26 October 2017 House approves Senate-passed FY 2018 budget resolution The House on October 26, 2017, approved 216-212, the Senate-passed FY 2018 budget resolution (H. Con. Res. 71), a significant step in allowing tax reform legislation to advance in Congress. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) announced after the vote that his Committee's tax reform bill will be released on November 1 and that a markup of the legislation will begin on November 6. Both chambers agreeing to the same budget resolution authorizes the use of the budget reconciliation process that will allow a tax reform bill to pass the Senate by a simple majority vote (with the Vice President available to break a tie). Republicans hold 52 Senate seats, short of the 60-vote threshold necessary to overcome a filibuster. "By passing this budget today, House Republicans just provided the legislative runway for pro-growth tax reform," Chairman Brady said in a news release, which is attached. "Our successful vote will allow us to move forward quickly on delivering the first overhaul of America's tax code in more than three decades." The budget resolution's reconciliation instructions provide for a net tax cut of not more than $1.5 trillion over 10 years. The budget resolution was approved in the House despite some Republican members having threatened to withhold their support until an approach to softening the proposed elimination of the state and local tax deduction was made known.
Document ID: 2017-1778 | |||||
