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Experts eye tax changes ahead of Trump-era cuts’ sunset • New Hampshire Bulletin

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Experts eye tax changes ahead of Trump-era cuts’ sunset • New Hampshire Bulletin


WASHINGTON – The race to harness the tax code is in full swing as economists and advocates across the political spectrum view the expiring Trump-era tax law as an opportunity to advance their economic priorities.

Democratic Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington said Wednesday that reworking the tax code will be “a reflection of what your values are.”

DelBene, who sits on the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Tax Policy, said her priorities include modernizing the tax code, raising revenue via carbon fees on imported goods, and making permanent an expanded child tax credit akin to the temporary changes in place during the pandemic.

“The top line is starting from what our values and goals are, and then looking at what the policies are that help us get there,” DelBene said at a Politico-sponsored discussion on proposed tax law changes.

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The early morning event at Washington’s Union Station brought together tax experts and advocates from Georgetown University Law Center, the Urban Institute, the Heritage Foundation and Groundwork Collaborative.

Tax overhaul

The massive tax overhaul ushered in under the Trump administration permanently cut the corporate tax rate to 21 percent from 35 percent. The 2017 law, championed by Republicans as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, also put in place several temporary measures for corporations and small businesses. Some are phasing out or already expired, including immediate deductions for certain investments.

Temporary changes for households included marginal tax rate cuts across the board, a doubling of the child tax credit, and a near doubling of the standard deduction – all of which are set to expire Dec. 31, 2025.

A bipartisan bill to temporarily extend the expiring business incentives and expand the child tax credit beyond 2025 sailed through the U.S. House in late January, but has been stalled by U.S. Senate Republicans who oppose some of the child tax credit expansion proposals.

A May 2024 nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office report estimated extending the tax cuts would cost roughly $4.6 trillion over 10 years. The bulk of the cost would stem from keeping in place individual tax cuts, according to an analysis of the report by the Bipartisan Policy Center.

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Critics of the 2017 law point to a recent March analysis from academics and members of the Joint Committee on Taxation and the Federal Reserve that shows that the law’s benefits flowed to the highest earners.

DelBene said revisiting the corporate tax rate, even on the Republican side, is “on the table” and lawmakers will be talking about “where the TCJA wasn’t about investing and making sure that we were being fiscally responsible.”

‘Incredibly bullish’

Lindsay Owens, executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative, said she’s “incredibly bullish” on elected officials making “fundamental changes” to the tax code next year.

The progressive think tank sent a letter last week to House and Senate leadership and top tax writers urging them “to use the expiration of these provisions as an opportunity to address long-standing problems with our tax code, not just to tinker around the edges.”

The letter was signed by 100 organizations from across the U.S., ranging from the AFL-CIO and the United Auto Workers to the National Women’s Law Center and United Church of Christ.

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Stephen Moore, who helped write the Trump-era tax law and is now the conservative Heritage Foundation’s senior visiting fellow in economics, said the 2017 law was a “huge success” and that “we’re gonna definitely make those tax cuts permanent.”

Moore is an economic adviser for former President Donald Trump’s reelection effort, but said he was not speaking on behalf of the presidential campaign.

He said he does not agree with Trump on everything, including a promise to enact 10 percent tariffs on imported goods, reaching as high as 60 percent on Chinese imports.

“A tariff is just a consumption tax,” he said. “And so you know, I think that it is not a great policy, in my opinion. But if you’re gonna have a tariff, I would rather have a tariff that is uniform than trying to have, like, a protectionist tariff to, you know, protect this industry or that industry.”

When pressed on data that shows funding the Internal Revenue Service increases revenue, Moore said that President Joe Biden’s increase in funding for the agency is “diabolical.”

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New Hampshire

Massachusetts couple indicted for illegally voting in New Hampshire

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Massachusetts couple indicted for illegally voting in New Hampshire


A Massachusetts couple is facing charges after investigators say they illegally voted in a trio of elections in New Hampshire in recent years.

A Merrimack County grand jury returned six indictments this week charging both Joshua Urovitch, 56, and Lisa Urovitch, 54, with three felony counts of wrongful voting, according to New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella.

Formella said the indictments allege that the Urovitches voted multiple times in Concord, New Hampshire, despite living in Ashland, Massachusetts.

The Urovitches are accused of illegally voting in general elections in November 2020 and November 2022, as well as a Concord School District Election in November 2022.

An arraignment date for the Urovitches is set for Oct. 7 in Merrimack County Superior Court.

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University of New Hampshire police investigating alleged drugging, sexual assault on campus

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University of New Hampshire police investigating alleged drugging, sexual assault on campus


Crime

University of New Hampshire campus police is reminding students to stay vigilant and trust their instincts.

The exterior of Thompson Hall on the campus of the University of New Hampshire. Jim Davis for The Boston Globe

Campus police at the University of New Hampshire are investigating two recent sexual assault cases, the department said in a statement.

