Malliotakis Rallies in Brooklyn for Support for Senior Tax Relief Ahead of Budget Deal

May 12, 2025

(BROOKLYN, NY) - Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis was joined by local senior citizens at the Bay Ridge Center to rally support for her effort to reduce taxes on Social Security income for seniors. As a member of the House Ways & Means Committee, Malliotakis has played a key role in negotiations and is working to build momentum in Washington to pass this big, beautiful bill as part of the upcoming budget reconciliation tax package.

The Ways & Means Committee is scheduled to meet this week for a markup of the bill text—a critical step toward advancing these tax relief provisions through Congress. The legislation is expected to include a provision that mirrors Malliotakis' existing legislation and provide a bonus deduction for seniors, offering $4,000 for individuals earning $75,000 or less and $8,000 for married couples earning $150,000 or less.

Congresswoman Malliotakis has been a leading advocate for raising the SALT cap, which is currently set at $10,000 and has disproportionately impacted seniors and middle-class families in high-tax states like New York. Tripling the cap to $30,000 would provide much needed relief for middle-class families—covering 98% of households in her district. She is also pushing to increase the standard deduction to deliver meaningful relief to hardworking taxpayers and prevent the return of the Alternative Minimum Tax.

“As Ways & Means meets this week to debate and vote on the tax portion of the reconciliation package, I am excited that key provisions of legislation I’ve introduced will be included to reduce the tax burden on working Americans, senior citizens and middle-class families in our community,” said Rep. Nicole Malliotakis. “Today I joined Brooklyn seniors to rally support for needed tax relief because too many seniors are being forced to stretch their retirement savings further than ever before. After a lifetime of hard work and paying taxes, they deserve to keep more of their Social Security and retirement income without Uncle Sam reaching into their pockets again."

Malliotakis is also sponsoring other measures to ease the burden on seniors, including:

H.R. 1129, The Tax Relief Unleashed for Seniors by Trump (TRUST) Act, would increase the amount of income that is tax exempt and index the threshold to inflation, allowing seniors to keep more of their benefits. Malliotakis' legislation would double current exempt income from $25,000 to $50,000 for single filers and from $32,000 to $64,000 for married couples age 65 and older.

H.R. 2266, The Reducing Excessive Taxation and Inefficiencies by Reforming Elder Exemptions to Support Fairness, Inflation Relief, and Simpler Taxes Act (RETIREES FIRST Act) aimed at modernizing outdated Social Security tax thresholds to deliver tax relief to middle-class retirees.

Today, nearly 56% of retirees pay taxes on their Social Security benefits, compared to less than 10% in 1984 when the Social Security exemptions were first established. As this figure is projected to rise further, Malliotakis is taking action having introduced legislation to raise the provisional income thresholds to $34,000 for single filers and $68,000 for married filers—up from the current levels of $25,000 and $32,000, respectively. The legislation would exempt most middle-class retirees from paying taxes on their Social Security benefits by reducing their tax burden.

The income thresholds for taxation of benefits have remained unchanged since first established by Congress in 1984. At the time, less than 10 percent of beneficiaries paid federal income tax on their benefits, but because wages have increased, the proportion of beneficiaries who must pay federal income tax on benefits has risen over time.

LINKS TO LEGISLATIVE TEXTS

H.R. 1130 HERE

H.R. 1129 HERE

H.R. 2266 HERE

In addition to reducing the tax burden on America's seniors, Malliotakis as a member of the House Committee on Ways & Means and is acutely focused on increasing the State and Local Tax Deduction (SALT), and increasing domestic production by incentivizing companies to bring their manufacturing facilities and supply chains home.