Taxation & Representation: Critical Tax Relief Package Heads to Senate Vote – See What’s Inside

Schumer Files Cloture on Wyden-Smith Tax Package: On July 29, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) filed cloture on the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act (H.R. 7024), a tax package negotiated by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO). The package will be scheduled for a procedural vote on Aug. 1.

Harris Pledges to Follow Biden’s Tax Pledge as Her Tax Policy Priorities Take Shape: On July 26, a spokesperson for Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential election campaign stated that, if elected, she would not raise taxes on individuals making under $400,000 per year. This is the first indication that Harris would follow President Biden’s pledge, which has heavily influenced his economic policies throughout his tenure. It is also a departure from her 2020 campaign position, which set the limit at $100,000.

Appropriations Update: House Delays Consideration of FSGG Appropriations Bill as Senate Committee Tees Up Consideration this Week: On July 23, House leadership canceled floor consideration of three of four fiscal year (FY) 2025 Appropriations bills, including the Financial Services-General Government bill that funds the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS). All three bills were pulled over intraparty conflict and concerns that the bills would not pass, as certain factions of the House Republican Conference expressed opposition to riders and funding mechanisms in each of the bills. With the House ending its legislative session early, the FSGG bill will not be considered until September at the earliest. The current version of the FY 2025 House FSGG bill would provide the IRS with about $10.1 billion, a $2.35 billion reduction in funding from the IRS’s FY 2024 funding level, with a $2 billion cut in enforcement and $350 million cut from operations support. The amount of funding allocated for taxpayer service operations would remain unchanged from FY 2024 levels.

Senate Continues Confirmation of Tax Court Nominees: On Feb. 25, the Senate confirmed Kashi Way by a 79-16 vote to be a judge on the U.S. Tax Court for a 15-year term, followed by the confirmation of Adam B. Landy on July 29 by a 73-13 vote. Another nominee, Rose E. Jenkins, who was reported favorably by the Senate Finance Committee at the same time as Way and Landy, is expected to receive a confirmation vote soon.

G20 Countries Issue Declaration to Work Together on Taxation of Ultra-High-Net-Worth Individuals: On July 26, the finance ministers of the Group of 20 (G20) issued a joint communique titled “The Rio de Janeiro G20 Ministerial Declaration on International Tax Cooperation” in which the ministers committed to develop a global plan to tax ultra-high-net-worth individuals. The declaration does not detail specific language as to the approach to ensure the effective taxation of such individuals, but it indicates that a cooperative effort by the G20 countries “could involve exchanging best practices, encouraging debates around tax principles, and devising anti-avoidance mechanisms, including addressing potentially harmful tax practices.” The joint communique did not address whether such negotiations would be conducted through the United Nations or the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), both of which continue to compete for primacy in this issue area. While Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said that this declaration is merely the start of “a broader process that will require the participation of academia, scholars, and international organizations,” other officials acknowledged the difficulty of implementing such an agreement. With the release of the declaration, OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann issued a statement expressing support for the efforts of the Brazilian G20 presidency.

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