What is wrong with the tax cut for SS recipients. Although I will save

[Wiz Imp]

58. No. It is not a credit. It is a deduction.

A tax credit is applied after the tax has been calculated. That is not the case here. It is a deduction (increasing the standard deduction for those 65 & over), meaning those who qualify can reduce the amount of income they pay taxes on by $6000 before the tax is applied. But their actual savings is only whatever their tax rate is times $6000. It has been confirmed that the average benefit for those who benefit will be just $670.

And there is no connection between the Deduction and Social Security. EVERYONE age 65 and older is eligible for the deduction whether they have taxable SS Benefits or not.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tax-break-for-seniors-trump-bill-includes-additional-6000-deduction-204604211.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAE-XzkwEQ6a_M6A6c-6dqyGdIMjF3BBlckEx3EcYzCIZvYPzz2kNXerchHpF6wFdtvOvSarI80bJi4bV034wcvPZuAF6q02awOjSkqcgDreM4EdNTzJ2Ns68co4AQMI_jL1gSTUmfSLjlHer0FLvE5Ae9VUa-FOcco_NNUKPr6EX

President Trump’s sweeping domestic policy bill that passed the House on Thursday provides a $6,000 boost to senior citizens’ standard deduction from 2025 through 2028. The new temporary tax break — $6,000 for individuals and $12,000 for couples — is for tax filers age 65 and older. It starts phasing out for those who earn over $75,000 ($150,000 for couples).

To be clear, this provision does not eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits as Trump promised in the campaign. It is a temporary income tax deduction, not a cut in the Social Security tax.

“Low-income seniors won’t benefit at all, and nor will very high-income seniors,” Marc Goldwein, senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan group that advocates for fiscal responsibility, told Yahoo Finance. Most lower-income seniors don’t have enough of a tax liability to claim the new deduction. In 2022, the median income of older adults was $29,740, according to the National Council on Aging.

The majority of taxpayers claim the standard deduction, which is $15,000 (or $30,000 for couples) for 2025. Seniors who are single filers already qualify for an additional deduction of $2,000. (If you're married, filing jointly or separately, it's $1,600 per qualifying individual.) This newly passed short-term deduction raises that amount by another $6,000.

https://taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/what-are-tax-credits-and-how-do-they-differ-tax-deductions#:~:text=Credits%20reduce%20taxes%20directly%20and,rate%2C%20which%20rises%20with%20income.
What are tax credits and how do they differ from tax deductions?

Tax Credits
Tax credits are subtracted directly from a person’s tax liability; they therefore reduce taxes dollar for dollar. Credits have the same value for everyone who can claim their full value.

Tax Deductions
Tax filers have the choice of claiming the standard deduction or itemizing deductible expenses from a list that includes state and local taxes paid, mortgage interest, and charitable contributions. In either case, filers decrease their taxable income by the amount of the allowed deduction.