The first alleged incident, a sexual assault, happened between Sept. 20 at 10:30 p.m. and Sept. 21 at 3 a.m. in the suspect’s dorm building on campus, the statement said. Police said the victim believes the suspect may have drugged their drink. The victim and the suspect were known to each other, police said. 

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The second reported incident happened Sept. 19, police said. Another victim said the same suspect may have drugged them as well, the report said. Police did not say if the second victim was assaulted.

University Police said Wednesday that they had identified a person of interest in the case, but will not share any further information “to protect the integrity of the investigation” and protect those impacted by the incidents.

“Survivors are never responsible for the offenders’ behavior,” the statement said. 

While the investigation is underway, UNH police reminded students to stay safe, trust their instincts, call a safety escort on campus, and utilize campus resources if necessary.





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‘Gonna kill this kid’: N.H. mom was depriving son of nourishment before his death, texts reveal

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‘Gonna kill this kid’: N.H. mom was depriving son of nourishment before his death, texts reveal


‘Gonna kill this kid’: N.H. mom was depriving son of nourishment before his death, texts reveal

A New Hampshire mother on Thursday pleaded guilty to murder in the 2021 death of her five-year-old son, Elijah Lewis.

Danielle Dauphinais of Merrimack appeared in Hillsborough County Superior Court on Thursday morning, shackled and wearing an orange jumpsuit. She pleaded guilty to second degree murder and two counts witness tampering in the death of her young son.

“Elijah was assaulted, starved, isolated, and neglected. He was tortured,” a prosecutor said.

The state said Elijah died between Sept. 21, 2021 and Sept. 24, 2021.

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The boy was found face down in the fetal position in a shallow hole at Ames Nowell State Park in Abington.

According to prosecutors, had this case gone to trial, Dr. Richard Atkinson, who was at the burial site and conducted Elijah’s autopsy, would have said, “Elijah died as a result of violence and neglect including facial and scalp injuries, acute fentanyl intoxication, malnourishment, and pressure ulcers.”

“I am sick to my stomach and I can’t believe what I heard today. That’s not the person I knew,” MJ Morrison, Elijah’s aunt, said after Thursday’s court hearing.

Dauphinais was indicted by a grand jury on murder charges in connection with her son’s death in April 2022. Dauphinais and her boyfriend, Joseph Stapf, were originally charged with witness tampering and child endangerment. Both remain in prison.

Prosecutors said Thursday that the investigation into Elijah’s whereabouts began after Dauphinais gave birth to a baby boy and Stapf dropped the child off at Catholic Medical Center in Manchester.

The Division of Children, Youth, and Families began questioning Dauphinais about where Elijah was.

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Prosecutors said she told them “Elijah was gone” and then said he was living with her sister Tracy in California. Her sister later told the social worker and investigators that Dauphinais asked her to lie and say Elijah was with her in California, but she refused.

According to cell phone records, Dauphinais was confronted again by DCYF workers, at which point she told them she sent Elijah to her brother’s house in Texas.

Her brother, Bruce, told DCYF workers he had custody of Elijah since September, not knowing it was more than a wellness check, but couldn’t provide any information on him like where he went to school. He was told to call them back but never did.

DCYF then went to Merrimack Police to report Elijah as missing.

Text messages between Dauphinais and Stapf revealed she was depriving the child of nourishment, prosecutors said in court.

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“I gave him a small bowl of cereal so he would shut the **** up. But that wasn’t enough. He said he wants food and wants me to stop starving him because it’s not nice,” read one message.

“I’m gonna kill this kid joe, ****ing screaming at the top of his lungs ****ing water,” said another from Dauphinais to Stapf.

Prosecutors outlined how and when the couple buried Elijah.

Merrimack Police tracked the couple’s cell phones, finding that the pair traveled through Boston to Abington, 14 hours after investigators started asking questions.

Prosecutors said Stapf buried Elijah’s body and put a white birch tree over his grave. Then, the couple drove to Mohegan Sun, had a bite to eat, went to a country music concert and boarded a bus to New York City.

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The two were arrested at a subway station in the Bronx.

Cristee Chasse went to the courthouse on Thursday wearing a shirt that read, ‘Justice for Elijah.’

“Absolutely disgusting, disgusting. And that could have been prevented. A lot of this, according to what happened today and what I heard, happened after the fact, that he went to the doctors and bruising was seen,” said Chasse.

Prosecutors also said that Elijah weighed 32 pounds at his last and only doctor’s visit with his mother, and weighed 19 pounds when his body was found in the state park.

“I’m just hoping she gets the absolute maximum. That’s what Elijah deserves,” added Morrison.

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Dauphinais is expected to be sentenced on Oct. 25.

She could face between 58 years to life in prison.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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