House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., announced Thursday that Congress would extend President-elect Donald Trump’s tax cuts to benefit seniors receiving Social Security. This proposal is part of a broader set of plans Smith outlined for the upcoming agenda of the panel. “We’ll be using reconciliation to extend Trump’s tax cuts to make sure that they don’t expire and also to address other tax provisions that President Trump campaigned on, like no tax on tips,” Smith said on the “Just the News, No Noise” TV show.
Reconciliation is a legislative process in Congress that allows lawmakers to expedite the approval of certain bills by bypassing the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster threshold. A major concern among older voters is the financial strain of Social Security taxes, as many rely on a fixed income and view these taxes as a significant burden, Just the News added. “In regards to the Social Security tax, it cannot be in reconciliation under the law,” Smith said. “Social Security is not allowed to be there.” He noted further that there was an alternative to helping seniors with the burden of a high social security tax.
“We can use the tax code in a way to help reduce the taxes that seniors pay,” Smith said. “Seniors have not seen any increase on the thresholds for their taxation. In the early 1980s it was $25,000 per person [and] $32,000 for a married couple. There was a marriage penalty. In fact, that has not changed in 40 years.” He went on to say that inflation has also significantly contributed to the problem. “Inflation has gone up a lot in 40 years, so we’re going to have to figure out ways of helping address and help those seniors who have been wrongfully served for 40 years,” Smith said.
The Missouri Republican also told the program that the Ways and Means Committee is taking steps to get legislation through as soon as Trump takes office. “I’ll tell you the Ways and Means Committee is ready on day one in the next Congress, but we’re going to continue to work the next two months to make sure all of our ducks in a row,” he said. Smith mentioned that a budget must be passed before reconciliation can occur, but this will happen in a different committee.
One of Trump’s campaign promises was to implement “no tax on tips.” Smith stated that a priority for the Ways and Means Committee will be to ensure this legislation is passed. “Whenever we pass our tax legislation….I have said that there will not be a tax bill that will leave the House of Representatives that does not have that ‘no tax on tips,'” he said. “It’s in the Republican Party platform.” He mentioned that there would be ‘no tax on tips’ included in the tax bill set for early next year, emphasizing that it is a top priority for Trump.
Smith said one of the main goals of his committee was to extend Trump’s tax cuts into the future, saying “I will not allow a $7 trillion tax increase on small businesses. Every single American will face a tax increase if Congress does not do their job, and I’m not going to allow that to happen under my watch.”
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