Michael Whatley: GOP tax cuts have been a breath of fresh air for NC families | Opinion
One year ago, President Trump signed the most consequential piece of legislation of the past decade, the Working Families Tax Cuts. From putting money back into families pockets, to energy permitting, to securing our border, the Working Families Tax Cuts have been transformational toward cutting red tape and making the American Dream achievable for North Carolina families.
President Trump and Senate Republicans set off to make life easier for families across North Carolina and the nation, and they did just that. As your next senator, I will work to further what they started because you deserve to make more and keep more of your hard earned money.
North Carolina families saw $5,700 more in their pockets this past April than they did in 2025, thanks to tax savings in the Working Families Tax Cuts and avoiding an increase if the Working Families Tax Cuts had not been passed and the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act had expired. The bill also included key provisions to ensure working families across our state have the money in their pockets needed to keep up with the unpredictability of life. Key exemptions from paying tax on overtime, tips, and Social Security is putting money BACK into North Carolinians’ pockets and making sure they keep the money they earn, because you know best what to do with your money, not some bureaucrat in Washington, DC.
Nearly 1.9 million seniors across North Carolina benefit from no tax on Social Security. This allowed for seniors filing a single tax return to deduct an additional $6,000 from their taxes and couples to deduct $12,000 from their taxes. Alongside the expanded standard deduction, this means each senior is able to take home $11,700 more this year than last. When all these deductions are added together this means the average senior that files a single tax return will see a nearly $24,000 decrease in their taxes, and a married couple will see nearly $47,000 decrease in their taxes this year alone.
For the 62% of North Carolinians eligible to receive overtime pay, Republicans worked to ensure more of your money stays in your pocket. No tax on overtime means you can take up to $12,500 more of your hard-earned money home each year and up to $25,000 for families. And the more than 250,000 tipped hospitality workers in our state saw no tax on up to $25,000 of their tips this year alone.
This is key money in your pocket at the end of the month that can not only help make life more affordable but also make a long term difference in your family’s financial planning.
I will always work to ensure that North Carolinians keep more of their money and the Working Families Tax Cuts are a key first step toward making your life more affordable. But that is just the start, the bill also included key provisions to make America energy dominant and more safe from the scourge of illegal immigration that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris allowed to overrun our country for four years.
America is now energy independent once again and the largest exporter of natural gas in the world. North Carolinians will see lower energy prices and expanded energy production that brings down their costs thanks to the Working Families Tax Cuts unleashing American energy.
The Working Families Tax Cuts provided much needed relief to our brave border patrol agents, who were completely abandoned by Joe Biden. Biden and Kamala Harris left the border run wide open allowing millions of illegal immigrants into our country. Now our border patrol has the resources to keep our border closed, and America has regained its strength, and our communities are safe once again.
My opponent Roy Cooper does not believe that North Carolina families should save thousands in taxes. He instead vetoed six tax cuts as governor, and he voted to increase taxes as a state Senator. Cooper said that he would have voted against the Working Families Tax Cuts and described it as “shameful.” I think it’s shameful to take money out of families pockets to pad the pockets of bureaucrats in Washington, while illegal immigrants are allowed to roam free across our nation and North Carolina.
As your senator, I will never stop fighting for our families. To make more and keep more of their hard-earned dollars. To live in safe and secure communities where their children feel safe. And to have the American Dream within reach for our kids and grandkids. And thanks to Trump Accounts, every child born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028, is eligible to receive a $1,000 investment to help give our next generation a head start on achieving the American Dream right here in North Carolina.
The Working Families Tax Cuts was one of the most consequential pieces of legislation in decades, but it is only the start. As your senator I will fight to make these policies permanent, and keep the American Dream within reach across North Carolina and the greatest nation in the history of the world.
Michael Whatley is the Republican nominee running for the United States Senate in North Carolina.