News & Updates
February 1, 2019

Tax Cuts Are Having Tangible Impacts on American Lives

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was passed at the tail end of 2017 and since its implementation, millions of Americans have experienced financial savings—a result of measures in the tax bill that doubled the standard deduction, lowered tax rates, and doubled the child tax credit.

Just as individuals saved big on taxes this year, so did businesses—which were able to invest the newly found funds back into their companies and employees. In many cases, this meant distributing employee bonuses.

Below are several examples of employees benefiting from the tax cut induced bonuses, which were first reported by the LA Times.

Devin Scott
Sales
“My wife and I have two kids, 4 and 8. What we did with the bonus is we took the kids to Williamsburg [in Virginia] — Busch Gardens. We went to the park on back-to-back days. The second day the park wasn’t as crowded, so my kids could ride the rides again and again. They loved that. I won them a basketball to take home at one of the stands — I got it done! We don’t take a vacation like this every year, only when the opportunity presents itself. The bonus definitely made it easier to say yes.”

Alexis Oliveras
Office Management
“Oliveras recently bought a large family home in foreclosure and moved his family into it. ‘It’s nice, but it needs work,’ he said. His bonus went to replacing the floor in his mudroom, as well as to paying off part of a Caribbean cruise his family took. But Oliveras knows not everyone is doing so well. He also gave part of his bonus to a cousin in North Carolina who works in the warehouse of an overhead door company and wants to land a higher-paid position. ‘He was telling me he wanted to get a briefcase to bring to work to look more professional. I just threw him $100 and was like, ‘Just take it and get the thing you want.’ It felt good to do.’”

Loretta Stewart
Custodial Services
“I have oil heat, and it’s very expensive. At the time Mr. Bell gave us that bonus, I needed oil, and I had no clue how I was going to get the money. Every bonus this man gives me, I have a need when it’s time. And it just happens that way — I don’t plan it! I’ve had car troubles, I hurt my shoulder…. Last year he gave us a [surprise] bonus in the summertime. We’d been mowing our lawn for four years with a push mower. Well, I’m 50 years old, and it was getting hard for me to do. I went and bought a riding lawnmower with my bonus. I couldn’t have done that otherwise.”

Lisa Kline
Office Management
“The bonus helped her fix her deck, which had fallen down. ‘It’s never just the deck — it’s painting the deck, it’s the railings. I also paid off credit card debt. I’m at the age where I don’t like credit card debt, because I want to retire and keep my house. But the thing is … my son just got married last year. He’s in the National Guard, and his wife’s family comes from nothing. We’ve known her since she was 10. Her mom is divorced and her dad lives out in the Midwest, so she kind of gravitated to our family when they started dating. She’s like a daughter to me. The wedding was so beautiful.’”

Laurie Schell
Accounting
“[She] used part of her bonus to pay off credit card debt. ‘I’m not a planner. But I’ve been working on getting rid of my debt, and to take some money right off of it [with the bonus], it was awesome. Awesome. Especially because it was unexpected. Other than that … I’ve been painting my whole life. Now, I’m not saying I’m good! … I spent the bonus on little things: I bought art supplies, some books by Dean Koontz, a bunch of steaks.’ The rest she gave to her church, which has been helping families affected by the opioid crisis. ‘There’s a lot of people in our church who’ve been affected. It’s reaching everyone, it’s not prejudiced.’”

Jeremy Reed
Sales
“[He] took his family to Orlando, Fla., in February 2018. ‘We did three days at the Disney parks and then we did a day at Universal. Park tickets were like 99 bucks apiece, and I have four sons. We had saved up money for most of the trip, but when I found out about the bonus, I thought, ‘This is gonna make it so much easier.’ Because it’s all about the extras down there: the Mickey hats, the ears, the superhero stuff. My youngest son, he wanted a pirate sword. At home it would cost like $5. At Disney it was $20, but we got it for him. Not having to stress about the money, not having to say, ‘OK, guys, let’s try to rein it back a bit’? That was great.’”

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is having a tangible impact on millions of Americans across the country. Hopefully the legislation is extended so there are many more success stories to come.