Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee Kevin Brady (R-TX) and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) and unveil legislation to overhaul the tax code on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., November 2, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)
UPDATE: The House of Representatives will take another vote on Wednesday after an unexpected hurdle in the U.S. Senate. Provisions included in the tax overhaul were flagged by the parliamentarian. The upper chamber will vote and the lower chamber will approve that bill early tomorrow.
The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives has passed the conference version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, moving the measure to the U.S. Senate. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kty., said the upper chamber will take a vote Tuesday night.
“The American people placed their trust in us to do this work for them,” House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said in a post-vote press conference. “Today, we are making good that promise.”
The vote passed by a 227 to 203 margin and applause and cheers filled the room. Not a single Democrat supported the first overhaul to the U.S. tax code in 31 years, and 12 Blue State Republicans defected. They objected to the elimination of the state and local tax deductions, known as SALT, because they represent high-tax states like California, New York and New Jersey.
It’s a stark contrast to the history of the Democratic Party, which no longer has a growth wing.
In 1986, Democrats Dick Gephardt and Dan Rostenkowski helped the last overhaul get through the House, and Bill Bradley was considered one of the top architects of the measure in the Senate. The Senate approved the measure 74 to 23, with 33 Democrats voting “Yes” on the final bill, which slashed the top marginal income tax rate to 28%.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act slashes the U.S. corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%. It imposes a $10,000 cap on state and local taxes deductions and mostly repeals the death tax. The final version of the bill also repealed the individual mandate established by ObamaCare.
“Come February, check your check,” House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said. “Because you’re getting a raise.”
Speaker Ryan said the Republican conference has every intention of pushing for the individual tax cuts to be permanent. The 10-year sunset provision was added to avoid parliamentarian rules that require a 60-vote threshold for passage in the U.S. Senate.
Check out how the tax reform overhaul impacts you with the tax plan calculator.
