With a Consensus Tax Bill, Christmas May Come Early for Republicans
Posted on Dec 13, 2017
An agreement between Senate and House Republicans on a tax bill was finalized Wednesday morning. According to lawmakers and reports from aides, Senate and House Republicans have agreed to provisions including the following: • Corporate tax rate will drop from 35% to 21%, to go in effect in 2018. • Individuals will be allowed to deduct up to $10,000 in state and local taxes, split between property taxes and income or sales taxes paid. • Corporate alternative minimum tax will be rescinded. • The individual income tax rate will drop from 39.6% to 37%, however the threshold for this top rate...
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House-Senate Conference Committee Meeting on Republican Tax Reform Bill Held Today
Posted on Dec 13, 2017
The House-Senate Conference Committee met today to discuss the previously passed Senate and House versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. During this meeting the Chief of Staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation, Thomas Barthold, provided a brief overview of the key differences in the tax bills and answered questions regarding the two bills in question. This is the only such meeting of the House-Senate Conference Committee that will be held. Earlier today congressional Republicans reached a deal on a final version of the tax bill. Republicans expect to have a final vote on the bill next week....
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Conference Committee Working to Resolve House and Senate Differences
Posted on Dec 12, 2017
Conference Committee negotiators in the House and Senate over the weekend did not reach a compromise on the different versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The main issues include the timing of the 20% corporate rate cut and whether to allow deductions for state and local taxes. Currently, Congressional Republicans hope to finalize the bill by December 20th, and Kevin Brady, Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, expects a vote on the finalized bill by next week. Additionally, the Department of Treasury released its growth and revenue estimates regarding the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,...
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Brady Indicates That Tax Legislation Will Include Repeal of Individual Mandate
Posted on Dec 6, 2017
The Senate voted to go to conference in order to reconcile their tax bill with the House Tax bill today. However, there are many differences that need to be worked out between the two bills. Key differences include the repeal of the alternative minimum tax, the implementation timing of the corporate tax rate reduction, and the repeal of the individual mandate. The repeal of the individual mandate was not in the House bill as there were concerns that it would decrease support for the legislation. However, there is support for the provision from conservative Republicans, and Ways and Means...
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House Sends Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to Conference Committee
Posted on Dec 5, 2017
The House voted Monday to send the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to conference committee to resolve the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill. The committee has 14 House total members, 9 Republican and 5 Democratic. The Republican members are: Keven Brady (the Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee), Ron Bishop, Diane Black, Kristi Noem, Devin Nunes, Peter Roskam, John Shimkus, Greg Walden, and Don Young. The Democratic members are: Kathy Castor, Lloyd Doggett, Raúl Grijalva, Sander Levin, and Richard Neal. Read more: Congress Moves Closer to Final Tax bill with House...
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All in a Late Night’s Work: Senate Passes Tax Bill
Posted on Dec 4, 2017
At approximately 2:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, the Senate passed its tax reform bill with a vote of 51-49. Changes to the bill, including some handwritten into the document, were made leading up to the final vote. The only Republican to vote against the bill was Senator Bob Corker who has continued concerns regarding the estimated $1+ trillion deficit over the next 10 years. Corker made many last-minute demands to offset the deficit and dramatically held court on the Senate floor for nearly an hour. However, those concerns did not block former holdout Senator Jeff Flake from his “yea” vote...
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Increased Support Among Senate Republicans For Tax Bill But Some Opposition Remains
Posted on Nov 29, 2017
The Senate voted today on party lines to proceed with floor debate on the tax bill. Recently, there has been increased support for the tax legislation among Senate Republicans. Senators James Lankford and Jerry Moran, both former holdouts, indicated that they would support the legislation. Senators Ron Johnson and Bob Corker, vocal critics of the bill, both voted in favor of the bill in the Tuesday Senate Budget Committee vote. In addition, Senator Susan Collins, who voted against the healthcare bill, might be open to supporting the bill. However, Senators Steve Daines, John McCain, and Jeff...
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Senate Budget Committee Passes the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Posted on Nov 28, 2017
The Senate Budget Committee has passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on a 12-11 vote. This procedural hurdle was necessary for the bill to be considered on the floor of the Senate. Read more: Senate Budget Committee Advances GOP Tax Bill
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Legal Alert: The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Take Three: A Methods-Based Review of the Senate’s Initial Draft of Tax Reform Legislation
Posted on Nov 28, 2017
View the Eversheds Sutherland Legal Alert comparing the tax accounting and accounting method provisions of the initial Senate proposal that differ from the final legislative language passed by the Senate Finance Committee here.
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Legal Alert: Tax Reform Executive Summary – A 2-Pager on the 7 Things You Need to Know
Posted on Nov 28, 2017
View the Eversheds Sutherland Legal Alert providing a high-level overview of the top 7 tax reform issues that all executives need to know here.
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Senate May Vote on Its Tax Reform Bill as Early as Thursday, but There Are Hurdles to Overcome
Posted on Nov 27, 2017
At least a half dozen Republican senators have shown concern about the Senate version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, threatening the passage of the bill by the end of this year. The bill, passed out of the Senate Finance Committee on November 17, faces its next major hurdle from the Senate Budget Committee who will meet Tuesday, November 28, to add a revenue-raising measure allowing drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Senate Budget Committee members who have expressed doubts regarding the bill include Sen. Ron Johnson, the only declared “no” on the tax legislation who believes...
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Senate Tax Bill Differs from House Bill in Treatment of Multinationals
Posted on Nov 22, 2017
The Senate recently released the legislative text of their version of the tax bill. The bill defers in several key respects from the House bill in its treatment of the income of multinational companies, particularly in the way that it addresses global intangible low-taxed income, foreign derived intangible income, and base erosion. The Senate vote could occur as early as November 30th. If the legislation is approved, these differences (among others) will need to be addressed in a conference committee. Read More: ‘Future Tax Traps’ Lurk for Multinationals in Senate’s Proposal...
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Legal Alert: Worldwide Territoriality: International Tax Proposals Broaden the Base
Posted on Nov 22, 2017
View the Eversheds Sutherland Legal Alert focusing on international tax reform proposals in the House Plan and the Senate Plan here.
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Senate Releases the Legislative Text of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Posted on Nov 21, 2017
The Senate has released the its version of the legislative text for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Read the full text here. Read the section by section summary of the act here.
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White House Officials State Willingness to Sacrifice Health Care Provision for the Tax Reform Greater Good
Posted on Nov 20, 2017
The White House Budget Director, Mick Mulvaney, indicated that the Trump Administration is willing to strike the health care provision in the Senate’s proposed tax legislation repealing the requirement that everyone in the U.S. have health insurance or pay a fine. Striking this provision would leave the Senate $338 billion short of their revenue goal and would require Republican senators to find money elsewhere in order to vote on tax reform with a simple majority vote. Director Mulvaney said that there is no doubt that the White House plans to repeal and replace Obamacare, but “if it...
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