Lead congressional and White House tax reform negotiators announced late last week that they still plan to release a more detailed document in September to expand upon a set of agreed-upon tax reform principles outlined in July.
While details are unknown, the document is expected to provide more insight into the evolving tax reform framework being built by the Trump Administration and Republican leadership in the House and Senate. Proposals for lower rates are anticipated on both the individual and corporate sides of the tax code, including an expanded standard deduction for individual taxpayers.
Initially, the House and Senate tax writing committees had hoped to have a comprehensive tax reform bill ready for consideration by the end of summer, but a crowded legislative calendar and difficulties finding a path forward on health care have pushed the effort into the fall. House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) acknowledged that negotiators remain on an “aggressive timeline” but said that they remained on schedule to “move this to the president’s desk by the end of the year.”
It is unclear how much the new tax reform document will expand upon previous assurances from Republican leaders that any revamp of the tax code would maintain incentives for charitable giving, even while many other popular tax expenditures face the chopping block.
Independent Sector has been engaging with key congressional officials to ensure that charitable giving is protected and strengthened in the tax reform process, calling for a universal deduction available to all taxpayers to offset unintended, but expected, reductions in charitable giving if tax reform efforts include stated priorities to reduce top rates and double the standard deduction.
TAKE ACTION
This August is the time to weigh in on this critical issue. Please visit our August recess resources and take a moment to reach out to your Members of Congress to tell them to protect and strengthen giving as part of tax reform.
