Rhode Island House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello said before the New Year that his top priority is exempting retirement benefits from the state’s income tax.
If two recent bills are any indication, other lawmakers share that priority.
There are currently two bills sitting in the House that would exempt Social Security from the Rhode Island’s income tax. The first was introduced by Rep. Robert Craven on Jan 6. The second was introduced by Rep. Patricia Serpa on Jan. 21.
Both bills – 2015-H 5203 and 2015-H 5000 – would exempt Social Security benefits from being taxed at the state level.
But Serpa’s bill pegs the eligibility age at 62. The eligibility age in Craven’s bill is 65.
More from Warwick Online:
With House leadership calling tax relief a priority for 2015, Rep. Patricia A. Serpa (D-Dist. 27, West Warwick, Coventry, Warwick) has submitted legislation that would exempt income from Social Security and retirement plans from state personal income tax.
The bill (2015-H 5203) closely mirrors similar legislation submitted by Rep. Robert E. Craven (D-Dist. 32, North Kingstown), but changes the eligibility age from 65 to 62.
[…]
If enacted, Rhode Island would join 27 other states – including Massachusetts and Maine – and the District of Columbia that specifically exempt Social Security income from taxation. (Although Rhode Island does not specifically tax Social Security benefits, that income is identified on federal tax returns. Since Rhode Island’s income tax is based on the federal adjusted gross income of federal tax form filers, the end result is that Rhode Island generates a portion of its income tax collections from Social Security benefits.)
Read the text of 2015-H 5203 here.
Read the text of 2015-H 5000 here.
Photo credit: “Flag-map of Rhode Island” by Darwinek – self-made using Image:Flag of Rhode Island.svg and Image:USA Rhode Island location map.svg. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons – http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flag-map_of_Rhode_Island.svg#mediaviewer/File:Flag-map_of_Rhode_Island.svg
