08 November 2017 First group of amendments defeated by Ways & Means The House Ways and Means Committee markup of the "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act" continued November 8, 2017, for the third day, and an initial series of Democratic amendments was defeated. Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) said the markup will conclude on Thursday, November 9, at a time to be determined. He said it is possible that he will offer another amendment with changes to the bill but gave no indication of when. The Committee is facing a potential revenue shortfall after the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation's revenue estimate of Brady's Amendment to the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute adopted on Monday said it would add $1.5742 trillion to the deficit over 10 years, which is higher than the $1.5 trillion reconciliation instruction limit. Modifications to the excise tax/deemed effectively connected income provision were estimated to reduce the amount of revenue it would raise by $147.5 billion over 10 years. The amended provision would now raise only $7 billion over 10 years. During the first group of votes, Rep. John Larson's (D-CT) amendment to restore the medical expense deduction under the bill and drop the threshold of expenses to 7.5% of the taxpayer's income was defeated 16-24. An amendment by Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) to strike Section 5201 of the bill, regarding changes to the "Johnson Amendment" that would allow churches to make statements related to political campaigns without jeopardizing their tax-exempt status (provided the speech is de minimis and completed in the ordinary course of the organization's business), was defeated 16-23. Rep. Lloyd Doggett's (D-TX) amendment to strike Section 1204 of the bill — which would repeal the above-the-line deductions for interest payments on qualified education loans and tuition and related expenses, and the exclusions for interest on United States savings bonds used to pay for tuition, qualified tuition reductions, and employer-provided education assistance — and reinstate the $250 above-the-line deduction for out-of-pocket teacher expenses was defeated 16-24. Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA) said the amendment addresses the core of the Democratic objection to the tax bill: benefits for the middle class are being cut to lessen the burden of provisions for higher incomes, like the estate tax. Republicans continued to argue that lower tax rates were preferable to small and special tax provisions in the Code currently. Rep. Mike Thompson's (D-CA) amendment to retroactively extend and make permanent the exclusion from income on mortgage debt forgiveness and repeal the limitations in the bill on the exclusion from capital gain on the sale of a taxpayer's principal residence was defeated 16-24. Rep. Judy Chu's (D-CA) amendment to expand the Earned Income Tax Credit to childless workers was defeated 16-24. An amendment by Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-WA) to strike the section eliminating private activity bonds and increase low income housing tax credits available by 50% was defeated 16-24. Rep. Joe Crowley's (D-NY) amendment to provide an $8,000 first-time homeowner's credit, renter's credit for those who pay more than 30% of income in rent, and a new refundable tax credit for one month's rent was defeated 16-24. Rep. Chu said the Republican tax plan would "create a nation of renters" by punishing homebuyers through limits on the mortgage interest deduction. Crowley said there are middle-class people with homes worth more than $500,000, the proposed cap on the mortgage interest deduction.
Document ID: 2017-1884 | |||||
