Week ahead: House sets vote on tax overhaul

The House will vote on its version of the Republican tax reform bill in the coming week, as leaders race to get legislation to President Trump’s desk by Thanksgiving.

“Millions of families are counting on us. Millions of small business owners are counting on us,” House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said of the bill on Thursday. “The House will vote on this bill next week to deliver a win for the American people.

The bill, which was approved along party lines in the House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday, is the centerpiece of the Republican legislative agenda.

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The measure — which reduces the number of individual tax rates, slashes the corporate tax rate and eliminates many deductions and credits — was approved on a party-line vote of 24-16 in the committee.

The only changes made to the bill during a marathon four-day markup were from amendments offered by Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas).

Thursday afternoon, Brady made a number of changes to the bill which included restoring the adoption tax credit, additional tax relief for pass-through businesses and higher tax rates on repatriated foreign earnings. Brady also offered an amendment on Monday.

Brady said the amendment “takes action on three crucial priorities — helping American families, providing tax relief to Main Street startups and increasing American competitiveness.”

“Americans deserve a new tax code for a new era of prosperity, and today we deliver,” Brady added.

But Republicans still face serious obstacles before their tax plan can be signed into law.

A Senate version of the plan released Thursday contained significant differences from the House version, and bridging the divide will not be easy.

While the Senate also set its sights on passing a bill before Thanksgiving, that deadline is looking less realistic.

The Senate Finance Committee will begin to mark up its tax proposal on Monday, Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) announced.

“This is just the start of the legislative process in the Senate,” Hatch said in a statement. “We expect robust committee debate on the policies in this bill, will have an open amendment process, and hope to report legislation by the end of the week.”

The Senate proposal lowers the top individual and corporate tax rates and keeps some of the tax breaks that are eliminated in the House GOP tax bill.

But some GOP senators are quickly raised concerns about their chamber’s tax plan hours after being briefed on the details.

“I remain concerned over how the current tax reform proposals will grow the already staggering national debt by opting for short-term fixes while ignoring long-term problems for taxpayers and the economy,” said GOP Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.). 

Sens. John McCain (Ariz.), Bob Corker (Tenn.) and James Lankford (Okla.) expressed similar concerns about the debt, while Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Mike Lee (Utah) objected to the size of the child tax credit increase.

Meanwhile, conservative political groups and businesses are worried over Senate plans to delay the corporate tax cut until 2019. FreedomWorks called the proposed delay “unacceptable,” while stocks fell sharply on the news.

Senate leaders delayed the corporate rate to give themselves $100 billion in savings to address other concerns with the plan. The Republican budget gives lawmakers room to make $1.5 trillion in tax cuts over ten years without violating rules that would allow the tax bill to pass with 51 votes.

Republicans are dedicated to a massive tax cut for corporations, arguing it would make U.S. businesses more competitive globally and boost economic growth. But delaying the corporate tax cut could prompt businesses to hold off on key investments.

Your week ahead:

Monday:

• Senate Finance Committee: Markup of tax overhaul bill, 3 p.m. http://bit.ly/2zy31PD 

Tuesday:

• House Financial Services Committee: Markup of more than 20 bills ranging from Dodd-Frank Act revisions to sanctions on Iran, 10 a.m. http://bit.ly/2AreOhX.
• House Foreign Affairs Committee: Hearing on Brexit negotiations, 2 p.m. http://bit.ly/2AsvaXh.

Wednesday:

• House Foreign Affairs Committee: Hearing entitled “Development Finance in Asia: U.S. Economic Strategy Amid China’s Belt and Road,” 2:30 p.m. http://bit.ly/2ApJRur.

Recap the week with Overnight Finance:

Monday: Live coverage of GOP tax bill markup | House gets deal on flood insurance overhaul | Five questions for next Fed chair | Chip makers plan tech mega-merger

Tuesday: GOP criticism of tax bill grows, but few no votes | Highlights from day two of markup | House votes to overturn joint-employer rule | Senate panel approves North Korean banking sanctions

Wednesday:  Day three of tax bill markup | Ryan says election results raise pressure for tax reform | Tax whip list – Where Republicans stand | Justice, AT&T spar over CNN sale | 25 Dems vow to block spending without Dream Act

Thursday: Senate GOP unveils different approach on tax reform | House tax bill heads to floor | House leaders eye vote next week | AT&T denies pressure for CNN sale

Today’s stories:

• House to consider bill limiting pensions for former presidents, by Cristina Marcos
• Mayors conference ‘strongly opposes’ local provisions of GOP tax bill, by Niv Elis
• Tax plan relies on ‘fantasy economics,’ says debt watchdog, by Niv Elis
• Lighthizer vows to pursue Trump’s ‘America First’ trade agenda, by Vicki Needham
• Senate panel to start tax bill markup on Monday, by Naomi Jagoda
• And keep an eye on The Hill’s Whip List to see where Republicans stand on the House tax bill

Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@digital-release.thehill.com, vneedham@digital-release.thehill.com, and njagoda@digital-release.thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane, @VickofTheHill, and @NJagoda.