With Republicans expected to take control of the U.S. House in January, U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan continued his push to make tax cuts enacted by the Trump administration permanent–and now the Florida congressman has reeled up more than 100 members of the GOP caucus to back his proposal.
When he introduced the “TCJA Permanency Act” in September, Buchanan noted 23 different tax cuts from the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA)” signed into law in 2017 will end after 2025.
“In 2017, Republicans delivered the most comprehensive overhaul of the U.S. tax code in more than three decades and achieved historic economic growth,” said Buchanan, who sits on the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee. “Under the leadership of Leader Brady, we delivered historic tax relief to low and middle-income families and small businesses across all income levels. With Americans continuing to suffer under the weight of record-high inflation and an uncertain economic future, we need to provide some much-needed relief and certainty to hardworking families and ensure these tax cuts do not expire.”
Buchanan doubled down on that position this week, saying his proposal will help curb the damage from inflation.
“Inflation is a tax on all Americans, pure and simple. Under President Biden’s cruel economy, inflation is still raging at a 40-year high and Americans are paying the price in the form of increased costs on everything from gas to groceries,” said Buchanan. “The last thing families and Main Street businesses need are more tax hikes, which is exactly what will happen unless Congress takes action to make these tax cuts permanent.”
According to Buchanan’s office, the proposal:
Permanently lowers tax rates for individuals and families, allowing Americans at every income level to keep more of their hard-earned money
Preserves the 20 percent deduction for small businesses, ensuring taxes won’t go up on Main Street businesses, which employ nearly half of the U.S. workforce
Maintains the higher standard deduction, increasing the amount of tax-free income a middle-class family can earn
Locks in the doubled child tax credit, further encouraging workforce participation
Permanently simplifies the tax filing process, allowing 9 out of 10 Americans to get the full benefit of tax deductions without the headache of tracking receipts or itemizing
The bill “also includes a number of important updates to a previous iteration of this bill, including several technical fixes and expanded eligible uses of 529 savings plans to help parents and students.”
The Tax Foundation and Americans for Tax Reform are backing the bill.
“Initial estimates from the nonpartisan Tax Foundation show that a single mother of two earning $52,000 would face a $1,500 tax hike in 2026. For a married couple with two children and $85,000 in income, the additional tax bill would be over $1,700 per year,” Buchanan’s office noted.
“This startling new information from the Tax Foundation makes crystal clear the need to permanently lock in these low tax rates,” said Buchanan. “As American families and businesses across the country are struggling to make ends meet in Biden’s cruel economy, the last thing they need is a looming tax hike.”
Buchanan also noted that Grover Norquist from Americans for Tax Reform is backing the bill.
“This bill makes it clear that protecting the pro-growth tax cuts passed in 2017 remains a top priority for Republicans when they take back Congress,” Norquist said. “The TCJA Permanency Act will help right the ship and get the American economy growing again.”
Buchanan’s proposal was sent to the Ways and Means Committee. With U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, the chairman of the committee, retiring next year, Buchanan hopes to become the next chairman.
At the end of last month, Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee held a roundtable that featured Buchanan’s proposal.
This week, Buchanan said more than 100 co-sponsors, all on the GOP side, have lined up behind the bill, including Florida Republican U.S. Reps. Gus Bilirakis, Kat Cammack, Mario Diaz-Balart, Neal Dunn, Scott Franklin, Matt Gaetz, Carlos Gimenez, Brian Mast, Bill Posey, Maria Elvira Salazar and Greg Steube.
However, with Democrats keeping control of the U.S. Senate after last week’s elections, Buchanan will have difficulty getting his bill through the upper chamber. So far, there is no companion measure over in the U.S. Senate.
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