JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – There’s just about a month remaining in the 2025 legislative session, and tax reform is one of the main pending issues.

Politics aside, Ole Miss Department of Economics Department Chair Dr. Josh Hendrickson is making this observation on the competing tax reform plans.

“What I would tell you is like this time around, their proposals are remarkably similar,” said Hendrickson.

When you drill down to what it could mean for you and your wallet, if either plan makes it across the finish line with all its elements intact, Hendrickson makes this note.

“I think that the grocery tax and the gas tax will probably be the things that people notice most,” he said.

As a reminder, both the House and Senate plans would reduce the grocery tax but increase the amount you pay at the pump.

But the income tax is a big sticking point between the chambers. The House wants to phase it out completely over 10 years.

Meanwhile, the Senate is proposing to reduce it as part of a four-year plan. Hendrickson says that’s another way to figure out a more direct impact the reforms could have on you.

“It’s good time to kind of reflect on, you know, looking at that pay stub and seeing how much money is coming out of the pay stub,” he described. “Because I think a lot of us get used to just, you know, it gets taken out. Not necessarily until tax time. So, I guess we’re coming up on tax time here. People don’t really notice exactly how much that they’re paying. And so, you know, if you take a look at that tax stub, that’ll give you a sense of how much money that you would save under these.”

Under both plans, you’d have to pay less in some taxes and more in others.

“The issue is I think that whenever you’re sort of lowering one tax and raising another tax, I think people have a tendency to think well, this is just kind of a wash, right?” He noted. “But the objective here is by simplifying the tax code, you’re hoping that that’s not a wash. So, what should happen is that people will end up at the end of the day having more money in their pocket.”

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