[ad_1]
The House of Representatives is expected to give broad bipartisan approval Wednesday to a $78 billion bill that would expand the child tax credit and restore a series of corporate tax breaks, making it the first Congress in an election year to expand the child tax credit and restore a series of corporate tax breaks. This is an unprecedented feat.
But the bill still faces an uphill road to passage amid political divisions over who would benefit most. The effort faces resistance from Senate Republicans and some House members from both parties, but a painfully narrowly divided Congress is countering the dysfunction in the Republican-led House by setting aside electoral politics. There will be wins for both sides.
“The Tax Cuts for American Families and Workers Act is an important bipartisan bill to restore conservative, pro-growth tax reform,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement Wednesday. “This bottom-up process is a great example of how Congress should legislate.”
The package would expand the child tax credit and reinstate a range of business tax breaks related to research and development and capital spending, albeit significantly reduced from pandemic-era levels. Both measures, scheduled to last until 2025, will also strengthen low-income housing tax credits and expand tax incentives for disaster victims and Taiwanese businesses and individuals.
The plan would be funded by curbing the Employee Retention Tax Credit, a pandemic-era measure meant to encourage employers to keep workers on the payroll, but which has been linked to fraud. It has become.
Lawmakers of both parties see it as a policy victory and a way to show voters that despite the chaos and chaos that has come to characterize the Republican-led House, things can actually get done. Regarded as such.
“The vast majority of the country really wants to get things done on a bipartisan basis,” Rep. Greg Murphy, R-North Carolina, said in an interview. “We’ve seen a lot of gridlock because there are people who basically want to say no to everything. And we need to move forward and show people that we can actually govern.” I think.”
But in a sign of the growing political hurdles to passing the bill, Mr Johnson brought it to the floor on Wednesday under a special fast-track procedure that requires a two-thirds majority to pass. I plan to bring it in. This maneuver allows him to bypass Republican lawmakers who could have blocked the bill on policy or political objections.
Senate Republicans are also trying to pump the brakes, another sign of the political hurdles facing the policy. The bill is a victory for President Biden and Democrats who have made expanding the child tax credit a key issue, including Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who is up for re-election this year and is a key target for Republicans in November. It will be.
Lawmakers in New York and other high-tax blue states also said the bill would eliminate the increase they had sought in increasing the state and local tax deduction known as SALT, which benefits high-income earners. I’m angry that it’s been omitted. New York state Republicans showed their anger Tuesday by temporarily blocking procedural steps to protest.
“The important thing is, as we’ve said many times this Congress, “It’s clear that there is strength in numbers,” he said. Once you have made your point, switch your vote. “But for those of us who have accomplished much, this is an important question.”
After a long meeting on Tuesday night, Mr Johnson allayed their concerns by promising to find a way to deal with SALT.
“Chairman Johnson and Speaker Smith agreed to continue working with members of Congress to find a path forward on SALT legislation,” said Athina Lawson, a spokeswoman for the Speaker’s Office.
The policy, under consideration Wednesday, was proposed by Congress’ two top tax officials, Rep. Jason Smith, R-Missouri, chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, and Sen. Ron Wyden, Democrat of Oregon, chairman of the Finance Committee. Mediated. It has the support of the White House, key leaders of both parties on Capitol Hill, and various rank-and-file members. It gained momentum after the Ways and Means Committee approved it with an overwhelming bipartisan majority in January.
Supporters point to the vote and how unlikely it was that a tax deal would be reached as a good sign for that outlook.
“I think there was a general assessment about 90 days ago that there was no context to the cause of passing a bipartisan tax bill,” Wyden said last week. “I mean, I had no choice.”
Republicans argue that the corporate tax cut is worth accepting, and that the child tax credit is a victory for conservatives.
“The child tax credit reform in this bill is a pro-family policy that preserves the child tax credit structure of Trump-era Republican tax reform,” Smith said in a statement. “The child tax credit provisions in this bill help families overwhelmed by inflation, eliminate penalties for families with multiple children, and maintain work requirements.”
And the bill’s supporters hope a strong bipartisan vote in the House will put pressure on Senate Republicans to drop their opposition.
“If we get a really big vote, this won’t be a traditional political pro-vs.-con debate,” Wyden said. People will say, “I really need that money.” That would make a big difference. ”
The bill would make it easier for families with multiple children to take advantage of the $2,000 per child credit, and would gradually increase the amount that low-income households can claim as much as higher-income households. . The credit also automatically adjusts for inflation, allowing parents to use their previous year’s income if they qualify for more credit.
Right-wing Republicans denounced the expansion, saying it was a disincentive to work. They also oppose allowing undocumented immigrants with U.S.-born children who qualify under current law to receive the credit.
“I’m not going to support anything that expands the child tax credit that would significantly expand the welfare state,” said Rep. Bob Good, Republican of Virginia and chairman of the House Freedom Caucus. “And I’m not going to support a child tax credit for illegal aliens. I think it’s encouraging this illegal invasion, and we should come together as Republicans to stand up against this.”
Progressive Democrats, meanwhile, say the bill doesn’t expand tax credits enough and unfairly benefits businesses. That’s a far cry from the pandemic-era Child Tax Credit, which put up to $3,600 per child into families’ bank accounts and helped lift millions of children out of poverty.
“This tax deal fails on fairness,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, said in a statement. “At a time when a majority of American voters believe that taxes on big corporations should go up, there is no reason why we should give them tax breaks while giving families pennies,” she said.
[ad_2]
Source link