shield more of people’s earnings from federal income taxes, with Van Hollen proposing a cost-of-living exemption and Booker raising the standard deduction.
About 9 in 10 households use the standard deduction, which taxpayers can use to reduce their taxable income. For the 2026 tax year, the standard deduction is:
- $16,100 for single taxpayers
- $32,200 for married couples filing jointly
- $24,150 for heads of households
For instance, a married couple with $60,000 in combined income would use the standard deduction to lower their taxable income to $27,000.
Under Van Hollen’s proposal, Americans would get a cost-of-living exemption of at least $46,000, while Booker would more than double the standard deduction to $75,000 for married couples.
Van Hollen’s plan: A cost-of-living tax break
Van Hollen’s bill, called the Working Americans’ Tax Cut Act, is tied to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s living wage research. Because MIT calculates that a single worker needs annual income of at least $46,000 just to afford the basics, the plan would introduce a cost-of-living exemption at that level.
Married couples could qualify for a cost-of-living exemption of up to $92,000, according to a fact sheet released by the senator.
Incomes under those thresholds wouldn’t be taxed by the IRS, effectively shielding many more low- and middle-income families from taxes. About 130 million people would get a tax cut under the plan, according to Van Hollen’s office.
Still, the exemption isn’t exactly a deduction, which is available to taxpayers at all income levels. Van Hollen’s cost-of-living exemption would include an income phaseout that would kick in above $80,500 in annual earnings for a single worker.
Under the plan, middle-income households earning from $27,000 to about $153,000 would get an average tax break of roughly $1,000 to $1,300, according to a March 12 research report from the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.
Booker’s plan: A bigger standard deduction
Booker’s bill, called the “Keep Your Pay” act, would increase the standard deduction to $75,000 for married couples filing jointly.
Because the standard deduction is available to all taxpayers, it would also benefit higher-earning households. For instance, a married couple with a combined income of $300,000 and no children would save about $10,000 a year in federal income taxes under Booker’s proposal, according to a calculator on his website.
“No income tax on the first $75,000 families earn would be a game changer for working people,” Booker said in a statement. “This tax cut would immediately put more money in your pocket every month to deal with the high price of everyday expenses, an unexpected emergency or to plan for the future.”
Who would benefit?
Most federal income taxes are paid by the country’s highest earners. The bottom 50% of America’s households — those earning less than $50,400 a year — pay about 3% of all income taxes, while the top half accounts for 97% of U.S. tax revenue, according to data from the Tax Foundation.
“Affordability is always an issue for Americans. The cost of health care is high, housing is expensive and Trump has put these tariffs on that have increased costs across a range of goods,” Chuck Marr, vice president for federal tax policy at the nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, told CBS News.
He added, “It’s natural for policymakers to think about how they can respond to that.”
But, he added, neither Booker’s nor Van Hollen’s plan would help people get a larger tax break if their income is already below the current standard deduction.
“These are poorly targeted,” Marr said, adding that offering tax credits is often more effective in helping low-income families, rather than boosting deductions.
The poorest 20% of households wouldn’t benefit from Van Hollen’s plan because their federal tax liability is already zero, ITEP noted. The biggest beneficiaries would be those in the middle 60% of households, the think tank added.
How would the tax cuts be paid for?
Booker’s proposal would pay for the tax cuts by closing loopholes and raising the corporate tax rate, while Van Hollen’s plan would add taxes for people earning more than $1 million.
Van Hollen’s plan would be budget-neutral over a decade, with its tax cuts paid for by the millionaire tax, according to a March 12 analysis from the Yale Budget Lab. Booker’s bill would cost $5.3 trillion over a decade, the nonpartisan research group said in a separate report.
To be sure, neither bill is likely to move forward, at least at the moment, with Republicans in control of both chambers of Congress, Marr said. But he added that the proposals indicate policymakers are rethinking taxation, which could lead to changes down the road.
“This is healthy — these people are floating new ideas that will get litigated, and people will start to think about what is really important,” he said.
Edited by Alain Sherter