Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) supported and voted for legislation passed by the House on Thursday that would provide much-needed tax relief and expand savings options for Americans.

“All households could use a break right now, which is why I strongly support fair tax relief and a variety of savings options,” Smith said. “This bill creates more savings opportunities for everyone—parents, families, and retirees—and also gives employers more flexibility in the retirement plans they can offer to employees.”

The House on Thursday passed HR 6757, the Family Savings Act, sponsored by Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA), which, among other provisions:

·         Allows families to use 529 education savings plans for expenses related to homeschooling and apprenticeships, and for unborn children to be beneficiaries

·         Allows for parents to withdraw up to $7,500 from their retirement accounts in the case of an adoption or the birth of a child, without a 10 percent early withdrawal penalty

·         Creates universal savings accounts (USA) where individuals can contribute up to $2,500 with post-tax earnings, which will not be taxed upon disbursement

·         Allows two or more employers to join together and offer “pooled employer” joint tax-deferred retirement benefits

·         Allows individuals age 70 ½ and older to continue making contributions to their IRAs; those age 70 ½ and older with $50,000 or less in their IRA would also not have to take annual distributions

“We need to do our best to support hard-working households which need relief, and I believe that this legislation provides for that,” Smith said.  

Meanwhile, on Friday, Smith voted against HR 6760 because it would not replace the $10,000 cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions with a full SALT deduction, which was used by over 40 percent of New Jersey taxpayers before state and local income, sales, and property taxes were capped at $10,000 in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.